The Small Fruits. 171 



larva feeds witliin the crown until Ml grown, when it is 

 about one-fifth inch long. It is then white, with a horny, 

 yellow head. It transforms within the plant, the beetle 

 escaping late in summer. Infested plants soon perish. Old 

 beds are more liable to attack than young ones. For treat- 

 ment see (260). 



260. The may beetle. The larva of this insect {Lachnos- 

 ternn fiisca), commonly known as the white grub, often 

 attacks the roots of strawberry plants late in summer, 

 especially when the plantation was made upon inverted- 

 sod ground, and sometimes proves very destructive. 



Treatment. The only known way of combating the 

 strawberry root-borer, crown-borer and white grub is to 

 dig out all infested plants and destroy the larvae within or 

 about them. 



261. The Strawberry saw-fly {Emphitns maculatus) is 

 sometimes very destructive, in its larval stage, to the leaves 

 of the strawberry. The eggs are laid in the stem of the 

 leaf early in May, and the larvae feed upon the leaves until 

 mature, when they are pale green, with a faint, whitish 

 bloom, and nearly three-fourths of an inch long. 



Treatment. The foliage may be sprayed, before the fruit 

 matures, with water containing hellebore powder at the 

 rate of an ounce to three gallons. Cutting and burning* 

 the foliage, as recommended for the leaf -roller (258), will 

 destroy many of the larvae. 



262. Thrips. A minute insect {Euthrlps tritici) some- 

 times destroys blossoms of the strawberry by feeding on 

 the stamens and pistils. No preventive for it is known. 



263. The strawberry leaf-bli§:ht, also called rust and 

 sunburn {Sphcerella Fragarice), attacks the foliage of straw- 

 berries during the growing season, often becoming serious 



