34 



the first place 40 per cent were obviously "wormy," and only 60 per 

 cent apparently good. Of the apparently good nuts a number were 

 placed in water and left for several minutes, when two sank after 

 remaining on top, and one which had sunk rose to the surface. 



Results of water test with common small chestnuts. 



Nuts which rose to surface. 



Uninfested 



Showing minute marks only; good fla 



vored; salable 



Containing full-grown grubs 



Containing immature grubs 



Nuts which remained on bottom. 



In perfect condition 



Sliglitlv injured 



Badly infested 



Completely tilled with grubs 



Per cent. 

 40 

 30 

 20 

 10 



Noticeably wormy nuts as observed from the outside, and l)y the 

 loss of weight after the escape of the "worms," naturally all rose 

 when placed in water. 



These experiments show that the obviously injured nuts will rise to 

 the surface as a general rule, but the remainder require some further 

 test than whether they will sink or float. The reader is left to his own 

 conclusions. 



DIRECT REMEDIES. 



BisulphM of carbon. — The value of bisulphid of carbon as a f umi- 

 gant for nuts infested by weevils is often asked, and it would seem at 

 first thought that its use is hardly desirable, for the reason that the 

 larvffi or grubs are frequently so large when the nuts are harvested 

 that purchasers would not be deceived if they took the precaution 

 before buying of opening a few, so that there is little gain in this 

 direction. The shell of the nut is so firm and compact that it would 

 appear difiicult for the bisulphid to penetrate and kill the larvae. 

 Nevertheless, a prominent grower in Pennsylvania informs me that 

 he successfully uses bisulphid of carbon, applying it when the nuts 

 are first harvested. In some cases the dead weevil larvaj are so small 

 that the average person would not refuse a nut which shows only 

 slight attack, while if these same larvte were permitted to obtain full 

 growth they would have nearly consumed the nut. He uses the bisul- 

 phid on one of the largest nuts grown in this country from foreign 

 stock, and, since as many as 40 larvae have been found b}^ him in 

 single nuts, one can readily see that prompt fumigation is desirable, 

 at least in his localit3^ We could not claim the same for all others, 

 because the first nuts that are brought to market in the District of 

 Columbia are more badly infested than those purchased later; and the 

 chinquapins, which are for sale two or three weeks earlier than the 

 chestnuts, were, at least in 1903, very badly infested when marketed, 

 and bisulphid would have had very little beneficial effect on them. It 

 seemg probable that this remedy wpuld lie more useful in cold locali- 



