THE WHEAT APHIS. 43 



deficient Frequent fallowing, burning off stubble, scari- 

 fying, and generally " knocking the land about," being 

 about the best means to be adopted by growers. When 

 the insects have made their appearance, the crop should 

 be sprayed with either the " Strawsonizer " or some such 

 machine, in which case kerosene emulsion as a spray 

 would probably be the cheapest and best, the mixture 

 to be made as follow :— Kerosene 2 gallons, soap |-lb. 

 Boil the soap, and whilst boiling add the kerosene, churn 

 violently for, say, ten minutes, then allow to cool, and to 

 this add 30 gallons of water, which is strong enough for 

 Aphids on corn. On large areas this treatment would, of 

 course, be too costly, but on small holdings, where the 

 crop was heavy, it would pay ; and as this plan is adopted 

 in Europe and elsewhere it should also answer here. 

 In using the "Strawsonizer" or Pearson's sprayer (see 

 Part II.) it would, of course, be necessary to lay out the 

 land in such a manner that these large machines could 

 pass along without damaging the standing crop. As a 

 deterrent, tar-impregnated water, which is both cheap 

 and effectual, on small areas, would no doubt produce 

 excellent results. Professor Bruner states that there are 

 ten other Aphids which attack corn, but, fortunately for 

 our growers, these have not been observed in Victoria. 

 Plate XXXVIII. shows the insects clustering around the 

 stem and ears of wheat plants, also the insects highly 

 magnified. 



