212 MANUAL OF VEGETABLE-GARDEN INSECTS 



insect, serious injury to this crop being of annual occurrence 

 from the vicinity of New York City southward east of the 

 Appalachian Mountains; from Ohio, Illinois, Nebraska and 

 Montana southward to the Gulf and in the warmer parts of 

 the Far West. It occurs in the greatest abundance, however, 

 and is most destructive in the cotton belt. From New Jersey 

 southward, the corn ear-worm is considered the worst insect 

 pest of tomatoes, and peas and beans are also subject to serious 

 injury. Among tobacco-growers the insect is known as the 

 bud-worm from its habit of boring into the roll of unopened 

 leaves at the center of the plant. Other plants liable to more 

 or less serious injury are okra, pepper, eggplant, pumpkin, 

 squash, melon, cucumber, asparagus, peanut, collards and 

 potatoes. The insect also attacks sorghum, sugar-cane, millet, 

 cowpeas, vetch, alfalfa and clover. Its wild food plants are 

 numerous ; some of the more common are Jamestown weed, 

 ground cherry, wild sunflower, cocklebur, bindweed, horse- 

 nettle, velvet-leaf and hemp. Many ornamental plants are 

 also attacked, such as gladiolus, geranium, mignonette, morning- 

 glory and rose. When driven by hunger, the caterpillars will 

 feed on almost any succulent vegetation they can find. Ripen- 

 ing fruits, such as peaches, plums and even quinces, are some- 

 times attacked. 



Throughout the greater part of the United States and Canada, 

 the corn ear-worm hibernates in the pupal stage, but in southern 

 Florida some of the moths remain active during the winter. 

 The moths emerge in early spring over a period of at least a 

 month. The moth has an expanse of about 1^ inches. In 

 the commonest form, the front wing is straw-color, usually 

 marked with a spot in the middle and frequently with a darker 

 area near the tip. The spots may be entirely lacking or the 

 wing may be heavily shaded with brown, and the wings are 

 sometimes tinged with reddish or greenish. The hind wings 

 are creamy white with a diffuse blackish border containing a 



