31 o Journal of Agriculture. [8 May, 1907. 



areas. In the case of growing fruit, the trees should be examined as often 

 as possible, especially when near the time of the fruit changing colour 

 for ripening. Upon examining ripe fruit, peaches especially, very close 

 observance will be necessary, as the indications to even a trained eye are 

 most difficult of detection. Should any outward signs present themselves, 

 either as punctures or premature decay, cut some of the fruit in halves, 

 and if the maggots be present, the damage will be disclosed. 



In speaking of trapping and other methods Mr. Froggatt says. " Pro- 

 fessor Tagliaferro's method of smearing some of the ripening fruit with 

 honev has been noted before. One of the most practical traps in which the 

 experimenter tells me he captured numbers of flies every night it is set has 

 been used by Mr. L. Saunders, of Ryde, New South Wales, who pLaces a 

 lamp or candle in a tin surrounded with a few inches of kerosene oil and 

 Avater under the infested trees, and though in their normal condition the 

 flies rest at night, the unusual light attracts them, and coming round the 

 light they fall into the oil and are smothered.* Prevention is better than 

 cure, however, and the royal remedy to get rid of the fruit fly maggot 

 IS to destroy at once all fallen fruit found to be infested. 



" If all the orchardists would do as a friend of mine did in his orchard 

 -at Minto (New South Wales), i.e., gather all his late peaches and persimmons 

 (over twenty-five cases) and boil them — thev would find the first loss the 

 least, for as surely as the last autumn brood of fruit fly maggots is allowed 

 to get into the soil of the orchard, unless we have an exceptional winder, so 

 surely will we have the Mediterranean fruit fly playing havoc with the 

 coming }'ear^s fruit in the county of iCumberland, New South Wales. 

 Where the ground is well cultivated in winter, the chrv.salis will be turned 

 up and have le.ss chance of producing fruit fl}-, as a very slight injury at 

 this stage of their life will kill them. 



" The insectivorous birds hunt for them, and where flocks of turkeys or 

 fowls are available, if they are given the run of the orchard during the 

 winter, they will scratch over the surface and destroy great numbers." 



One of the principal matters to be considered should the fruit flies 

 e\er obtain a. permanent footing in our State, is to make ourselves ac- 

 quainted with the symptoms, both external and internal, present where 

 fruit is affected, and although we oursehes have had much practice in de- 

 tecting the larvae in fruit imported into this State, the long experience 

 gained by Mr. Trvon in the natural home of, at least, some of the fruit 

 flies is well worth the trouble of giving to our readers. 



" It not infrequently happens that the fruit on being gathered presents 

 externally no evidence of its being infested with the maggot of the fruit 

 fly, and this circimistance leads to parcels, after they have been sent to 

 the markets as sound, being returned to the grower as entirely worthless. 

 This we found to be a very common complaint at Toowoomba (Queensland), 

 and to emphasize this general experience, Mr. R. Bushnell handed to us 

 three peaches freshlv gathered from the tree, and in quite a gi'een state, 

 at the same time challenging us to detect, without the most minute exa- 

 mination, any external sign of their being injured, and this we were unable 

 to do. These peaches were deli\"ered to us on the 28th January, and after 

 they had been securely isolated, they were put aside for subsequent obser- 

 vation, and on the i8th February it was noticed that five fruit flies had 

 bred from maggots with which they must have been infested at the time 

 of our having first received them. 



Ill capti\ itv the flies are vei\\' lively, and ai-e easily attracted by an ordinai-y gas light. — C. F. 



