104 Journal of Agriculture, Vicloria. [11 Feb., 1918. 



Rutherglen Buy or Chinch Bug [Lygaeida). — These insects, often 

 wrongly called flies, are very destructive, feeding mostly on grasses or 

 shrubs, and in some seasons becoming very serious perts to the orchardist 

 and farmer. 



When these bugs make their appearance in plague numbers, the 

 most effective treatment, as well as the cheapest, appears to be spraying 

 them with phenyle, the formula for its preparation being as follows: — 

 Boil 1 bar of yellow soap with 3 lbs. of washing soda until thoroughly 

 dissolved, then add 1 quart of phenyle and make up to 40 gallons with 

 water. If preferred, Benzole emulsion could be used at strength of 

 1 in 4, but this is a much more costly preparation than the phenyle. 



Fruit Bugs (Pjirrhocoridce), commonly called Soldier bugs, are fre- 

 quently a pest in suburban gardens. They are exceedingly fond of 

 greasy bones, and if a few of these be laid down (the large bones are 

 best), where these insects most_ congregate, they will attack the bones in 

 large numbers, and they may then be easily killed by pouring boiling 

 water over them. This at the same time brings more grease to the sur- 

 face of the bones, thus keeping them attractive to the biigs. In dealing 

 with plant bugs, clean cultivation is of the very first importance. 



Red Spider. — Spray when trees are dormant with red oil at winter 

 strength — 1 in 30. 



Thriqys. — These insects are often troublesome to late blooming varie- 

 ties of apples, particularly the Five Crown and Rome Beaiity, and 

 especially so should the spring prove a dry one. Oil applications dviring 

 the winter months probably affords some slight jjrotection, but 

 thoroughly spraying the trees with tobacco wash (same strength as for 

 aphis) as soon as thrips start to become plentiful is the best method of 

 control. Spraying must be thorough to be effective. The mixture 

 should be applied at high pressure, and forced down on to the ends of 

 the buds rather than applied on their sides. The nozzle should be held 

 close to the buds, two or three sprayings being usually necessary. In 

 preparing tobacco sprays, the tobacco should not be boiled, but placed 

 in a bag and allowed to soak for three or four days. 



Fungus Diseases. 



Fungus diseases are caused by minute vegetable organisms attacking 

 plants of a higher order, and in some seasons the losses caused are very 

 serious, and humid conditions are very advantageous for most of them. 

 Where the drainage of land is bad, the conditions are usually very 

 favorable for the rapid propagation of these minute plants. In spray- 

 ing against fungus diseases, it should be borne in mind that treatment 

 should be always preventative rather than curative, for once these 

 organisms enter their host plant they are beyond the reach of effective 

 treatment. The aim of the horticulturist should be to coat with a 

 fungicidal spray the plant to be protected, so that the spore of the 

 disease, on germination taking place, would come into contact with the 

 fungicide that separates it from its host plant, and thus cause its death. 

 If the tree has not been protected bv coating it with a fungicide, the 

 spore on germination sends out mycelial threads, which find their way 

 beneath the skin of the host plant and commence to feed on its tissues. 

 The skin and tissue of the affected parts are killed, and it is the 

 inability of these dead parts to expand and keep pace with the growing 

 parts of fruit that causes the cracks in apples and pears when attacked 

 by Black Spot fungus. 



