INSECT ENEMIES. 99 



dering on intelligence, the larva now fills the upper part 

 of its hole with its woody dust against the bark ; then 

 turns round and fills it below with woody fibers of the 

 heart-wood, when it again turns its head upward, and 

 there rests till, in the next spring, the matured larva 

 casts off its skin and reveals the chrysalis. In three 

 weeks more the pupa has become a beetle, the soft parts 

 soon harden, and in a few days it makes its way through 

 the castings in the upper end of its passage, cuts a 

 smooth round hole through the bark, about three-six- 

 teenths of an inch across, from which it escapes. 



Remedies. The best remedy is to prevent the beetle 

 laying the eggs in the bark of the tree. This may be 

 done by wrapping petroleum paper, or any like substance, 

 around the collar of the tree, letting it reach from the 

 ground high enough to protect it. Alkaline washes 

 have been found distasteful to this insect ; and a wash 

 of strong soap-suds thickened with washing-soda will 

 keep it away. Wash as early as May and June, and 

 keep the ground clear of grass and weeds for a harbor. 

 I have found clean culture a good protection when 

 neglected trees were badly infested, and some were de- 

 stroyed. A good formula for a wash is two pounds 

 of soft soap and a quarter of a pound of sulphur in a 

 pail of water.- Apply with a swab or brush. 



Christopher Shearer, a very successful horticulturist 

 of Pennsylvania, recommends a wash of four gallons of 

 whitewash, two quarts of clay, two quarts of fresh cow 

 dung, and one quart of strong lye, with water enough to 

 mix well. Scrape the earth away from the collar of the 

 tree, and apply with a swab or brush in May and August, 

 reaching well up the tree. Eeturn the earth that was 

 removed. He finds it effective with the peach and 

 apple trees as well as the quince. The main thing is to 

 prevent the laying of the eggs, and this does it. 



Harris recommends plugging up their holes with cam- 



