THE GRAPE VINE. 



is supposed to be the male, and that was on the under 

 side of a leaf, and appeared in a semi-dormant state. 

 Underground, they breed and spread with marvellous 

 rapidity on the roots, and cover them so densely 

 that they impart to them their own colour. They 

 effect the destruction of the vine by eating all the 

 bark off the roots, and burrowing into the second coat- 

 ing of the young roots ; and after destroying that, they 

 seem to move on to fresh roots, for I have not in one 

 single instance found an insect on a root after it has 

 been peeled and begun to decay. Contrary to the 

 French theory that it attacks the roots at the neck of 

 the vine, and works downwards towards the more 

 young and fibry roots, it has been invariably found 

 that they have begun at the points of the roots, and 

 devoured upwards towards the bole of the vine. 



It is also quite evident that, like red-spider on the 

 leaves, it thrives best in a dryish warm soil. Having 

 decided to thoroughly stamp the pest out by removing 

 the whole border, I did not as usual cover the outside 

 border with wooden shutters early in October; and, 

 owing to the enormous rainfall of the autumn, the 

 soil was of course unusually moist and cold outside. 

 The most careful examination of the roots outside in 

 this cold damp medium did not lead to the discovery 

 of an insect on the roots up to the arches of the front 

 of the house. The pest, however, was found in swarms 

 on the roots to the very point at which they left the 

 protection of the stone- work, where the soil was much 

 drier, and here there was an abrupt limit to their 

 extension. On the same roots not one was found 

 beyond the arch, in which case it is clear they had 

 worked from the inside along the roots, but in any 

 case did not advance into the damp soil, proving that 



