18 



clusters by cats and squirrels, or hy the picking of birds, thus also 

 scattering the eggs. Much good can also be accomplished b}^ burning, 

 over unimprov^ed tracts of brush land and burning out the under- 

 growth in sparse woodlands. Where the clusters are very plentiful, 

 burning the ground over with oil to destroy eggs scattered as the result 

 of the cutting of trees and bushes will, according to Kirkland, be 

 required to insure thorough work. The burning method is also effec- 

 tive in May or June, after the young larva? have hatched. 



With the creosoting of the eggs, the spraying against the young 

 larvue, the })urlaping against the old larvffi, and with burning in places 

 indicated, the insect may be kept in check. So great, however, is the 

 prolificac}' of the species, and in such enormous numbers does it occur 

 in eastern Massachusetts, that the thorough use of these and other 

 methods of destruction upon a large estate involves a great expenditure 

 of money. For example, Gen. 8. C. Lawrence for a number of years 

 kept a large force of men working upon certain gips}^ moth colonies in 

 his own and adjoining forest lands, and expended each 3^ear more than 

 the actual value of the lands. This experience, however, need not and 

 should not discourage small property holders from vigorous efforts to 

 destroy the insects upon their own holdings. Unless extraordinarily 

 abundant, it is perfectly feasible to hold them in check. 



One of the most serious features of the damage is the injur}^ in park 

 lands in eastern Massachusetts, where thousands of acres are infested 

 and where important problems exist. From long experience the best 

 methods for treating these wooded sections have been proven to be 

 the cutting out and burning of all underbrush, the removal of trees 

 which have died or have inaccessible cavities in them, and the burning 

 of all refuse on the ground. It is almost impossible to inspect the 

 thick growths of underbrush for the various stages of the moth, and 

 there is no method for their treatment at a reasonable cost. Trees 

 which have been scarred by forest fires, or from other causes, often 

 have cavities in them which provide admirable hiding places for these 

 insects, and should be removed to prevent the constant expense of 

 inspection. 



Apple orchards, also, aside from those receiving the most careful 

 attention, offer favorable breeding places for the moth. There are in 

 New England thousands of old, badly infested apple trees which have 

 passed their usefulness for producing good fruit, and the ground which 

 they occup}' might better be devoted to other crops or to newly set 

 orchards. The field force rarely goes into an orchard that has not 

 several trees with holes in them which might harbor the gipsy moth 

 so safely that its presence could not be detected unless the tree were 

 cut open. Such trees, if not worth being cared for V)y cementing or 

 tinning the holes to prevent the entrance and exit of the gipsy moth, 

 should ))e cut and burned. 



