INJURIOUS INSECTS. 117 



with warm water and stirs it up with a whisk broom and showers 

 the plants, and thinks this is, perhaps, better than a pump. It 

 will destroy currant worms. He had doubts whether a man could 

 spray two rows of apple trees forty feet apart at once. Insects 

 can be kept in check by constant attention. He was once much 

 troubled with borers in his apple trees, but conquered them and 

 now they do not trouble him. He picks off rose bugs and throws 

 them into a dish of soapsuds. 



Professor Fernald suggested, instead of the soapsuds, water 

 with a little kerosene on top. The oil would fill the breathing 

 holes of the insects and destroy them. 



Mr. Hadwen had tried this. 



The Chairman had used very fine coal ashes for currant worms. 



Daniel T. Curtis said that in using Paris green he felt confident 

 of success. Canker worms were very abundant on his trees, and 

 he put a tablespoonful of the insecticide into a tub holding five or 

 six pailf uls of water and sprayed his trees on the windward side and 

 underneath in the evening, and hardly a leaf had the parenchyma 

 eaten through. For the codling moth he used it when the petals of 

 the flowers had just dropped and the apples just begun to form, and 

 got ten barrels of fine, perfect specimens from two trees. Since 

 then he had used it on almost everything, but always at night, and 

 had had no trouble from any insects. He used a Vose pump. 

 He had used pyrethrum on roses, but never saw a rose bug 

 where Paris green had been used. He puts half a teacupful of 

 the latter into a pail of hot water and stirs thoroughly and dilutes 

 it afterwards. A smaller quantity will answer for slugs. He 

 thinks sifted coal ashes excellent on squash vines. 



John S. Martin had tried Paris green for rose bugs and they 

 seemed to flourish on it ; he then took a large pan with some ker- 

 osene in it and shook them in and destroyed them. 



William C. Strong thought picking off rose bugs too tedious. 

 They had forced him to give up growing grapes. He has a good 

 deal of grass ground, which favors their increase. Picking must 

 be done morning, noon, and night, and Sundays. 



Professor Fernald said that the}' had no rose bugs in Maine, 

 where he had resided. He could not agree with Mr. Martin that 

 they will thrive on Paris green ; he would advise showering with 

 it, but a little stronger than for other insects ; he advised increas- 

 ing the strength nearly as far as possible without injuring the 

 foliage. 



