10 

 THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRES 



By Professor W. Ivochhead, Macdonald College. 

 Fellow Members: - 



I have again the honor of welcoming you to our Fifth Winter 

 Meeting. I trust you will find the programme of addresses by promi- 

 nent workers which has been prepared both interesting and instructive. 

 We are deeply indepted to the Hon. Mr. Caron for the grant which ena- 

 bles us to meet here and to publish our Annual Report. 



Since our last meeting our fourth report has been published and dis- 

 tributed. As an appendix to the report Mr. Winn's Preliminary List of 

 the lycpidoptera of the Province of Oi;ebec appeared about the same 

 time. I have received manv letters of a congratulatory nature regarding 

 both the main report and Mr. Winn's list. It is hoped that the fifth re- 

 port w^ill have an appendix containing a list of some other order of 

 insects. 



It. my last address to this c^ocietv I called attention to the pressing 

 need for the investigation and solution of certain problems in Economic 

 Biology — for example, the control of the Plum Curculio, the Apple Mag- 

 got, the Black Rot Canker and Potato Scab. Since then the division of 

 Kuvcmology has stationed one of its officers, Mr. Petch, at Covey Hill 

 for the express purpose of investigating the life history of the Plum Cur- 

 culio and other serious orchard pests. T hope this is but the beginning of a 

 number of field investigations for there is also a need for a careful 

 study of the fungous diseases of field, orchard and vegetable crops. 



INJURIOUS PKSTS IN QUEBEC IN 1912. 



Permit me in this connection once more to draw public attention to 

 the presence of the Potato Canker in Canada. I/ast summer this serious 

 European disease of potatoes w^as found to have entered Canada through 

 shipments of potatoes from Kng\Lan I, as diseased tubers were discovered 

 in one or two districts in Ontario and Quebec. It would be a great ca- 

 lamitv if the Potato Canker should get a foot-hold in Canada, especially 

 in the potato growing districts. As members of this Society w^e should 

 do everything in our power to call the attention of the public to the 

 threatening danger. 



A concise description of this aisease will be found in our last report. 



During May and June last year Te!:t Caterpillars were very abun- 

 dant and did a great amount of damage over large areas of the Province. 

 An examination of the eg^r masses in late fall and ^vinter showed practi- 

 cally an absence of parasites, so there is every likelihood that the Tent- 

 Caterpillars will be even a greater scourge in 19 13 than they were in 1912. 



