332 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



THE HESSIAN FLY. 



Cecidomyia Destructor Say. 



Owing to the fact that but little has been heard of the Hessian fly 

 during the past season, many have supposed that farmers would not 

 suffer from that cause during the coming year. But numerous letters 

 were received during October and November, stating that the fly was 

 doing much damage to wheat in certain sections of Indiana. These letters 

 were principally from farmers living in the south-central portion of the 

 State. 



In order to ascertain as accurately as possible what portions of the 

 State were infested, a circular letter was sent out to over 300 prominent 

 farmers, representing every county in the State, asking for information 

 as to the following data: Presence of the fly, extent of damage being 

 done, date when they Avere first observed, date of sowing, its presence in 

 late-sown wheat, variety of wheat grown, the use of commercial fer- 

 tilizers. 



Responses have been received from 190 correspondents representing 

 ninety-one counties. Of these, seventy-seven counties report the fly as 

 doing more or less damage. Fourteen counties report no fly, which may 

 or may not be true, as it has frequently happened that one man has re- 

 ported no fly and another man living in another section of the county has 

 reported it as doing considerable damage. Those counties reporting no 

 fly are Lake, AUen, Dekalb, Whitley, .lasper, Newton, Adams, Warren, 

 Vermillion, Owen, Wells, Knox, Starke and Scott. Bartholomew did not 

 report at all. Fifty counties report the damage to wheat as ranging from 

 fifteen to seventy-five per cent, of the crop. Twenty-four counties report 

 only slight damage; and some did not report the amount of damage. 

 The greatest amount of damage is reported from central and southern 

 counties (in Decatur County fifty-two larvae were found in one plant). 

 In sixty-nine counties in which the fly is found, the wheat was sowed be- 

 fore September 2.5, while in eight counties it is found in wheat sown after 

 September 25, but in only one after October 1. Twenty-seven varieties 

 of wheat are mentioned as being grown in the infested districts, and no 

 one variety is mentioned as being more free from attacks than others. 

 The varieties which are mostly grown are Fultz, Poole, Nigger, Rudy, 

 Harvest King, Red Russian and Mediterranean. Nor does commercial 

 fertilizer seem to lessen the attacks of the fly, although it may appear 

 later that the fertilized fields are in better condition to withstand the 

 attacks «pf the fly. Of the whole number reporting the fly, sixty-eight 

 report the use of commercial fertilizer. It will be seen that the fly is 

 widely distributed, and in the majority of cases the injury was done to 

 wheat that was sowed before September 25. In fact it may be said that 



