47 



from 3 to 20 inches above the ground. The adult issues in late April 

 or early May in southern Indiana and towards the end of May in the 

 northern section. The falling of the straws is not apparent until 

 shortly before the harvest, which is about the first or second week in 

 June in central Indiana. In order to destroy this pest the stubble 

 should be ploughed to a depth of 6 or 8 inches and afterwards harrowed, 

 a treatment which may be delayed till wanter if necessary, although 

 the best results wall be obtained if ploughing is done as soon as possible 

 after cutting. As regards date of sowing, experiments in Indiana 

 have shown that joint- worm infestation is the same in early-sown plots 

 and those sown 10 days after the " fly-free " date. Sowing as soon 

 as possible after the " fly-free " or "safe date " is nevertheless recom- 

 mended. Fields infested with joint-worm should be cut as close as 

 possible and the straw used as bedding. Manure containing the 

 straw should be allowed to accumulate till spring, and should be 

 ploughed under as soon after application as possible. 



The Hessian fly has at least two generations each year. The autumn 

 brood larva kills the plants outright as a rule, and that of the spring 

 brood causes the stalks to fall, resembling the joint-worm injury in 

 this respect, but differing from it in the absence of the hardening of 

 the stalk and the presence of the larva or brown pupa (flax-seed) 

 beneath the leaf-sheath just above a joint and not within the stem. 

 Autumn infested plants have broader leaves of a darker green colour 

 that stand up stiffly, the central shoot being usually dead. The pest 

 can be controlled by proper cultural methods, such as the ploughing 

 in of the stubble to a depth of 6 or 8 inches immediately after cutting, 

 the destruction of self-sown wheat by harrowing or otherwise, and 

 the sowing of wheat after the " fly-free " date, which should be univer- 

 sally practised, even in years when the Hessian fly is not abundant. 

 The planting of fly-resistant varieties of wheat is also recommended, 

 bearded wheats, as a general rule, being less injured than other varieties. 



Contarinia tritici appears in June and oviposits in the immature 

 wheat heads. The reddish larvae dwarf the grains and cause the 

 infested part of the wheat head to ripen prematurely. The insect 

 hibernates in small cocoons just beneath the surface of the ground. 

 Sometimes the larvae are to be found in chaff after the grain has been 

 threshed, but the possibility of this as a source of infestation in the 

 following spring is apparently slight. Control is effected by ploughing 

 under stubble, though rotation of crops and time of sowing are also 

 important. The use of fertilisers, such as acid phosphate, to hasten 

 maturity is to be recommended in the case of all three pests. 



Dean (G. A.). Report of State Entomologist, Manhattan.— i?e^^ 



Kansas Slate Entom. Commiss. for 1915-1916, Topeka, 1916, 

 pp. 5-9. 



Careful inspection during 1915 showed a reduction of infestation 

 by San Jose scale [Asjndiotus pemiciosus], though two newly infested 

 localities were found. 



In 1916 the scale had only increased in one district, where very 

 little spraying for its control had been done. In well-cared-f or orchards 

 the situation seems to be in hand and" the scale finds great difficulty 

 in becoming established. No new infested localities were found during 

 the year. 



