1904 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 51 



der light coverings made by stretching cheese-cloth over a cheap frame of 

 wood. These experiments were continued during 1904, and gave very satis- 

 factory returns. Small frames six feet by three feet and two feet six inches 

 high, were very convenient for radishes and early cauliflowers. 



xlsparagus Beetles {Crioceris asparagi, L., and C. 12-pu7ictata, L.) con- 

 tinue to do some damage in the Niagara and St. Catharines districts. The rem- 

 edies most in vogue are dusting the plants at short intervals with freshly 

 slaked lime at the time the slimy larvae occur upon the plants. Poisoning with 

 I'aris green in either dry or wet mixtures is also useful. 



The Cabbage or Turnip Aphis {Aphis hrassicuc, L.) w'as the cause of ap- 

 pieciable loss in crops of Swedish turnips in central and eastern Ontario. 

 Prompt spraying or hoeing out of the young plants when the colonies first 

 appeared in August were attended with satisfactory results. It was no- 

 ticed that high knolls in fields or areas near trees, where the turnips were 

 somewhat starved, for lack of moisture, were invariably the first places of at- 

 tack in turnip fields, therefore when looking for these insects it would be well 

 for farmers to remember this and examine such places carefully when hoeing 

 their turnips. When a colony is first noticed it should be destroyed by 

 spraying with kerosene emulsion or a solution of whale-oil soap one pound in 

 6 gallons of warm water. 



Cutworms. Several species of cutworms occurred in different parts of the 

 province, and did a great deal of harm in field and garden crops. The most 

 abundant of these was the Red-backed Cutworm (Paragrotis ochrogaster, 

 Gn.), which was accompanied by the Dark-sided Cutworm (Paragrotis Tnes- 



FiG. i). Dark-sided Cutworm and moth. 



soria, Harr.), Fig. 9. These caterpillars were enormously abundant on light 

 land near Ottawa and attacked almost all kinds of crops. As in past years a 

 prompt application of the poisoned bran mash stopped injury at once. 

 Gardeners who had not previously tried this remedy were literally amazed at 

 its prompt effectiveness. The habits of the Red-backed Cutworm are as fol- 

 Vjws. The eggs are laid in the autumn, and pass the winter as such, the 

 ycung larvae not hatching until the following spring. Whether this is al- 

 ways the case, I have as yet been unable to learn ; but eggs laid late in August 

 passed through hot weather in September and October and did not hatch until 

 the following May, but at that time much larger larvae were found- out of 

 doors in the ground. 



The Climbing Cutworm (Paragrotis scandens, Riley), which here is ex- 

 tremely local attains almost half its growth before winter sets in, increases 

 rapidly in spring and is frequently troublesome in gardens on sandy soil. 

 In making the bran mash mentioned above it is best to dampen some of the 

 bran slightly with water containing a little sugar. After mixing thorough- 

 ly, add the Paris green little by little stirring the mixture all the time. 

 Half a pound of Paris green is sufficient to poison fifty pounds of bran. The 

 mixture when ready for use, should be dry enough to crumble freely through 

 the fingers and may then be distributed through an infested drop either by 



