STRAWBERRY-LOUSE. 



{Aphis forhesi.) 



Plant-lice that feed on the leaves and on the roots of the strawberry. 



Of late there have been occasional complaints of root-lice on the 

 strawberry, small green or black lice that appear on the leaf-stems 

 and foliage during late March and early April. Later, about the last 

 of April, the lice are carried underground and placed on the roots of 

 the plants by ants, where they multiply under the care of the latter, 

 until the roots become covered with lice. Many generations are reared 

 during the summer, for the lice y)roduce living young at a rapid rate. 

 Late in the fall, sexual forms appears on the tops, and these deposit 

 large numbers of eggs which are at first orange in color but later be- 

 come shining black. The eggs are attached to the leaves and leaf-stems 

 and remain over winter, thus providing for the spring crop of lice. 



REMEDIES. 



Professor E. I). Sanderson, in the 12th, 13th and 14th Annual Re- 

 ports of the Delaware Experiment Station, insists on the necessity of 

 })utting out clean plants on clean ground, free from strawberry-lice 

 and ants. It is poor practice to put out strawberries on land just 

 T]sed for strawberries which were infested; furthermore, land just used 

 for corn or melons is apt to be well stocked "with ants, therefore it is 

 well to avoid setting out strawberries on land just used for either of 

 these crops when we have reason to fear root-lice. Land that has been 

 under intensive cultivation is less apt to harbor ants than that which has 

 not been stirred constanth'. 



The plants themselves can be pretty thoroughly cleaned of the lice 

 if dipped in tobacco-water after the eggs have been hatched, usually 

 about the middle of April. In order to reach all the lice, the whole 

 plant should be immersed. Prof. Sanderson recommends using about 

 one pound of tobacco waste to a gallon of water and boiling about half 

 an hour. He also recommends burning over the infested beds just as 

 growth commences in the spring, producing a quick, hot fire by means 

 of straw. This kills the lice on the crowns and foliage without injuring 

 the plants if done just right. 



