470 Aqriculfnral Journal of Victoria. 



economical one^ aad that most satisfactory results might be expected 

 from it, bnt it would appear that we have not yet learned how tO' 

 apply these natural remedies to the best advantage. For example, 

 Cockerell found that the Mexican fungus worked great destruction 

 among the grubs in the damp atmosphere of a bottle, which contained 

 some wormy apples ; but out in the orchard its effects were incon- 

 siderable, and he adds the remark — " There is no hope that it will 

 ever prove efficacious in our dry climate." Although the fungus 

 dealt with was supposed to be Sporotrichum glohuliferum, yet it is 

 sufficiently allied to ours, to render the results generally applicable. 

 However, there are also experiments to fall back upon, in which this 

 identical fungus was used, though on other insects. E. H. Pettit* 

 connected with the Cornell University Agricultural Station, experi- 

 mented with the Mealy Isaria on a number of different grubs, and 

 the results were very unsatisfactory. 



White grubs, the larvae of Lachnosterna, were dusted with 

 conidia, and after four months, no trace of the fungus was visible. 

 Although most of the specimens died, they showed no trace of the 

 fungus. Again, 15 specimens of the larvae of Pieris rapae were 

 dusted with conidia, and in about 20 days the adult insects emerged. 

 However, a certain measure of success attended a third experiment. 

 Seven specimens of the common brown and black caterpillar P//7'7-/ia7-c^m 

 isabella were infected by fastening the conidia with white of egg^^ 

 by means of a brush. After 20 days, all but two were attacked by 

 the fungus, and " of the five attacked, four were dead, curled up and 

 covered more or less densely with a thick cottony mass of mycelium, 

 most prominent on the ventral side." 



The Chinch-bug fungus and the Locust-fungus are now both 

 pretty well known, and the success of their application seems to be so 

 dependent on the weather conditions, that the results naturally vary. 

 In the Year Book of the United States Department of Agriculture for 



1901, Dr. Howard, Government Entomologist, has an article on 

 " Experimental work with Fungus Diseases of Grasshoppers," and he 

 comes to the conclusion that " The results are definite enough to induce 

 still further investigation, which will be carried enduring the summer 

 of 1902, but the results obtained so far, do not justify very sanguine 

 hopes." He notices that the work done in Victoria, by 

 Mr. French, the Government Entomologist, seems to have been very 

 successful with the Mucor Locust-fungus. In the Year Book for 



1902, just come to hand, experiments on an extensive scale to give 

 the South African grasshopper fungus a thorough and practical test 

 are recorded. There have been some successes, but the general 

 summing up is not favourable. " It now seems probable that very 

 great reliance can not be placed on this fungus disease. Either it 

 does not work with our grasshoppers as readily as it does with the 

 South African locust, or our climate makes our species of grasshopper 

 more resistant or the fungus less operative." 



•Studies in Artificial Cultures of Entomogenous Fungi. Bull. 97, Cornell Univ. 

 Ag. Exp. Sta., July, 1895. 



