INSECTS 137 



they appear on plants, as they are sure to do under nearly all 

 conditions. They are small, have elongated, succulent bodies, 

 move about slowly and awkwardly, on rather long, hairlike 

 legs, and are most commonly of a pale green color, though 

 often brown or reddish, and sometimes of other shades. 

 Fumigation of the plants in a closed box with burning 

 tobacco stems will kill them. Latterly florists evaporate a 

 liquid extract of tobacco (which is sold by dealers in 

 florists' supplies) by dropping a hot iron into a pan of it. A 

 tea made by soaking tobacco stems in water for a few hours, 

 and applied with a syringe, is effective, and a safe rem- 

 edy in inexperienced hands. A tablespoonful of tobacco 

 sheep-dip, or extract of tobacco, to a couple of gallons of 

 water, also makes an effective syringing or dipping solution. 

 As mentioned above, we should use care, especially in the 

 winter time, when the soil often dries out slowly, to avoid 

 soaking it when already wet or sufficiently moist. 



Mealy bug has a small, flat, tortoise -shaped body, 

 from about one -sixteenth to one -eighth of an inch long. 

 The Insects collect in masses in the axils of the 

 leaves. They are covered with a white mealy or 

 cottony substance, and are readily recognized, 

 although persons unfamiliar with their appearance 

 have sometimes mistaken them for bits of down 

 or cotton lodged upon the foliage or in the axils 

 of the leaves. The young are small, and likely 

 to escape observation unless one looks closely. 

 They are flat, of a creamy or pinkish tint, and liej 

 close to the surface of the leaves, especially on the 

 under surface. Coleus and bouvardias are among 

 the plants upon which mealy bugs are most often 



j? j r\ ' ii- -i c j-v. One of the kind 



found. Owing to the oily nature of their covering, which sucks its food 

 it is difficult to wet their bodies with any ordinary liquid that 

 may be applied for the purpose of destroying them. Fir-tree 

 oil is one of the most effective remedies for them. This liquid 

 is rather expensive, but for a small collection a gallon can will 



