102 



THE CANADIAN HOIITICULTUFJST. 



By referring to the Eeport of the Fruit Grower^' Association for 

 1869, p. 77, a very good account of this insect may be found, and to 

 show how great is their fecundity, it is there stated that from a single 

 female there may be produced in seven generations the enormous 

 number of seven hundred and twenty million descendants ! And as 

 there are from nine to eleven generations in a single season, it is easily 

 seen that this enemy, though despicable in size, may yet be most 

 formidable by reason of its numbers. It is less than the tenth part 

 of an inch in length, and is developed from a tiny e^gg concealed in a 

 crevice of the bark. It is stated that all the young produced from 

 ^^^ ^ these eggs are females, which at 



the age of fourteen days begin to 

 'bring forth their young alive; and 

 no eggs are laid until late in the 

 fall, when a generation of males 

 and females are produced, which 

 are the parents of the eggs then 

 deposited, to be hatched the 

 following spring. 

 Fig. 8. The accompanying cut, figure 



8, shews the winged male and the wingless female greatly magnified. 



"These facts do not afford much encouragement about the fruit, 

 prospects of the following year, do they?" No indeed, unless there is 

 some remedy; for such countless myriads will soon suck out the life 

 from the blossoms and inflict serious injury upon fine trees; and the 

 artificial remedies, viz: (1) dusting with sulphur, (2) showering with 

 soap suds, or (3) with a decoction of tobacco, are too tedious to be 

 applied to an orchard of thousands of trees. 



Fortunately the affairs of nature are in better hands than are those 

 of the nation; and the Governor thereof takes better care of the 

 interests of the fruit grower than could the wisest man or body of 

 men. On every tree infested by the lice, I find dozens of Ladybirds, 

 of that very common species the Cocinella novem notata, or Nine- 

 dotted Ladybird. They are just now, (May 16th) 

 hurrying about the trees, some of them engaged in 

 devouring the small enemy, and some of them in deposit- 

 ing their bunches of yellow eggs, from which will soon 

 issue larvae more voraciorus than the parent. 



