HICKORY NUTS. 201 



air and attacks of insect-eating birds. These trees ap- 

 peared to have been infested for several years, as there 

 was scarcely a spot on the surface of the wood that had 

 not been scarified with this pest. Since the destruction 

 of these trees I have not been troubled with bark borers, 

 although there are still a number of very old and large 

 hickories thriving in the same grove. The only remedy 

 I can suggest is to cut down infested trees as soon as 

 they are discovered, and also encourage the insect-eating 

 birds to remain in and near the nut groves. 



There are several other species of bark borers that 

 occasionally attack hickories, one of these, the Chrame- 

 sus icorice, Leconte, infests the small twigs, while 

 another, the Sinoxylon basilare, Say, after boring 

 through the bark, continues its course far into the heart- 

 wood, showing a preference for this kind of food instead 

 of the living tissues. These pests, however, are rarely 

 constant, but very erratic, in their attacks, and while 

 they may be rather abundant on a few or many trees a 

 season or two, they then disappear, and not one may be 

 seen for several decades. 



THE HICKORY-SHUCK WORM ( GrapholUUa caryana. 

 Fitch). The parent of this pest is a minute moth of 

 the family TortricidcB, the small caterpillars mining and 

 boring the green husks, and sometimes into the imma- 

 ture shell, causing the nuts to wither and drop off pre- 

 maturely, although an occasional one may reach matu- 

 rity, even in its scarified condition. This insect appears 

 to be somewhat rare in the East, but very abundant 

 some years in the West, where it is frequently destruc- 

 tive to the thick shellbark hickory and pecan. The first 

 fresh specimens of the Nussbaumer Hybrid pecan nut 

 (referred to on a preceding page) were so badly bored 

 and scarified by this worm when received, that they 

 would have been nearly or quite worthless for either 

 planting or other purposes. As this insect attacks the 



