THE CURCULIO. 8l 



June 6. The Green Gages, Bolmars, and some other plums are now falling, 

 from the Curculio punctures. Those who have waited till June before attacking the 

 Curculio, will be too late this year. Had a long conversation to-day with my neigh- 

 bor Pierson about his Curculio experience. He told me that at one time he 

 bought 100 yards of musquito netting, and covered his young Plum trees with it; 

 he bound cotton saturated with sweet oil round the trees, but neither did any good. 

 Mr. Longworth, of Cincinnati, visited him, and saw his plums falling, and told him 

 to pave under the trees. This he did, using cement to make it more complete, but 

 after a trial of ten years he took the pavement all up as useless. Then some Yankee 

 told him to shake the trees, and this was done every morning for a long time ; but to 

 use his own expression, " I got some plums nevare." Lately he has been changing 

 most of his trees into the Quetsche or German Prune, in the belief that this variety of 

 Plum is less liable to both the Curculio and black knot, which to some extent is 

 true. If there were as many Green Gages or Egg Plums as the Curculios wanted, 

 the Prunes would escape, just as Peaches would escape their attacks if they could 

 find plenty of Nectarines. 



June g. To-day Mr. Pierson told me more about his experiments upon the 

 Curculio. Many of the trees still bear, the mark of the tar with which they had been 

 surrounded. He said that this tar injured many of them, having a binding or girdling 

 effect, and doing no good. He said he also tried a mixture of potash, molasses, etc., 

 " and everything." 



Mr. P.'s experiments were made years ago, when he was a more ambitious 

 and enthusiastic fruit-grower than now. I have never known a more ardent ama- 

 teur than he was for the first ten years of his labors. His grounds were visited 

 and admired by all who took an interest in such pursuits. His Pears and Grapes failed 

 from necessity the trees and vines had been brought from Europe. All other culti- 

 vators who have tried that experiment have shared a similar fate ; but the Curculio was 

 the cause, and the only cause, of the failure of his Plum crops, and he seemed to feel 

 that it would be a disgrace to be overcome in a contest with" a little insect. This 

 was a vastly different affair from fighting the uncongenial climate of a Continent. 

 Then, too, the books told him precisely what to do, and with equal precision he 

 followed their direction ; supposing, of course, like most other people, that what is 

 printed must be true. After a faithful trial, all failed to secure the desired result. 

 Had Mr. P. taken the time to carefully investigate the nature and habits of the Cur- 

 culio, or had he been able to find a treatise on the subject as elaborate as its import- 

 ance demands, his good sense would have enabled him to see that all these nostrums 



