184 FRUIT-GROWING 



The curculio is one classic insect pest of the 

 stone fruits. Of course it does not confine its 

 ravages to fruits of that class, but it is on the 

 peaches, plums and cherries that it has made 

 its most notable record. A native insect, rang- 

 ing over the greater part of the fruit-producing 

 United States, this beetle causes hundreds of 

 thousands of dollars' worth of damage every 

 year. Its economic importance is ten times 

 that of the San Jose scale in spite of the fact 

 that it has not been dignified by the passage 

 of any laws against its existence. The creature 

 attacks the fruit soon after it forms and cuts 

 small crescent-shaped slits in the tender tissues. 

 In these slits the eggs are deposited. The 

 young grubs feed on the surrounding pulp until 

 the fruit is either ruined or falls from the tree. 



A spray program for plums and cherries can 

 be worked out that will give a large measure 

 of protection against nearly all of the diseases 

 and insects mentioned. The curculio can, of 

 course, be eliminated by providing a supply of 

 arsenate of lead very early in the season. This 

 can be applied at the same time that the first 

 spray for brown rot goes on, which is shortly 

 after the bloom falls. Some growers are now 

 spraying immediately after bloom and again as 

 soon as the calyx cups have been shed from the 

 young fruit. The double dose will no doubt 

 pay its cost in seasons that are marked by cool 



