JNEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



I'UIUJSHEI) liY WILLIAM MCliOLS, KOGF.RS' BUILDINGS, CONGRESS STJIKET, BOSTON.— THOMAS G. FEBSKN'OKN', EUITOK 



Vol. hi. 



SATURDAY, AUGUST 7, 1824. 



No. 2. 



LICE ON APPLE TIIEES ONCE MOKE. 

 To the Editor of the Mw England Farmer, 



Sir, — Ifyour patience is not iilroady cxh;ni=l- 

 ed on this subject, I shoulrl lie c:';ili(ied with 

 the ]iiiv)lcge of enlarg^ino; somewhat on the 

 enquiries otMr. Osgood (page 402, 2d volume,) 

 respecting these miscliievous insects, and ot 

 subjoining the result of some experiments. — 

 Having a nursery of young a|)ple trees which 

 have been much injured by these lice, I have 

 anxiously perused the various communications 

 in 'your paper, headed "• lice on apple trees;'.' 

 but have generally been disappointed : most of 

 these communications describing an insect 

 not at all resembling the spc, Jes mentioned by 

 Mr. Osgood, nor in this vicinity near so nume- 

 rous or destructive to young Irees. The account 

 given in " remarks" under the head " Horti- 

 culture," (page 262, 2d volume,) describes the 

 insects under the name of " plant lice," 

 abounding " with a sweet and grateful mois- 

 ture, and are therefore eagerly devoured by 

 ants."* That they are always accompanied by 

 ants, repeated observation proves ; but that 

 they are ever devoured by ants," I never could 

 discover by frequent and careful observation 

 through a magnifying glass, which enabled me 

 to be certain as to the fact. The ants are al- 

 ways seen amongst the lice, running busily 

 about the leaf, apparently treating them with 

 a fostering care, rather than any kind of hos- 

 tile intentions ; and on observing any particular 

 branch or leaf al'ter an interval of several 

 hours, or even d,iys, 1 never could discover the 

 apparent number of lice, to be at all lessened, 

 although vifitted continually by a suflicient" 

 number of ants to have devoured them all. It 

 was a query with myselfand others with whom 

 I conversed on the subject, — for what purpose 

 the ants did accompany them ; imtil this season 

 observing them through a magnifying gla«s it 

 was easy to discover the ants seeking and de- 

 vouring small particles of a limpid watery sub- 

 stance voided by the former insects. This 

 substance may be of a sweet nature and un- 

 doubtedly is, if these insects are " the sojp 

 cause of the honey dew," as quoted from Mr. 

 Curtis, page 262, 2d volume. If the "honey 

 dew" is caused by these insects, 1 would en- 

 quire, why it is that noi.oney devs- is to be seen 

 on the plants and trees infested liy them? And 

 why it is that on some mornings in the summer 

 of some years, the leaves of every shrub and 

 tree in a forest, are shining with the honey 

 dew when no insects like plant lice are to be 

 found on them? 1 would witli deference make 

 these enquiries, knowing that it ill becomes me 

 to question the hypothesis of Mr.Cnrtis,and much 

 more bo thai of Rees, respecting the insects be- 

 ing devoured by ants, and only say (bat tlie re- 

 sult of considerable observation has not been to 

 confirm those hypotheses.! But whether these 



* Tht passage here referred to is quoted from Rees' 

 Cyclopedia. 



t Dr. Rees is hot alone in his remarks relative to ants 

 devouring Ihe aphides. Forsyth says "ants are very 

 fcrd of them, ou axrccuni of a sweet liquor, which 

 they. eject- "VV'jth regard to their beicg "the sole 



insects are devoured by ants or not, or are tht; 

 cause of the honey (lew or not,— ibey ;ihj a 

 niaterial injury to nurseries of young iipplc 

 iTes and the first growth of the scions ofgrafc 

 ed trees, and an elTcclual remedy I'or ihcm is 

 very desirable. " Soap suds, forcibly applied," 

 was rocommended fiage 262, and repealed 402. 

 On reading tins remedy on the fortner jiage I 

 had not so much cpniidcnce in il^ efficacy as la- 

 ter experiments have served to give. 1 had 

 before applied soap su<!s by adiice of Mr. Le- 

 land, orchai<iist in Shet'linrne. Finding on one 

 of my grafted apple trees thousands of lice, 

 the tender part of the limbs and leaves nearly 

 covered with the;i;, the leaves curled, and the 

 ends of the branches nearly ceased to grow, al- 

 though at a time when trees of all description:-, 

 grow rapidly, (June io22) I ap[)lied soap suds by 

 sprinkling it on all the branches until I thought 

 them sufficient!}' wet; and on observing the 

 tree next d.ay the tender parts of the leaves and 

 ends of the branches were killed by the 

 strength of the suds, but the lice on all the 

 leaves yet green, appeared lively and nearly 

 as numerous as before. I considered, there- 

 fore, the remedy was not effectual to destroy 

 the insects, nor safe for the tree; 1 however 

 prepared some of the same but much weaker 

 and applied it to several young trees which had 

 on them aliundance of lice several times, 

 but could not discover that it bad much of any 

 effect. I therefore concluded (he remedy was 

 inefiVctual. But after noticing the " remarks" 

 (page 262) on tbese insects where the trouble 

 and difficulty of coming at them was mentioned, 

 and the same remedy recommended " forcibly 

 applied," I was led to conctude that it is not 

 sufficient to wet the upper side of the leaves, 

 thinking to make them disagreeable or poison- 

 ous to the insect, bnt that tiiey must be well 

 drenched or immersed in the suds. ! therefore 

 applied again the same remedy — but with this 

 (lifTcfence ; instead ofsprinkling the iijiptir side 

 if the branches, I carried a jiailful of suds from 

 free to free, and bending the tops of small trees, 

 and tlie branches of larger ones,immersed all the 

 parts infested with lice, holding them in tin' 

 liquor for a moment, that non»! might escape 

 being well wet. On examining the trees the 

 next dfiy, a great part of the lice were destroy- 

 ed. It was found necessary to repeat the same 



cause of the honey dew," we have the testimony of Dr. 

 Darwin to corroborate the opinion of our correspondent, 

 or at le ast to show that other causes operate in produc- 

 ing that substance. According to Dr. Darwin, the 

 honey dew is a sacharinc juice that exudes from trees, 

 in consequence of the retrograde motions of the cutane- 

 ous lynnpliatic vessels, connected with the umbilical 

 or with the common sap vessels of plants ; instead of 

 being carried forward to increase the growth of the 

 present leaf-buds, which are in an embryon state. 



This exudation is consequently very injurious to 

 the trees, which are subject to it; especially from its 

 great sweetness, which attracts immense numbefs of 

 bets and ants. 



The Abbe Bosfier has found that there are two kinds 

 of honey drw, the one produced by transpiration, d\n- 

 ing^ a sultry heat, from the leaves of a particular genefa 

 of frees; while the other is the excrement of the 

 small insect known hy the name of puctron or tine 

 fretler — Ed. N. E. Farmer. 



process once or twice with suds not too weak, 

 say about two or three ounces of soap to a gal- 

 lon of water. A decoction of tobacco is also a 

 good remedy. 



If you should consider the above worlh a 

 place in your useful paper, please insert ii; — • 

 but if you resolve to cast it under the table, 

 your resolution shall meet with the cheerful 

 concurrence of 



Yours, witii respect, S. 



Mcd-s:tty, Juh/ 26, 1024. 



SAXONY SHEEP. 

 T» the Editor of tlie A'tv: England Farmer, ■ 



Sir, — While attending the sale of Saxon 

 sheep at liiookiine the 15th ult. I was sur- 

 prised to see sheep of very inferior <|ualily, 

 (for such there were) sold at high prices, to 

 account for which 1 can only suppose that the 

 buyers did not examine them, and took it lor 

 granted thai, as they came from Saxony, they 

 were of the first qualit}'. A piriin farmer said 

 to me the other day, "• y6u had the merino fe- 

 ver some years ago, you now have the Saxon 

 fever — what kind of sheep will come next ? 

 I begin to think that " dear bought and far 

 /etched" — is as good for gentlemen as ladif;s. 

 You won't Catch me with tliefn, said he. For 

 his informatidn and others of his kidney, it may 

 not be imprn|)cr to publish the fact that Saxon 

 sheep are no other than merino ! 



Merino sheep were introduced into Saxony 

 more than 0':.'i hundred years since ; and lor 

 many years x/ave had peculiar care ; the finest 

 have been selccleJ as breeders, for such a suc- 

 cession of generations, that the merino sheep 

 of Saxony, called h>"re Saxon sheep, are su- 

 perior to llie merino shee[) of Spain, and are 

 perhaps the finest in the world. In Spain a 

 different course is pursued. There, most of the 

 male lambs remain entire ; of course the lambs 

 are from the stmngest bucks, let their quality 

 be what rt may. 



In Saxony stock b'lcks sell from 20 to 60 

 dollars to the growers of wool, who have not 

 the pure blood, the fii'ece being a secondary 

 consideration to the breeder nfstock bucks (on- 

 ly so far as enables him to obl.iin a high price 

 for the animal,) owing to the demand for, and 

 high price of them. 



Many fanners in this state have been careful 

 to select and breed from the best sheep they 

 could obtain, and have brought their flocks to 

 such perfection, that 1 have no doubt they al- 

 ready possess some finer sheep than most of 

 those sold at Brookline ; though some of them 

 were very superior sheep, and better wonh 

 600 dollars each, than others were 10 dollars 

 for the improvement of a flock of 100 Ewes — 

 as may be readily seen when we consider (hat 

 th^ wool from a prime flock, is worth double 

 to that from an ordinary flock, and the expense 

 of keeping the same in both cfises. Raising 

 coarse wool is like raising rye on ground that 

 will produce more bushels of wheal with the 

 same labour. 



The importers deserve much credit for in- 

 troducing these sheep — should they import 

 more, their ovvn interests will suggest the pro- 



