45 



" A more cflScacious way of destroying these worms as far as our own instrumentality is 

 concerned, is to search for them about the barrels and bins in which fall and winter apples 

 have been kept. I have heard of instances where the sideboards of the bins have been taken 

 away from time to time, as the apples were removed and thrown one upon another, in which 

 these boards became po fastened together by the webs of the worms between them, that a 

 number of boards could bo raised by taking hold of the upper one only. There can be no 

 doubt that the destruction of the codling-worm at this stage of its existence, would be very 

 eflfective, and that it has been by far too much neglected." 



Our esteemed President, Rev. C. J. S. Bethune in his remarks on this subject in our 

 report for 1870, says "a very favourite locality for these worms is the space between the hoops 

 and staves of the barrels. We have found hundreds in such positions especially in the winter 

 of 1SG8-9. Where this occurs it is by all means worth while to scald the barrels thoroughly 

 outside as well as inside, as soon as they are emptied or even to burn them. When boxes or 

 bins are made use of for storing the fruit, the worms are sure to find some crevices to suit 

 them, which should be searched for, and treated as in the case of the barrels." 



2nd. Picking the warmy apples from the irees.^We have stated above that the young 

 worms, soon after they have entered the apple, begin to throw out their castings through the 

 hole which they made in entering. As this hole must be originally almost micrbscopically 

 minute, it is evident that they must enlarge the opening for this purpose. We further stated 

 that a portion of the castings adhere to the rough and shrivelled calyx, forming a rust 

 coloured mass, which is easily seen from the ground below. Some horticulturists have availed 

 themselves of this circumstance for the purpo.se of removing the wormy apples from the trees 

 before the worms have escaped. The plan is to beat off the wormy apples, or else pick them 

 off by means of a wire hook attached to the end of a pole. These two methods can be very 

 usefully combined by first jarring or beating otT those apples which readily fall, and then 

 going over the trees a second time with the pole and hook. The apples thus removed should 

 of course be fed to swine, or otherwise treated so as to destroy the worms within. Too much 

 value cannot be attached to these simple expedients, which in the case of a few choice trees, 

 or even a small orchard, might almost be made to supercede the necessity of any other treat- 

 ment." 



" 3rd. Gathering the wormy wind-fall apples from the ground, or letting su'ine or sheep 

 have the range of the orchard. — This plan has been generally recommended as of very great 

 importance. Its efiScacy will depend, of course, upon the proportion of worms which fall to 

 the ground in the apples, as compared with those which leave the apples whilst hanging upfiu 

 the tree. Those which crawl down the branches spin up liefore reaching the ground, and 

 those which let them.selves down by a thread, would, for the most part, be detected only by 

 birds or by domestic fowls, and as there is reason to believe that they usually perform this act 

 in the night, even these must fail to capture them." 



'• With regard to those wind-falls which contain worms, it is necessary to gather them 

 frequently, that is every day or every second day at farthest. The apples do not usually fall 

 until the worms arc nearly matured, and they leave them in the course of a few days. If you 

 examine indiscriminately a large number of wind-fall apples lying under the trees, you will be 

 surprised to find how few worms they contain, they evidently having left the fruit before it 

 fell, or soon after." 



" But the mo.st important question in this connection is, what proportion of the worms 

 leave the apples before they fill from the tree ? I have endeavoured to arrive at an approxi- 

 mate estimate upon the subject by putting two or more bands upon the same tree, upon the 

 presumption that the worms descending from above will spin up in the upper band, and tho.-e 

 crawling up from the ground in the lower. The following tables numbered for the purpose 

 of reference give the results of these experiments. The wind-fall apples were left in every 

 case as they fell upon the ground. 



"On the tenth of July, 1871, I put bands asfollow.'s, upon four trees, the ground under- 

 neath being bare, or free from grass or rubbish of any kind. One band was put about a foot 

 from the ground, another about two feet higher on the trunk, and others on two or three of 

 the larger branches, eight or ten feet from the ground. They were examined July SSth, 

 eighteen days after they were put on." 



No. 1. 

 Whole number of worms in all stages .20 



