IRISH GARDENING 



91 



0. S. .1 1- en a' .—Cornicles pale brown to green. 



rather short, constricted at base and 

 apex. Alxlonien green, with black 

 lateral spots. 

 (6) Apterous or Wingless Viviiwrous 

 Females : — 



1. A. »i«/(7o/(.i'.— Blue-black, slatey-grey or 



pink. Cornicles long, black; fat, 

 rounded, and more or less mealy. 



2. A. pomi. — Green; not mealy. Cornicles 



long and black. 



3. S. arena'. — Green; not mealy. Cornicles 



rather short, constricted at base and 

 apex, brown and green. 



(c) Oviparous Females; all Apterous : — 

 1. A. maJifoJia'. — Yellow, lemon yellow, dull 

 greenish yellow or grey; head dark. 



black eggs are laid singly, and are at first pale; 

 they hatch out during early April. The young at 

 first live freely on the tops of the bursting buds 

 and then enter them. As the young mature into 

 what are spgken of as " Mother Queens," the 

 leaves may either curl up and protect them, or 

 the insects may remain for a short time fully ex- 

 posed. These females soon produce living young 

 with great rapidity in some seasons, and the pro- 

 geny of these as they grow cause the leaf to curl 

 up and enclo.se them and their parents. Owing 

 to the constant sucking of the aphides and their 

 excrement, the leaves become scorched, and some- 

 times fall off. As the insects increase in numbers 

 tliey pass to the shoots and stop the growth of 

 the internodes, and deform them, a marked 

 '■ stubby ■' appearance being produced, even on 

 fairlv old trees. 



M.VGXoi.iA Ca.mpi;ellii (.soft pii kj. 



Cornicles pale yellow to dusky yellow. 

 darker at tips. 



2. .4. pomi. — Green to dull yellow; head 



darkened, cornicles black, cauda black. 



3. S. (irt-naj. — Green, dull green, greenish 



yellow or yellow; head brownish. Cor- 

 nicles short. In-own to black; constricted 

 at base and apex ; cauda dusky In-own. 



(f/) Males : — 



1. A. maJifolia\ — ^Yinged. Abdomen dull 



reddish and deep blackish-brown to 

 brown. 



2. A. pomi. — Apterous. Dull greenish-yellow. 



green or yellowish-l)rown. 



3. S. orrna:-. — Winged. Abdomen black and 



dull green, with dark lateral spot.?. 



Life-Historie.'t. — The Blue Bug or Rosy Apple 

 Aphis (A. mnlifolipe) passes the winter on Apples 

 and Pears in the egg stage. The small, .-hiny. 



In June and July these apterous viviparous 

 females give rise to a winged generation of in- 

 sects, which often occur in dense masses on the 

 branches and stems, and are sluggish in habits. 

 When very abundant they swarm all over the 

 tree; when less plentiful they seem to collect 

 under the branches. Previous to the alatse 

 appearing, the apertte also seem to wander about 

 in a restless manner, and many are caught in old 

 grease-bands. Most of the winged dolphins _ die, 

 but others undoubtedly fly away in July. Where 

 these latter fly to in this country has not yet been 

 traced. In America and Canada they are said 

 to fly to the plantains {Plantago spp.). None have 

 yet been found on the plantains in this country, 

 either above or below ground. The writer has 

 carefully noted some thousands of these plants 

 pulled during the past season for rabbit food, and 

 no trace of A. mnlifoJia' has been seen in a district 

 where this species is very prevalent. Moreover, 



