54 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 
This cutworm and its allies are usually noticeable in early spring 
because of their depredations on young plants. Clean culture is 
one of the best methods of preventing injury and in the event of 
their occurring in numbers, poison baits, such as fresh clover 
dipped in paris green water or dry bran mixed with poison may 
be employed to destroy the pests. One of the most satisfactory 
methods, if the area is not too large, is digging out the cutworms 
and destroying them. 
Shade tree insects 
Sugar maple borer (Plagionotus 
Specrosus “Say )i.) -Mhissidestuetine 
maple borer continues its operations in 
the beautiful shade trees ornamenting the 
village streets in the State. It appears to 
be particularly destructive in the central 
western part, and our attention has re- 
cently been called to severe injuries which 
were observed by us some seven years 
earlier. The maples in the village of Le- 
roy, N. Y., appear to have been excep- 
tionally unfortunate so far as attacks by 
this species are concerned. A consider- 
able number of trees are infested by the 
borer and not a few have been severely 
injured. Earlier observations and work 
have shown the practicability of freeing 
infested maples very largely from this 
pest. Inhabited galleries should be care- 
fully investigated and exposed until the 
borer is fourd and destroyed, either with 
Fig. 2 Injury produced by a a hooked wire or with a knife. Such 
transverse burrow in a sugar : F = . 
maple about 18 inches indiam. WOUnds should be carefully dressed with 
eter (Author’s illustration) a protective material, one of the best of 
which ts a thick, pasty mixture of fresh air-slacked lime and cow 

dung. A covering of tar or a cheap paint is also very effective in 
protecting the exposed wocd from fungus infection and further 
insect Operations. 
An exceptionaliy interesting observation on the work of this 
insect was made in connection with a recent trip to Leroy. Seven 
years before, namely, in September 1899, we photographed a tree in 
that village which had been badly injured by this insect and figure 
2 represents the condition of the trunk at that time. The tree 
