PART I. 



BRITISH COLUMBIA ENTOMOLOGICAL 

 SOCIETY 



SECOND MIDSUMMER MEETING, 1914 



HE second midsuLumor meeting of the British Columbia Entomological 

 Society was held at Kelowua. B.C.. on August 20th, 1914. The First 

 Vice-Presideut, Mr. Lionel E. Taylor, was in the cliair. 



Jlr. Taylor : If the meeting will now come to order, we will 

 begin the business of the day. It gives me a great deal of pleasure 

 to welcome you to-day to the Kelowna District, and I hope the frult- 

 growers^of the district in general will profit from the discussion's that I am sure 

 will follow each of the papers on the programme before us. I have been requested 

 to give an outline on the problems, entomological and pathological, that require 

 solution in our orchards at the present time. 



Mr. Taylor then proceeded to address the meeting on the lines he would suggest 

 as liable to render the most aid to the frujt-grower in his locality. He dwelt on 

 some of the problems of the plant pathologist that require solution, in particular 

 referring to the diseases known as pear-wilt, water-core, truit-pit, and other condi- 

 tions directly and Indirectly resultant from irrigated conditions affecting fruit-trees. 

 He also touched on the insect troubles of obscure origin, mentioning the blight- 

 carrying proclivities of insects, the apple-blotch mite, tarnished plant-bug, tree- 

 crickets, and locusts. Mr. Taylor also mentioned the methods that would appeal 

 to him in instructing the fruit-gi-ower as to tiis insect and fungous troubles, and 

 condemned the principle of short daily meetings, and advocated meetings more of 

 the short-course nature. He also suggested that a chart be drawn up and circulated 

 among the fruit-growers showing the sporing periods of fungous diseases a:nd the 

 hatching periods of insects. 



Jlr. J. W. Eastham : In regard to Mr. Taylor's suggestion that fruit-growers 

 be advised as to dates of spraying, it is needless to say that the time to aiiply 

 depends on the condition of- the crop plant at the time, and this in a large measure 

 determines the date in a locality. Take, for instance, the peach-leaf curl. We say 

 spray before bud-scales are opeu, and this necessarily depends on the season. Given 

 a very early season, growers may not be prepared. To give the farmer dates of 

 s|ioring of his fungous diseases would be useful, no doubt, but it is not a main con- 

 sideration. It would be a poor guide and growers might be misled. In regard to 

 the more obscure troubles of the orchard, the blotching of apples is caused, according 

 to Mr. Brittain, la.st year, by a species of mite. We have not found this mite this 

 year, although the same conditions are noted. Lime-sulphur as a control does not 

 work as well as might be supposed or hoped. The Kootenays have the same con- 

 dition. As regards the disease termed "pear-wilt," we have no opinion to offer. 

 It is a new condition to me. We hope to work on it this coming year. Fruit-pit 

 and water-core are physiological diseases and control is difficult. It might be 

 interesting for you to hear that watered core can be restored to normal condition, 

 provided the water has not reached the seed-cavities. Apples may be picked and 

 stored and the water absorbed. 



