REMEDIES FOR THE CANKER-WORM 73 



REMEDIAL MEASURES 



The two practical remedial measures which may be used 

 against the canker-worm, are the banding of the trees to pre- 

 vent the ascent of the moths, and the spraying of the leaves 

 with poisons to kill the worms. The success of the first is 

 due to the fact that the egg-laying female moth is wingless 

 and that she becomes fully developed on or beneath the sur- 

 face of the ground : consequently to lay her eggs upon the 

 twigs she must ascend the trunk of the tree. 



Various substances have been used in the past for this 

 banding of the trees, printer's ink being, perhaps, the most 

 popular of these. The best thing now available, however, is 

 the substance called Bodlime made by the Bowker Chemical 

 Company of Boston, Mass. This is a thick, pasty material 

 which may be put directly upon the bark of the trees in a 

 wide b.ind which will remain fresh and in position for months. 

 The manufacturers say that '^ the band should be from two to 

 two and one half inches wide, and from one half to three fourths 

 of an inch thick at the lower edge. Bevel off the upper side 

 of the band to the bark to shed rain water, and bring the 

 lower side to a sharp edge. The banding is best done on a 

 moderately cold day, using a common, smooth blade trowel 

 for spreading and shaping the band. Working the mixture 

 over with a trowel softens it." The manufacturers also give 

 the following 



CAUTION 



" Do not apply Bodlime to young, thin barked trees. In 

 this case it is best to spray. Remove all bands as soon as the 

 danger from the canker-worm is over. This is iDiportant. 

 Keep packages closed when not in use to avoid evaporation." 



Last spring I had an opportunity to observe a practical test 

 of this substance in the orchards of Mr. Albert Demeritt of 

 Durham. The results seemed to me to be very satisfactory 

 and Mr. Demeritt has kindly written for this bulletin the fol- 

 lowing account of his experience with the remedy : 



"In reply to your query regarding my use of 'Bodlime' 

 on my trees in the spring of 1901, I would say that my trees are 

 very large trees, and as I have to hire all my work done I had 



