388 FRUIT INSECTS 



northern part of the country to the Pacific. The injury to the 

 roots and crown of the strawberry are similar to that inflicted by 

 the preceding species. The beetle is considerably larger, f inch 

 in length, and black in color ; the wing-covers are marked with 

 small patches of yellowish hairs. The insect is said to hibernate 

 in the larval stage, the beetles appearing in April and May. In 

 both the larval and adult conditions it sometimes becomes 

 troublesome in greenhouses, attacking cyclamens, gloxinias, 

 primulas, geraniums and other plants. 



Its injuries may be prevented by the same measures as sug- 

 gested for the crown girdler. 



The Strawberry Crown-borer 

 Tyloderma fragarice Riley 



In the Upper Mississippi Valley strawberry plants are often 

 seriously injured by the larva of a snout-beetle which burrows 

 in the crown. It is a native insect and first attracted attention 

 about 1871. The chestnut-brown beetles, about ^ inch in length, 

 emerge from hibernation in early spring, and the female deposits 

 her small, elongate, yellowish-white eggs in the plant at or near 

 the surface of the ground, singly, in cavities which she excavates 

 with her beak. After the egg is in place, she plugs the opening 

 with earth or bits of plant tissue. Oviposition continues until 

 after the middle of June. 



On hatching, the grub burrows downward through the crown, 

 and by the time it is full-grown has eaten out a considerable 

 portion of the contents. From one to three grubs may infest 

 a plant ; in the latter case only the shell of the crown is left. 

 When full-grown the grub is about J inch in length, white with 

 a yellowish head. They become mature from the first part of 

 July till early August, and all transform to beetles the same 

 season. The transformation takes place within the crown, 

 after which the beetles remain some time in the burrow in order 



