THE FARMEKS' REGISTEK. 



701 



so strongly attached, for they grow in abundance 

 in fverv hedge aiul nieiuiow : they appear ionii; 

 belbre ilie tiiriiii)3 cume up, and atiracl and tiivc-, 

 support to the |)arcnis oi tiie future swarms thai 

 are to sweep away ihe crops ol' the larmer." 

 As these plants olien (lower at the beginning oi 

 April, and produce iheir leaves al a much earlier 

 period, it is almost certain thai they nurse the liy, 

 and are its great resources lor Ibod and nourish- 

 ment in the earliest days of spring; but how to 

 eradicate the cardamine is lor future consideraiion. 

 The heilge-muslcrd, and other crucilerous plains 

 on banks and road sides, are quite under our 

 control ; and it is a duly whicl\ we owe lo our 

 neighbor as well as to our ourselves, lo keep our 

 fields and hedges clear of charlock and every 

 allied weed of that lamily, all of which hartjor 

 ihe turnip-beetle. 



Belore dismissing this portion of Ihe subject, 

 two or three ren)arks will be uselijl. It is ceriain 

 ihat manure gives strength to the turnip-plant, 

 but it is doubtful if it will destroy the beetles. 

 Hoeing and rolling may harass and kill many ol 

 them ; and as this process promotes the more 

 rapid growth of the plants, it must be aiieiuled 

 with no slight advantages. I expect also lh;it if ii 

 were perlbrmed in damp da3's, or after tieavy 

 dews, the benefit would be increased; for if ihe 

 beetles leap in moist weather they ofien lall upon 

 their backs, where they stick, and afier being ex- 

 hausted, become torpid and apparently dead, if 

 the air be cold ; but they reanimate as ihey are 

 dried by the sun. In cold and wet weaiher it 

 might not prove less efficient; for muliitudes o' 

 the flies are then sheltered under and about the 

 clods, whicl) being broken down, the insects must 

 perish by-the pressure; and if there were any 

 chrysalides in the earth, they would in all proba- 

 bility sufier the same fate. 



There are many who consider that turnips 

 should be sown immediately after ploughing, and 

 that much oi the success attending a crop depends 

 upon the diligence employed in getting in ihe 

 manure and seed ; whilst some maintain that the 

 land should lie undisturbed for a Ibrinight before 

 sowing. Such conflicting opinions, as far as the 

 fly is concerned, may ofien be reconciled by ihe 

 difference of the seasons when the observations 

 were made.* We know that turnips must not he 

 eown in too dry nor too wet a state of the soil, 

 yet this is precisely the state most fitied for the 

 production of the fly ; lor it is well ascertained that 

 a moderate degree of moisture is necessary lo 

 bring forth or to hatch almost all insects, and if 

 this be accompanied by a mild air, it is the better 

 suited to them ; it is therefore reasonable to 

 expect that altera fine early spring the turnip- 

 beetles will be found most abundant. 



From the dislike the fly has to repeated wet, I 

 have always thought that watering the turnips 

 would be highly useful ; and this opinion is sup- 

 ported by Mr. Bayldon, who recommends them to 

 be watered every other day, four, five, and six 

 times if necessary. t Irrigating the land would not 



*The perusal of the report in the Transactions of 

 the Doncaster Agricultural Society is strongly re- 

 commended, and in their " Analysis of the Returns," 

 the date of every year is alone wanting to make it in- 

 valuable. 

 t How is this to be done ? In a garden it might 



have so good an effect, I think, as watering, because 



the beetles would only be lloated otl the leaves, if 

 they were detached at all ; and if ilicy were- left 

 thus lor two or three days, there would be a great 

 chance of their recovering when ihe |)lant8 were 

 left dry ; whereas tiy the watering they would be 

 lorcibly brushed oil, and get set lust in the earth 

 and die. The benefit would be most lelt, i con- 

 ceive, on heavy lands with regarb to the annilii- 

 lalion of the beetles ; but it would every wheie 

 have the advantage ofdebiroying the cliryauli=i, by 

 stopping up the pores ol the suii, and so |)revenl- 

 iug ihe exit of ihe fly. 



Nitrate of soda has been tried in two instances 

 on crops of Swedish turnips with very beneficial 

 eliectd ; and it probably assisis, from its peculiar 

 (|ua!iiles, in checking ihe increase of the beetles, 

 'i'he nitrate was sown two or three da>s alter the 

 seed; audit may be used on all soils excepting 

 on chalk. It should be sown broad-casi, mixeil 

 Willi wood-ashes, which enable the sower to 

 spread it more regularly. 



We now come to what may be termed direct 

 remedies. 



The Paul-net, as it is called, alier its inventor, 

 all hough ii iias been considered as a toy, yet 1 am 

 of opinion might be usefully employed ; /or I have 

 seen a (juart Ooiilt; hfed with the lime turnip- 

 beetles that were all caught vviih ihis net. Il I 

 remember correcily, JMr. Paul's plan was to sow a 

 small spot wiih while turnips early, as a decoy, and 

 over that space to draw his net.* It always 

 struck me that vast quantities made their escape 

 by skipping out of the net, which was its greatest 

 delect, but ihis might be remedied by placing some 

 sawdust at the extremity of ihe bag, mixed with 

 lumps of common ammonia, sprinkled wnh 

 spirits of turpentine, which perhaps would be 

 better but either ol these would kill a great many, 

 and stupily the remainder, umil the contents of 

 the net were subjected to sufficient heat to deprive 

 ihem of lile. 'J'his process is no doubt trouble- 

 some, and requires to be repeated ; and unless, 

 perhaps, some alterations were made, it would 

 not answer on an extensive scale. This, however, 

 is no liatal objection lu ihe principle. 



A board newly painted or tarred, and drawn 

 over the turnijis, wid caich muliiiudes of the 

 beetles ; for on being disturbed ihey leap against 

 it, and cannot release themselves. I should re- 

 commend while paint ; and tlie brighter it is Ihe 

 better, as all insecs are attracied by light colors. 

 Neilher wet nor windy weaiher would be suited 

 to these operations ; lor it is ascenained that the 

 beeiles are at such seasons disinclined to move; 

 neither would mid-day in fine weaiher do, as Ihey 

 are then active, a».u fl^ well ; Ibr ii is a well-known 

 fact, corroborated a!so by the flight of swallows, 

 that in hot days ai,d sunshine insecis fly high, 

 whilst in damp weaiher they keep upon or near 

 the ground. 



I (jrobably have a good effect, but on a score of acres ? 

 , If, indeed, a water-cart filled with brine could be 

 j conveniently once run over a fieic!. it inijiht, as there 

 [stated, prove a partial remedy, and it certainly is 

 j worth trying ; for even should it not h- effectual 



on that point, it would, no doubt, prove beneficial to 



the growth of the crop.— F. Burke. 

 I * A very good representation of this net will be 

 ! seen in Kirby and Spence's Introduction to Euto- 

 I mology. pi. 24, fig. 3. 



