inii^i)! piisTs. 167 



only destroyiiii^ isolated branches and not killing the whole plant. The 

 fruit-borer attacks the fruits as they ripen and also the shoots; it is 

 perhaps the most common and widespread of these three species. 



The treatment of all these is the same, namely, destroy all affected 

 fruits and branches. In the case of the stem-borer, the cultivator pulls 

 up the withered plants and leaves them in his field. If he burnt them 

 systematically from the very beginning", he would probably check the 

 pest, but actually it increases steadily as his plants grow bigger until it 

 causes a very large aggregate loss. 



The same applies to the affected fruits and branches ; it is common 

 to see the bored fruits left on the ground or on the plant, and naturally 

 every moth hatching from them means more in the next brood. A useful 

 precaution where brinjal is regularly grown, is to destroy the wild 

 brinjal and allied solanaceous weeds which spring up in the rains j 

 these are the wild food-plants of these species and help it to increase 

 and multiply unchecked. 



Bhindi Pests. 



This plant {Hibiscus esculentus) is closely related to cotton^ and td 

 many plants grown in gardens for ornament. It is universally grown in 

 India as a vegetable, a few plants here and there in every village^ and 

 also as a field crop mixed with other plants. 



It has many pests, almost as many as cotton, the pests of cottoiil 

 attacking it as an alternative food-plant, the pests of wild malvaceous 

 plants coming to it as it offers plentifid food when other food is not 

 available. The Cotton-leaf Caterpillar (page 06) is abundant on the 

 leaves, webbing them across and living under the threads* It does not 

 as a rule twist the leaves up as it does on cotton. At least three other 

 caterpillars feed on the leaves, two being peculiar pests of malvaceous 

 plants j these emerge into moderate sized light yellow moths,^ the wings 

 marked with dark brown suffusions. 



The White Weevil and Green Weevil eat the leaves of bhindi as 

 they do of cotton and other crops (page 202). Both the Spotted Boll- 

 worms also attack bhindi, the larva boring into the pods or into the 

 succulent stems. The Red Cotton Bug (page 10-i) lives upon bhindi 

 when cotton is not available, feeding upon the seeds and breeding freely 

 upon these plants. So also the Dusky Cotton Bug (page 107) is found 

 in the old open pods, sucking out the seeds. 



In spite of all these pests, bhindi grows freely and yields well. A 



little attention on the part of the cultivator checks the insects, but as the 



^58* Acontia transversa. Guen. (Noctuidse) ; & 117. Acontia malvce. Esper. (Noctuidic.) 



