678 



Bkittain (W. H.). Report of the Professor of Zoology and Provincial 

 Entomologist. — Ann. Rept. Secretani for Agriculture, Nova Scotia, 

 for the year 1914, Halifax, N.S., 1915, pp. 28-51. [Received 1st 

 September 1915.] 



In 1914, there was a marked outbreak of Cirphis (Heliophila) 

 unipuncta (army worm) in practically every part of Nova Scotia. 

 Hydroecia micacea (stalk borer) damaged many potato plants and 

 destroyed the rhubarb crop at the Nova Scotia Agricultural College, 

 though rhubarb is generally remarkably free from insect pests. Lygus 

 invii'us (false tarnished plant bug) injured apples and pears throughout 

 the fruit district. Chermes similis (spruce gall louse), which had in 

 previous seasons injured spruce hedges about the college grounds, was 

 found to be controllable by lime-sulphur or Black-leaf 40, alone, or 

 combined with flour paste. The report of the brown- tail moth 

 inspection for the season 1913-14 shows that 24,156 nests were collected, 

 of which 22,486 were from orchard trees. It is significant that Kings 

 County, where 86 per cent, of the total acreage is sprayed, has never 

 been seriously infested, though repeated infestations have occurred. 

 With regard to the San Jose scale [Aspidiotus per?iiciosus], the 

 effectiveness of the inspection at the port of entry was shown by the 

 fact that not a single infested plant escaped notice in 1914. This 

 pest has been brought to the verge of extermination in Nova Scotia. 



Ramsay (A. A.). Lime-Sulphur Sprays: Their Manufacture Composi- 

 tion, and Use. — Dept. Agric, New South Wales, Sydney, Science 

 Bull. no. 13, February 1915, pp. 3-19, 6 tables. 



The composition of lime-sulphur spray is profoundly affected by 

 the relative proportions of the ingredients and water used, and the 

 object of the chemical researches recorded in this paper was to deter- 

 mine as far as possible the proportions which would give the least 

 waste and secure a maximum of economy in production based on the 

 amount of sulphur entering solution. The proportions by weight of 

 lime, sulphur and water contained in 7 formulae in use in Australia 

 and the U.S.A. are given, and when reduced to the weight of sulphur 

 and water used for each 1 lb. of lime, the range is found to be very 

 great, varying from 0-88 to 2-08 sulphur and from 10 to 111 water. 

 In the experimental work, pure lime and pure sulphur were used. 

 The following conclusions were arrived at :■ — The best proportions of 

 lime and sulphur are : 1 part of lime to 2 parts of sulphur. In preparing 

 lime-sulphur solutions by boiling together lime, sulphur, and water, 

 the maximum sulphur which it was found possible to get into and 

 keep in solution is about 18-3 or 18-4 grams per 100 cc, corresponding 

 to 183-8 lb. sulphur per 100 Impl. gallons. This result is obtained by 

 using the formula 50 lb. hme (pure), 100 lb. sulphur (pure), 50 gallons 

 water, boiled for 1 hour. The cost of the prepared spray is about 

 Ad. per gallon. Using more than 50 gallons of water is not recommended 

 from an economic point of view, for while it is true that the increased 

 use of water gives a slightly increased percentage of the lime and 

 sulphur in solution, the cost of obtaining it is out of proportion to the 



