28 WORCESTER COUNTY HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. [1906 



them might far better plant no trees, because there is no oppor- 

 tunity for him to cultivate fruits successfully unless he treats 

 them scientifically. Now, before we can work intelligently 

 against msects we must know something about their habits. 

 The first duty is to know the character of the insect that is a 

 pest upon our trees. There are two distinct classes, one known 

 as the eatmg type, those that have mandibles or jaws, that eat 

 foliage, that eat fruit, and when we understand this class, there 

 is a specific form of treatment for it. The other class is entirely 

 different. It is the class known as the aphides or plant lice. 

 These do not eat but suck the juices from the trees. Although 

 different from the other class, in several instances I have known 

 farmers to use the same treatment for both ; hence, they have 

 come to the conclusion that spraying did no good, simply be- 

 cause they were acting in the wrong manner. 



There is not time in one afternoon to begm to touch this sub- 

 ject, hence I shall confine myself to the few things possible with 

 us or that could be done upon our farms. I have a few illus- 

 trations and will make use of them. 



The first is that of the tent caterpillar that are so very 

 troublesome in the early spring. We all recognize the w^ork of 

 the tent caterpillar, the insect that is more responsible for the 

 decline of our apple orchards than any other that I might name. 

 In some seasons it is very disastrous. It begins its work early, 

 before many of us are aware. I have frequently found it m 

 March. A week of warm weather will bring them out. Then 

 there is no place for them to go except upon the buds so they 

 cluster there and remain until the first evidence of life is shown 

 in the buds. Then they eat them and frequently the apple 

 crop is sacrificed at this time. While the trees will blossom, yet 

 it may be that in sixty days the buds are not there and it is 

 simply because the tent caterpillars have eaten upon them so 

 that they have weakened the buds and although they blossom 

 they cannot bear fruit. 



Possibly a little later will be found the green aphis, or plant 

 louse. These get out early in the season and concentrate upon 

 the buds. Thus two kinds, an eating and a sucking insect, are 



