ORCHARD PESTS 83 



makes up for its humble walk in life by the extent of 

 damage which it does. The creature is only ^ inch long. 

 It attacks leaf-buds, foHage and flower-buds, the most 

 serious being of course the last. Its presence is shown 

 by the failure of the buds to open and by their being 

 covered with a dirty, sticky stuff called " honey-dew." 



During its larval state the Apple Sucker hops about 

 like a frog fly, but when full-grown both sexes have wings. 

 In colour they vary between yellow, green and red, and 

 the females are brighter in tint than the males. The 

 egg-laying begins in the autumn and continues until 

 November, the young shoots being covered. They hatch 

 in the spring and become full-grown by the middle of May. 



Paraffin emulsion should be used directly the apples 

 have been gathered and the operation may be repeated 

 again in the spring. 



As regards natural remedies it may be mentioned that 

 the Golden-crested Wren is fond of Apple Sucker and is a 

 well-behaved, harmless little bird which should be cared 

 for. The Tits also help, but in the case of pears they are 

 usually unable to resist the ripe fruit. 



Wasps are regarded with aversion by almost every one 

 in the country, on account of two outstanding faults, 

 viz. the power to sting at will, and repeatedly, unhke 

 bees, which sting once in self-defence and then are usually 

 killed by their companions. Wasps also, of course, play 

 havoc with the plums and other ripe fruit. Their saving 

 graces, if they have any, Ue in the fertihzation of flowers 

 and the devouring of other insects, for instance the Small 

 White Butterfly. The Common Wasp ( F. vulgaris) builds 

 a wonderful nest underground out of paper-hke material 

 as a home for the queens and nurseries for the young 

 grubs. Here they remain dormant during the winter 

 and are sought out by country folk and destroyed with 

 hot tar. Another species, the Tree Wasp (F. norvegica) 

 builds a remarkable nest suspended from the boughs in 

 woods. It is not so common as the preceding. 



