/\c/>or/s to the Board of A gricnlturc. i i 



feumli's. IIuw tlie winter is j)a.sst'«l is nut known, in llie early 

 nnil late suiunui they feed ujxtn wild Cfieniq}o«iiums nnd nian;:<»lds 

 and in the aulunin on Atrijilix lati/oli". 



Not I'nly ili>es this aphis aiuse the leaves to roll uj) loniritudinallv, 

 but they also i\}i.'d u|>on the seed heads of the mangold. 



Spniyini,' with panitlin emulsion or jjuussia witsh would check 

 their incivase and clear most of them oil'. This, of course, should not 

 be done when the sun is out. 



Flies (IJil'iviiitla') on Mangolds. 



Stmie flies wei-e sent by a conespondenl from lUUericay of the 

 dipt eix)us family— nil (ionida', si>ecies 7'ili<> hmtulanus — from a field 

 of mangolds cleared off in one nifijht. 



These flies can have Imd nothing to do with the two acres of 

 mangold imported to have l>een destroyed. 



Although their larviv are more or less injurious to roots, the 

 adult flies do n<) hann, not having a biting or jtiercing mouth. 



The damage reported seems to \>(m\\. to the small l»eetle recently 

 sent to the Boaiil from Xorth Devon — the Pigmy Mangold IVetle 

 (Atomaria liumri.s), which is eviilently abundant in .some parts. 



The con-esixmilent wa.s advised to look fi»r these small beetles, 

 which may l>e most easily caught by pulling up the young mangold.s 

 an<l the earth round them, when the l>eetles fall out of the soil. On 

 fine days they occur above ground as well (i-idc page 8). 



In any case the flies sent cannot have damaged the mangolds iu 

 the way reported. 



Muscid LarvdC attacking Roots. 



A con-esiMtndent of the T.oard of Agriculturo sent from P.urley 

 lieacon, Ilingwotxl, Hants, two diflerent kinds of larva- attacking 

 roots of plants. 



(1) A dipterous maggot changed during transit into the so-calleil 

 chr\salis or puparium stage of one of the flies l»elongiug to the 

 group AntJi">ii"i'f" . Thero are several of these diptera which are 

 ro(»t-fee<lers in their maggot stage. Pnibably the one sent was 

 Antliomi/in rcrfiruvi. L. 



(U) Throe sninll birv.f which were the caterpillai-s of one of the 

 Tinea'. 



The damage was probably all caused by the Anthomyia larva\ 

 which arc (tftcn seiious n»«>t jm- ; 



