15^ INJURIOUS INSKCTS OF kjoj. 



The insect lays one egg in a bud, piercing the stalk of the bud 

 to prevent it developing further. The pollen in the bud affords 

 food to the larva which hatches from the egg. 



Of strawberries the Sharpless is said to be the worst affected, 

 although strawberries are not the only plant affected,' many wild 

 flowers suffering also. 



Their habit, stated as a fact, of feeding upon tlie raspberry 

 suggests to Dr. Fletcher of Canada the possibility of making use 

 of the latter as a trap crop. 



The second of these pests, the "Flea-like Xegro Hug," see 

 Fig. 94, feeds not only upon strawberry, but also upon blackberry 



Fig. 94.— The I'Ica-Iike Negro Bug. Original. 



and raspberry. One variety affects the potato. As a rule this 

 insect does not cause serious injury, its greatest fault consisting 

 of laying its eggs on raspberries and blackberries, which, when' 

 crushed in the mouth of a person eating berries, gives rise to a 

 most unpleasant buggy taste. 



THE GRAIN PLANT LOUSE. 



It is fortunate that, in the case of this pest, which multiplies 

 with amazing rapidity, which manifestly cannot be treated when 

 on the wheat, we have a large number of parasitic and predaceous 

 insects ready to wage war u]3on it if climatic conditions favor them. 

 This fact will in a measure account for the temporary alarm 

 among many of our farmers in July of this year when they first 

 saw upon the wheat heads countless thousands of these green 

 lice, busily engaged in sucking the juices from the plants ; which 

 lice, as the warmer, drier weather of harvest time approached, 

 weather unfavorable to the lice but favoring its parasites, disap- 

 peared, fading away before the onslaught of its enemies. Some- 

 times, however, this insect, which was evidently introduced from 



