88 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



THE PEACH BORER. 



HARRY G. TAFT. 



As the Peach Yellows is the worst disease of the Peach, so the Peach 

 Borer is the worst insect enemy. It also works on plums, prunes and 

 cherries. 



There are four stages in the life-cycle of this insect; adult, egg and 

 larva and pupa. The adult is a small moth having clear wings which are 

 covered with metallic blue and orange scales. The eggs are laid be- 

 tween October 15th and June 1st, generally on the bark. The larvae or 

 borers, which are the ones that do the damage, are soft-bodied and are 

 grayish-white with brown head and legs. After entering the tree they 

 work first in the bark and later find their zone of action in the cambium 

 layer, between the bark and the wood near the crown of the tree. As 

 the cambium layer is the living part of the tree, it can readily be seen 

 that unless they are removed, these borers will soon girdle the tree and 

 kill it. They usually work either a foot above or below the ground, 

 but in old trees, thej are found in the highest branches. 



They pass the winter in the larval state, sometimes being nearly full- 

 grown. In the spring, they resume feeding and after attaining their 

 growth, they spin their cocoons near the mouth of their burrows. 



During June, the adults begin to emerge from their cocoons and lay 

 their eggs. In this fact lies the greatest trouble in the destruction, for 

 if they were all laid at the same time, it would be an easy matter to 

 control them, but extending through September as the period does, 

 about the only method to be employed is the boring. 



The dirt is dug away from the tree and all the larvae are destroyed, 

 these are easily found as the presence of the larvae is indicated by 

 masses of gum. 



Many remedies have been tried but only a few have been successful ; 

 among the successful ones being wrapping tobacco waste around the 

 trunk, or using heavy paper in the same way. This prevents many from 

 gaining lodgment. 



The boring should be done in both spring and fall and should be done 

 very thoroughly. The dirt should be left away from the tree and the 

 bored wood should be painted with a mixture of white lead and pure 

 raw oil. This results in the killing of the tender larvae by the action 

 of the sun and still prevents the drying out of the trunk. Another 

 method is to bank the dirt about a foot high around the tree and in this 

 manner forcing the insect to bore in the tree after which they can be 

 removed much more easilv. 



