August, '19] STEARNS: ORIENTAL PEACH MOTH PARASITES 347 



prise to us in Boulder. As I write there stands before me a basket 

 of strawberries, gathered today (October 11) by a neighbor. This 

 plant, also, seems to have no important pests in this locality; or at 

 any rate, it produces abundantly without any special treatment. We 

 are probably in an optimum region for strawberries as well as tomatoes. 



The girasole or Jerusalem artichoke {Helianthus tuberosus), of 

 which we have a large experimental plot, is practically immune from 

 insect or fungus attack, at least with us. Early in the season the 

 young plants were attacked by cutworms, and it seemed that there 

 would be some loss. But one shoot cut off, another came from a dif- 

 ferent "eye, " and I believe that ultimately I did not lose a single plant. 



Asparagus has been free from pests in our garden until recent years. 

 The European asparagus beetle has now arrived and is very abundant. 

 We have taken out most of the asparagus and replaced it by straw- 

 berries. 



At this time of year it would be possible by sending out circular 

 letters in sufficient numbers, to ascertain the optimum regions for 

 different crops, taking into account insect and fungus attacks, soil 

 and climate. Maps could be prepared showing these areas, with 

 shading to indicate the minor variations. In this way, so far as one- 

 season crops are concerned, it is possible that if the results were suffi- 

 ciently widely advertised, a notable increase in production would 

 result. 



SOME RECENTLY RECORDED PARASITES OF THE 

 ORIENTAL PEACH MOTH 



By Louis A. Stearns, Assodale Entomologist, Virginia State Crop Pest Commission 



While making a preliminary canvass during the summer months 

 of 1918, to determine the exact status of the Oriental Peach ]\Ioth 

 (Laspeyresia molesta Busck) in Virginia, and to collect desirable data 

 concerning the injury resulting from the feeding habits of this pest,^ 

 an accompanying study of its life history was carried on at the north 

 Virginia field laboratory, Leesburg. Of more than six hundred larvae 

 collected from injured peach twigs and fruits in nearby infested 

 orchards at different dates from mid-July until late September, and 

 placed in vials for daily observations as to development, a large number 

 were parasitized. During the latter part of this period, parasitism 

 of larvae and pupae continued at an average of 35 per cent. Numbers 



1 "The Oriental Fruit Moth In Virginia" — Quarterly Bulletin, Va. State Crop Pest 

 Commission, April, 1919. 



