244 STKAWBEKRY. 



The life-history appears to be that the eggs hatch in about 

 a fortnight, and the grubs which hatch from these attack the 

 roots of grass, &c., as mentioned above. It has been said 

 that in the first season after hatching the grubs feed not on 

 roots, but on " humus " ; but whether this is customarily the 

 case I have not had personal opportunity of investigating ; 

 they feed during the warm part of the season for three or 

 more years, going down in winter to a greater or less depth 

 according to circumstances ; and at the end of the third or 

 fourth summer go down to a depth stated to be two feet or 

 more. Here they change to the perfect state, the Cockchafers 

 making their appearance early in the following summer. 



The lowest depths by measurement from which Cockchafer 

 grubs have been sent me were five to six inches below the 

 surface. They had not been further down, because they were 

 always found at the bottom of their burrow. This was at the 

 beginning of the month of February, and the readings of a 

 minimum thermometer in the neighbourhood showed (approx- 

 imately) that they were not injured by cold reading down to 

 18° (air temperature), as long as they remained in their own 

 shelters ; but when turned up to the surface a fortnight or so 

 after, that then they had not sufficient vitality to burrow down 

 again into the ground to shelter themselves anew. 



Prevention and Eebiedies. — Cockchafer attack is difficult 

 to deal with under any circumstances of common amount of 

 infestation ; but in connection with Strawberry growing 

 hardly any measures appear to be directly practicable. 

 Shaking doivn and destroying the beetles, where they are 

 observed in great numbers on trees near Strawberry beds, 

 would probably be of some service. This should be done, 

 during the day, whilst the beetles are clinging beneath the 

 leaves, and are dull and sluggish, before they take their 

 evening flights. They may be shaken down on to large 

 cloths spread beneath the trees or may be swept together, 

 taking care that in either case the Chafers are collected 

 together and destroyed before they have time to recover from 

 the fall and to take wing. If they are shaken on to the 

 ground many may be secured b}^ having pigs (which will eat 

 the beetles greedily) at hand, to take them as they fall ; and 

 poultry are also useful ; or, in the absence of these, probably 

 having some boys to trample on the shaken-down beetles and 

 collect them at so much a quart would ensure a large propor- 

 tion being killed. 



Another method of collecting is as follows : — " The workers 

 are provided with narrow-necked glazed vessels, or sacks, in 

 the opening of which the broken neck of a beer-bottle has 



