ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND FACTS FOR THE PEOPLE. 385 



brown color, with a semi-transparent, ir- 

 regular, yellow spot, while the hind wings 

 are ot the same semi-transparent yellow 

 color, with a broad dark border. 



PYRAMIDAL GRAPE-VINE WORM. 

 Another worm, never hitherto mentioned 



Fig. 27 — Pyramidal Grape- Vine Worm. 



as injurious to the Grape-vine, is often 

 found resting upon it in the posture 

 shown in Figure 27, and may be at once 

 distinguished from all others that are 

 known to attack it, by having a pyramidal 

 hump near the end of its body. This 

 worm we have also found upon the Red 

 Bud, Raspberry and the Poplar, but it is 

 only as a vine-feeder that it can be con- 

 sidered injurious. It is of the form 

 shown in the figure and of a delicate 

 green color, marked with pale yellow or 

 cream-colored lines and spots, as there 

 indicated. It is found on the vines dur- 

 ing the month of May with us, and during 

 the forepart ot June descends to the sur- 

 face of the ground, where it spins a loose 

 cocoon of whitish silk, generally con- 

 structed between some fallen leaves. 

 Within this cocoon it remains some time 

 in the larva state, but eventually becomes 

 a shiny mahogany-brown chrysalis from 

 which emerges a moth with the front 

 wings bark brown and glossy and marked 

 with dark brown and pale grayish-brown 

 as in the cut ; and with the hind wings 

 of a lustrous copper color, from which 

 character it may be called in popular 

 language the American Copper Under- 

 wing. 



Remedies. — The worm is easily kept 

 in check by hand-picking, and though its 

 moth is attracted by sweets, it has never 

 been numerous enough in the past to 

 warrant this mode of capturing it. We 

 have no good description of this insect 

 in the English language. 



ONION FLY.— The larvae of a small 

 fly, or the Onion Fly, somewhat resem- 

 bling a miniature house fly, are very de- 

 structive to the onion crop in the Eastern 

 States. The eggs of this fly are laid on 

 the leaves close to the earth, and the lar- 

 vae destroy the root, and cause the plant 



25 



to turn yellow, wither and die. The larva 

 state lasts about two weeks, the pupa is 

 formed in the bulb itself, or in, the earth 

 near it, and the fly appears in two or three 

 weeks afterward, and it is stated that 

 there are sometimes as many as three 

 generations in one season. The insect 

 was imported about forty years ago. A 

 dressing of sand and spirits of tar is said 

 to be effective in preventing the ravages 

 of Psila Hosae, a. small fly of somewhat 

 similar habits, which attacks carrots, etc. r 

 in Europe, and might be used, perhaps,, 

 with advantage with our onion flies, or pe- 

 troleum, coal tar, or oil might probably 

 be used with sand in a similar manner. 

 In order to create a bad smell to drive 

 away this insect and similar flies injuring 

 onions, carrots, turnips, radishes, etc., it 

 has been recommended to water near the 

 plants with a mixture of one gallon of 

 soap suds to four quarts of gas water, or 

 two quarts of tar. This is said to keep the 

 flies away from the plants, so that they 

 do not deposit their eggs on them ; but it 

 is doubtful, unless it is constantly re- 

 newed, especially after rains, and even 

 then might injure the young plants if it 

 came in contact with them. Dr. Harris, 

 suggests sowing the seed on ground 

 where a quantity of straw has been 

 burned. Tar and water, wood-ashes,, 

 lime, powdered charcoal, flour of sulphur, . 

 lime-water and soot, etc,, etc., have all 

 been highly spoken of as remedies. Mr. 

 Sanborn recommends petroleum sprinkled 

 along the rows, and watering with soap- 

 suds, soot, or pyroligneous acid. Curtis 

 recommends lime and salt to destroy the 

 maggots ; boiling hot water poured over 

 the root is highly recommended by many, 

 and is said to destroy the maggots with- 

 out injuring the plants. The eggs of 

 this fly are said to be destroyed by the 

 larva of a Chrysopa (a neuroperous; 

 insect). 



For another species of Onion fly„ 

 Ortalis flexa, found in the Western States, 

 it is said that a pound of copperas dis- 

 solved in a pailful of soft soap, when 

 thinned with water, and applied to the 

 onions, is good to keep off the maggots, 

 and also to promote the growth of the 

 plant. A preventive is suggested in Mr.. 

 Packard's last report, which is to sow the 

 seeds deeper than usual, so that the fly 

 cannot so readily get at it to lay its eggs;.. 



