112 THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



CALENDAR OF INSECT PESTS AND 

 PLANT DISEASES. 



By E. J. VosLER. 



[Under the above heading the author aims to give brief, popular descriptions and 

 methods of controlling insect pests and plant diseases as nearly as possible just prior 

 to or at the time when the suggestions given should be carried into effect by the 

 growers.] 



DECIDUOUS FRUIT ENEMIES. 



The Pear Leaf Blister Mite. 



The pear leaf blister mite attacks the foliage and fruit of the apple and 

 pear. These mites cause reddish or greenish galls on the foliage. Later 

 these galls become dead and as a result the leaf functions are impaired 

 to a great extent, depending, of course, upon the amount of infestation. 

 The minute full grown mites hibernate in the winter time under the 

 bud scales, emerging in the spring to insert their eggs in holes bored 

 in the undersides of the young leaves. The stage in which the mite 

 is commonly controlled is the adult, as the larvae working in the galls 

 found in the leaves are untouched by sprays. 



Only severe cases warrant special control measures. A. L. Quain- 

 tance, in Circular 154, Bureau of Entomologyj U. S. Department of 

 Agriculture, recommends either commercial lime-sulphur solution or 

 homemade, the formula of the latter being lime 20 pounds, sulphur 

 15 pounds, and water to make 50 gallons. Apply the spray just before 

 the foliage is out. Thorough spraying is necessary. LTse high pressure. 



The Brown Mite. 



The almond mite, brown mite or clover mite, as it is sometimes 

 termed, is an important pest of the almond. It also attacks the plum, 

 peach, apricot and other deciduous trees. The eggs of this mite are 

 deposited on the twigs in the fall. These eggs hatch in the early spring, 

 and the young reddish mites, smaller than the head of a pin, ]>egin to 

 Avork on the growth. They breed very rapidly, so that In- June or 

 July they have increased in sufficient numbers to do much damage to 

 the foliage, the infested leaves turning brown and later dropping oif. 

 The mites are abundant throughout the state. 



To control spray just before the buds are opening with commercial 

 lime-sulphur solution, 1-10, or use the formula recommended by W. H. 

 Volck, consisting of water 100 gallons, flour paste 4 gallons, lime- 

 sulphur solution 5 quarts, and iron sulphate 2 pounds. Mix the lime- 

 sulphur and the flour paste together in the tank before adding the iron 

 sulphate. Agitate thoroughly. LTse high pressure. 



The mites are killed by sulphur fumes, just as they emerge from 

 the eggs. 



The Peach T\ng Borer. 



The peach is the principal host of the peach twig borer. The dam- 

 age is caused by the larva? of this insect boring into the young buds 

 and tender shoots. Later generations of larvas may enter the fruit at 

 the stem end, and thus render the fruit unsalable as a first class product. 

 The larvae are rarely over one half inch in length when full grown and 

 vary in color from a dusky white to a dark brown, the head and the 



