405 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



JVXIS 3 1, 1H13. 



AND HdRTICUl.TIJKAI. RKGISTF.R. 



Boston, VVednksday, June 21, 1843. 



THE DISEASE OF THE SYCAMORE TREE. 



To llie Edilor of the New England Fanner: 



On my return to Bosinn, I fortl-.witli commiinicatcil 

 to my friend, Mr l^ C. Bpuiks, a sluteniHiil in relation 

 to tlio sycnmore tree, wImlIi he thought best to take 

 forlhwuh to Dr. T. W. Harris, well known lor his learn- 

 ing in entomology. His commiinication of the some 

 rime, was sulimitiecl to the Trustees of the Massiicliu- 

 setls Society for the Promotion of A^rirulture, on the 

 lOth June; anil I wa.5 requested to usk Dr. H.irris's 

 leave to have thn papers published, for which purpose I 

 now transmit them 



Yours, J. Vv'ELLES. 



Boston, June Ctli, 1643. 

 Him. Peter C. Brooks . — Dear Sir— I lately had oeca- 

 sion to go as far South as Richmond, in Virginia. The 

 olijei-t of my journey being accomplished, 1 found lei- 

 sinu to apply myself to any object, agricultural or other- 

 wise, thai might be interesting. The desolate condi- 

 tion of the syriamori! tree was in melancholy perspec- 

 tive daily before me, as an object of much solicitude. 

 The causes that hail led, for three years past, to the en- 

 tire loss of ils foliage, had excited, I well knew, the at- 

 tention of t'le " Massachusetts Society fir tlie Promotion 

 of Agriculture," as well as of many other Societies and 

 individuals. 



The production of the foliage twice in a year it was 

 gcinorally thought must lie destructive to the tree. 

 'Westward of Virginia, I learned from many inielligent 

 individuals that this unfortunate event had not occurred, 

 and tliev expressed great surprise and regret at findmg 

 this ornamental tree leafless as they entered that State. 

 In passing homeward through Maryland, New Jersey, 

 Pennsylvania, and New York, all were mote or less de- 

 prived of their leaves, and the cause seemed to be un- 

 known. 



On my arrival at Springfield, where the sycamore has 

 heretofore been llirifty, and many of tlicm highly orna- 

 mental, I was desirous to know what led lo this result, 

 iieveral of the inhabitants were prompt to assist me, 

 with a zeal and good will that was encouraging. On 

 the 3l6t of May and 1st of June, I proceeded to exam- 

 ine the limbs and leaves within reach, but without any 

 discovery. From my expression of a wish to have the 

 foliage oil the upper parts of the trees brought to view, 

 Mr John G. Tappan, to whose aid I was much indebted, 

 sent his gardener, who by the means of a long ladder, 

 procured a number of the liigher hrinches. A vast 

 number of small insects were found covering every 

 leaf wtiich vveie perforated in numberless places, and as 

 their incisions were extended, the leaves became dis- 

 colored, shrunk, and fell from the tree. The work of 

 deslruciion went lower and lower, till the tree was left 

 generally leafless. Farther South, this was fully the 

 casu : here they were at this lime in an earlier stage of 

 operation. Great numbers were collected on the under 

 side of the le.if, lo which they invariably adhere. Many 

 of the smaller of the insects were about the extremity of 

 the last year's growth. How far, th<iugh minute, such 

 « number of insects could produce bucIi an effect, is for 

 consideraiion. 



There were found besides, a great number of worms. 

 of a small green color, varying in size, and feeding on 

 llie leaf of the tree. 

 A considerable number of the small limbs of the tree, 



fir the food of these tenants in common, were taken on 

 in large paper bundles, and brought in good preserva- 

 tion lo be subniilteil to some one learned in entomology, 

 for a better knowledge of their iharacter; and I sin- 

 cerely hope some means may bi discovered for the pre. 

 scrvation of tliis highly ornamental tree. 

 j am yours, with respect, 



JOHN WELLES. 



CiMBiiiDGE, June Cth, 1843. 

 Hon. John Wrllrs, President of the Agricultural So- 

 ciety of Massachusetts : — Dear Sir— The Hon. P. C. 

 Brooks put into my hands, this afternoon, two parcels 

 of the leaves of the sycamore or buttonwood, contain- 

 ing some insects which you liiid delecU-d upon them; 

 and requested me to examine them, and write lo you 

 on the subject. 



The insects, in one of the parrels, were very small, 

 flattened, nhilisli bugs, belon;;ing lo the geiius Taigis, 

 of Fiibriciiis. In some seasons, they may be seen on 

 the sycamore, ihe linden, and on several other kinds of 

 trees, in immense numbpis. If you walk among the 

 trees infested by them, when the limbs are shaken by 

 the wind, and especially if you are brushed by the fo- 

 liage in passing, you will sometimes find yourself cover- 

 ed with a swatiu of these little insects, which look upon 

 the clothing like a plentiful sprinkling of coarse bran. 

 They are very brauiiful objects when seen under a mi- 

 croscope ; the whilish semi-transparent armor that cov- 

 ers their blackish bodies, (consisting of the broad shield 

 of the thorax and the wing-scales,) is curiously veined, 

 and, as it were, enibo.=sed; and the head is pmlecled 

 by an inflated projection of the fore part of the back, 

 somewlial like a helmet or hood. Insects of this kind 

 live by suction, being provided with a slender beak, 

 lodged in a furrow under the breast, wherewith they 

 pierce the leaves and suck the juices of plants, 'i'hey 

 underjio only n partial transformation, being, when 

 young, nearly of llie siime form as when fully grown. 

 The specimens collected by you are winged, and in the 

 adult state. I do not know enough of the history of 

 this particular species to say how much injury it is able 

 to do, or to warrant me in asserting that it lias been con- 

 cerned in preventing the due e.\|iansion of the leaves 

 of the sycamore. 



The other sample of leaves contained several green- 

 ish caterpillars, of various sizes, the largest measuring 

 about five-eighlhs of an inch in length. When fully 

 grown, they will spin their cocoons, and will finally be 

 transformed to small moths or night-butterflies. The 

 species can only be determined by feeding the caterpil- 

 lars, and keeping them li|l they finish their transforma- 

 tions. Most of the leaves have holes eaten through 

 ihem by these caterpillars, and are more or less stuck 

 together by the fine threads that they have spun. The 

 amount of mischief which they have done, is apparent 

 from the holes in the leaves, and cannot have been suf- 

 ficient lo cause the sickly appearance which the syca- 

 more trees now exhibit. 



You must have remarked that, while the rest of the 

 tree is almost hare of foliage, the uppermost limbs put 

 forth a few leaves, and on these we may expect lo find 

 such insects as are peculiar lo the sycamore at this sea- 

 son of the year. From the beginning of the desolating 

 calamity that has ulfecied this noble tree, many of the 

 buds have been found to perish without expanding at 

 all ; others produce only a shriveled and abortive fo- 

 liage, which soon withers, becomes black, and falls off. 

 The few leaves that expand fully, are unable to carry 

 on the functions concerned in the growth and health of 

 the whole tree, the failure of which appears lo threaten 

 its entire destruction. 



Hitherto I have not been able to find any insects, con- 

 stantly and ill sufficient numbers on the sycamore, lo 

 produce either the entire or Ihe partial destruction ol 

 the leaf-buds, and therefore have been led to think that 

 this wide spread disease must have had a difl'erent ori- 

 gin. 



Believe me lo be, my dear sir, 

 With great respect. 



Your most ob't friend and serv't, 

 THADDEUS WILLIAM HARRIS. 



WHITE-WEED, OR OX-EYE DAISY. 



This weed is an intruder in many of our fields that we 

 should like lo see expelled, liiit to do this is probably 

 impossible. Where only a few small patches on the 

 farm are covered witfi it, one may get the upper hands 

 of it by pulling up each root and then pulling on to the 

 spot where the root grew, a spoonful of salt. Digging 

 alone or pulling alone, will nol do the work — but these 

 aided by salt will do it. The same is true in regard to 

 the yellow dock, and the Camda lliislle. 



The white weed is an exterminator of the grasses. 

 While the grounds are in good heait, and for a year or 

 two after they have been seeded down, the grasses will 

 keep the white weed under— but in ihe end the weed 

 will conquer, if it has once had lull possession. 



This weed makes pretty good hay when cut young, 

 and on some poor lands it yields nearly as much as 

 could be obtained with grasses of any kind ; but it will 

 never grow very thick where it lias exclusive posses- 

 sion, and never gives a large' burthen. Therefiire keep 

 it from your grounds, if you conveniently can — but if it 

 be in them, its injury, though somcihing, is not very 

 great. 



WEEDING. 



Be careful to keep down the weeds. They are sub- 

 dued with much less labor if attacked while small ; and 

 taking them then, pri-vents ihcir drawing the food from 

 the soil, which your crops will by and by want* The 

 checking of weeds and the stirring of ihe soil must be 

 most perseveringly and faithfully perfiirmed, if you ex- 

 pect to obtain good crops. And no weed should be 

 suffered lo mature before being destroyed : — ''One year's 

 seeding," says the old proverb, "makes seven years' 

 weedinij." 



PETS. 

 We like to see pels about llie fiouse and barn. No 

 mailer what animal — a hen, a sheep, a fiorse, a cow, a 

 pig — any thing that has life and feeling, we like to see 

 caressed. We like to see it pulling entire confidence 

 in your kindness, and coming up lo you familiurly. You 

 cannot show kindness to the brute without making your 

 heart kinder. All the kind and good feelings grow 

 striinger the more they are exercised. It will do you 

 good to have pets among your animals ; — it is for your 

 enjoyment and your profit to treat very kindly all your 

 domestic animals, and lo win their confidence. 



[nj=Tlie present volume of the Farmer expires with 

 the next number. Those indebted for this and past vol- 

 umes, are earnestly requested to remit their dues forth- 

 with, and thus nol only discharge a duty, but manifest 

 that they set some value upon, and feel an interest in 

 the prosperity of, ihe Old New England Farmer. 



Qj=" We" have taken the responsihilily of deferring 

 the second " inslalmenl" of llie Editor's "Glimpses," 

 to give place to tho correspondence pertaining to the 

 sycamore. 



