152 



Larva. — A soft, iiale yellow eyliiKlrioal snil). resembling somewhat a fnll- 

 grown apple-worm (VurjKicaiiau ixjuioiicUu) ; head dark brown: tirst and last 

 segments are darker than the balance; it has sixteen legs — six horny, and ten 

 tlesliy or niembraneons ones; vei-j' few short hairs upon the body. 



/'»//(/. — When the larva' are fully developed they crawl upwards, and near 

 the surface the.v construct a pupa ease with their castings and gum. In 

 California the.v reach this stage of their existence in April. May and June, 

 remaining in t-his condition three or four weeks. The pupa is brown, and when 

 about to change to the moth it forces itself through the end of the cocoon, 

 from whirli the moth afterwards issues. 



lluic to Fiiii! TIiciii. 



I'each-growers should make a careful exaniinatinn of their trees in tlie 

 spring, by removing the soil a few inches deep around the trunk, brush the 

 stem, and if any part sliows an excess of moisture or. gum it is a sure indii a- 

 tion of the presence of borers, unless the tree has been iu.iurc(l in rnltivating. 

 ('arefnlly remove the bark on the suspected jiart. and cut in the direction of 

 the burrow until the larva is founil. Hot water has been recommended b.v 

 some, and others use a thin. flexil)le wire, with which they jirobe tne wound; 

 but the most certain and satisfactor.v wa.v is the knife. After the borer has 

 been found and destroyed, cover the part with moist soil: or. where the injured 

 surface is large and the sapwood tut awa.v. allow the wood to dry aud apply 

 two coats of rubber paint ; afterwards cover with clean sand. This treatment 

 will keeji the wood sound and health.v until the bark again covers the part. 



I'rciriilin: Mcu.^llir-1. 



Nearly all our warfare against insect pests has been carried on after 

 tUey attack the tree, but witli this one we have tlie means of preventing, to a 

 great extent, any very serious damage. They prefer the moist, cool bark near 

 the surface of the ground, and as this is the most vital ijart of the tree, it can 

 be so protected that it will be impossil)le for the moth to reach it. The old 

 system of banking the soil against the tree to the height of eight or twelve 

 inches has been found of great benefit in preventing the borer from reaching 

 the roots, if the banks are formed in May — Ijefore the moths deposit their eggs 

 — and kept in position until winter. This will not prevent their attacks, Imt 

 when the soli is removed they can be reached to better advantage. In our 

 dry climate the placing of a small conical bank of soil against the trunk has 

 no injurious effect, provided it be removed before heav.v winter rains. The 

 trees can then be examined, and tlie borers destroyed before the.v develop. — 

 Calif oniiii State BiianI <if Hi>rtici(ltiirc. Bidlftin .\o. -jS. 



■\VESTt:RN Stk,\wi!i;rky Ckown-Borei! {'riilnilcniia fun olal iiiii). 



Destructive to strawberry plants. Both beetles and larva' are destructive, 

 and so far have not proved amenable to poisons. Changing the location of 

 strawberr.v beds infested with this pest is recommended, being careful to get 

 plants from locations wliere the insects are not f(aind. The plants on infested 

 beds sliould be dug up and burned as soon as the fruiting seiison is over. 



