20 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Mr. Moi'iill: We all understand it would be very difficult to reach all 

 of them on the tree with the spray, at this time, on account of the foliage. 

 Now^, if kerosene emulsion will kill them after the foliage is shed in the 

 fall, they are easily killed. 



Mr. Davis: Kegarding that, I would sooner recommend something a 

 little different. I would wait until spring, when these eggs are in the 

 scale. It is much easier to find them then than in the fall. I think you 

 could be very successful with a solution of potash. That has been used 

 in New Jersey with great success. It can not be used while the tree is 

 growing, but while it is dormant, in the winter, it can be used. I should 

 prefer to take it in the spring rather than in the fall. Speaking of scales, 

 I have a sample I can show you. It is different from anything I have 

 seen. You strike the bark and they will buzz just like a swarm of bees. 

 Flies will gather around over these insects, and the young ones will crawl 

 upon the flies, and the flies will carry them off a long distance. I have 

 also a sample of the round-head apple-tree borer. [Mr. Davis exhibited 

 a branch of elm, thickly covered with scale insects.] 



Mr. L. W. Wilton : Have you had any experience with black ants troub- 

 ling orchards? I have an orchard that is about three years old and I find 

 that the ants are getting very numerous— black ants. Whether they are 

 likely to damage the tree, or whether there is any way to kill them, is 

 what I wish to know. 



Prof. Davis : The most damage done to the tree is to the roots, by these 

 ants. The ants can be disposed of very easily by the use of bisulphide of 

 carbon. It is a liquid, but as soon as you expose it to the air it becomes 

 a gas. Pour from a pint to a quart into an ant-hole, and quickly cover 

 the hole with a wet blanket and leave it there for from twelve to twenty- 

 four hours, and it will smother the ants. When it evaporates it becomes 

 a gas much like coal gas. and smothers the ants. 



Question : What remedy do you use for the round-headed borers? 

 Prof. Davis : I think the "best remedy is Paris green or carbolic acid. It 

 should be put on before the borers make their appearance. They are lay- 

 ing their eggs about this time. It should be put on about the twentieth 

 of^^Iny. It should be put on two or three times because the rains will 

 wash it off. Whitewash with arsenic is also good. When the young 

 borers eat through that whitewash it will kill them. You should be care- 

 ful to get all the crevices covered when you wash the trees. 



Mr. Rice: We are troubled with that borer, especially in crab-apple 

 trees.' In desperation, I thought the trees were of no use; I got the kero- 

 sene oil can and thought I would kill it anyway. To my astonishment the 

 tree lived and got well. I only tried it in that one instance. 

 Mr. Morrill:" I am much afraid of such statements. 

 Mr. Lyon : I have reason to believe that the flat-headed borer is gener- 

 ally found around the base of the trees, and the round-headed is a great 

 deal more voracious. The flat-headed borer will almost always bore 

 directly into the base of the trees. The round-headed borer is seldom, 

 if everl found near the base of the trees. I don't believe you can find a 

 borer in mv orchard at South Haven. I have never seen one. 



Mr. Rice: We are troubled most with the flat-headed borer in maples 

 that are moved from forests. 



