40 



stations there were great quantities of waste oranges scattered about. Dr. 

 Marti said that there was seldom any trouble from the fruit-fly (Geratites 

 hispanica), now considered identical with C. capitata but at Malaga, further 

 south, towards the end of the year, this fruit-fly often did a great deal of 

 damage to the citrus crop. No methods are used to deal with it, except 

 that some of the growers clear up their orchards and destroy the fallen, 

 useless fruit. The Olive Fly (Dacus olece) is a well-known pest all through 

 Spain, wherever the olive is cultivated, but apparently does not do anything 

 like the damage that it causes in Italy. The orange-trees are planted deep 

 in the soil, and, in consequence, suffer much from "collar rot." To rectify 

 this at the station all the main roots round the trunk were exposed and the 

 soil thrown out. All the trees here were grafted. Red scale is the 

 commonest scale insect in the citrus orchards. 



From Valencia I returned to Barcelona, going straight on to Montpellier, 

 in France, where I spent two days with Dr. Yalery Mayet, and at the Ecole 

 de Agriculture. The Director was away in Paris, but the Secretary placed 

 an officer at my disposal, who took me all through the laboratories, herbar- 

 ium, and afterwards over the fields and experimental plots. The study of 

 viticulture is the important work of this school ; and in the insect and 

 botanical laboratories all the insect and fungus diseases of the vine are 

 exhibited ; while in the hot-houses there are living forms ; and in the experi- 

 mental plots all the different methods of pruning, cultivating, and trellising 

 vines are shown. Some experiments in the German method of " paving " 

 are also being carried out. The ground, in which a number of growing vines 

 are planted, is covered with different coloured basic slag mixed with a little 

 concrete or cement. The effect of the sun's rays on the different coloured 

 ground is being noted in the rapidity of the growth of the vines and the 

 ripening of tha berries. Some other plots were covered with paving stones 

 among which the vines grew ; others were growing under cover of river 

 gravel of different quality and thickness. 



The preservation of ripe grapes was pointed out to me by the Secretary. 

 Each bunch is cut off the vine with a section of the cane ; this is placed in a 

 jar of water and charcoal ; each jar is then hung upon a- hook driven into 

 the wall, so that each bunch hangs down without touching anything. If 

 the store-room has a regular temperature, these bunches are said to keep for 

 months, and though the stalks wither the berries remain firm and hard. 



From Montpellier I went on to Marseilles, where I took my passage to 

 Naples in the Nord Deutscher Lloyd steamer, reaching Italy on 27th March. 

 At Naples I engaged a guide and went out to the entomological laboratories 

 of the Department of Agriculture at Portiei. Here I met Professor F. 

 Silvestri and his staff, and went through their collections. Many of the 

 cosmopolitan pests are common in Italy. Professor Silvestri is the exponent 

 of the value of parasites, and hopes to deal with the Olive Fruit-fly (Dacus 

 olef) in this manner. This fly is one of the worst insect pests in the world, 

 and all the Italian entomologists are working to destroy this very serious 

 pest to the great olive industry. 



Here I learnt that the damage caused by the Mediteranean Fruit Fly was 

 confined chiefly to Sicily and to Calabria on the mainland. The Department 

 recommend the burning and boiling of all infested fruit, but they have no 

 power to enforce their recommendations. 



Professor Silvestri suggested the idea that fruit-flies could be made an 

 international matter. All countries that are infested with fruit-flies could 

 pay a certain sum. to be used in original investigations by a board or staff of 

 entomologists for the benefit rf all the countries interested in the matter. 



