310 



AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURE. 



aphis, in the form of a light green fly or insect, congregate 

 in sleepy-looking masses, near the points of the younger 

 shoots and the buds, and upon other parts of the plants as 

 well. The grape vine aphis, termed phylloxera, live on the 

 roots and also on the leaves at times, as do similar insects 

 on other plants. When examined under a powerful glass, 

 they seem to be crawling about listlessly, as it appears, or 

 are fastened by their snouts or proboscis to the plant, the 

 juices of which they are sucking. Cabbage aphis are 

 found in similar masses under the younger leaves of the 

 plants. Almost every tree and other plant in the garden 

 has visitors of the aphis kind, and their mode of life is 

 much the same. 



" American Blight." The woolly apple tree louse (mis- 

 named " American blight") has long been known in Europe, 



and is proving very des- 

 tructive in parts of Aus- 

 tralia. The insect is a 

 plant louse of the aphis 

 kind, is quite small, and 

 fastens itself in crevices 

 of the bark, where it 

 deposits masses of minute 

 eggs, so small that a very 

 powerful observing glass 

 is necessary to see them. 

 The effect upon trees is 

 to literally exhaust the 

 part they settle on of all 

 sap. The wood seems 

 honeycombed, swells 

 into knobs, and soon 

 becomes prey to disease. 

 Many remedies have 

 been tried to cure trees 

 infested with this 

 scourge, amongst the 

 mosteffective being clay- 

 lime-sulphur paint for 

 winter dressing, and 



Woollj Aphis " American Blight." 



