Insects Injurious to the Potato and Apple. 567 



times called tlie gray grub. It a|)pears in tlie spring about 

 the first of June. During the day it remains concealed in 

 the earth coming out to feed by night, eating, besides pota- 

 toes, beans, cabbages, and some other vegetables. The larva 

 is from three-fourths of an inch to one and one-fourth inches 

 long. A number captured on the thirteenth of June at- 

 tained maturity on the twenty-fifth, when they ceased to 

 eat and soon after buried themselves in the ground and 

 changed to chrysalids. These were a dark brown color 

 and were enclosed in a case made of minute grains of 

 sand glued together. This case was considerably larger 

 than the chrysalis. On the sixteenth of July perfect moths 

 began to appear, and during the week continued to emerge 

 from the chrysalids. I am inclined to believe that this 

 moth does not ordinarily do great damage to potatoes, but if 

 many of them existed in a garden they would undoubtedly 

 destroy many plants. 



Another quite similar pest is that known as the greasy cut 

 worm [Agrotis suffusa, D. and S.), but this attacks other 

 plants quite as readily as the potato, though this is not wholly 

 distasteful to it. The only remedy against cut worms seems 

 to be that of searching them out and destroying them. The 

 wilting of plants and the sure indications of their presence 

 guide the cultivator to their hiding places, and this method 

 has been very advantageously employed in large cornfields. 

 Robins, more I think than any other bird, are useful in des- 

 troying the cut worms of various species. 



Another insect that sometimes does some damage to the 

 potato crop is the five spotted sphinx {Macrosila quinque 

 Tnaculata, Haio.)^ the larva of which is the common large 



