148 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



June, 



OUR PERENNIAL FOES. 



(Continued from the May issue.) 

 SLUGS ON CHERRY, PEAR AND OTHER TREES, 

 RASPBERRY BUSHES, ETC., ISeldndria.) 

 In the various species of Slugs, one of which, 

 the Rose-slug,Tvas referred to in the May issue, 

 we have a very destructive class of insects. The 

 time of their depredations is mainly in June 

 and July, with some lesser broods at work 

 later. They feed on the leaves, as shown by 

 figure 15, devouring the upper skin and leav- 

 ing but the bare net work of veins. In a short 

 time the growth of the affected parts is com- 

 pletely stopped, 

 with the result 

 of giving such 

 parts a decided 

 set-back for the 



and other shade trees, and calling for the 

 common but questionable remedy of cotton 

 bands about the trunks. It is a slender creature, 

 measuring, when full gi'OT\Ti, from al)Out three- 

 fourths of an inch to an inch and a quarter in 

 length. In color it presents the rich and 

 varying diversity of cream yellow, (sometimes 

 changing to white) , velvety black and brownish 

 spots, stripes and brush-like hairs, with a coral 

 red head. There are also two long phunes of 

 black hair rising from the head and a similar 

 one from the last dorsal joint. Those who are 

 not prejudiced against aU Catei-pillars on the 

 score of general repulsiveness, must admit that 



the tree, the band will prove a positive evil, in pre- 

 ventiDg migration to other feeding ground. The 

 barriers, too. prevent the mature Caterpillars from 

 descending to the rougher bark of the lower part 

 of the trunk, in the crevices of which they prefer 

 to build their cocoods. and would confine them to 

 the tree, where it would be difficult to discover the 

 egg-clusters, and destroy them. 



32. War upon the English Sparrows. — Our 

 troublesome English Sparrows not only decline to 

 eat this Caterpillar, but by force of numbers and 

 their pugnacious dispositions, they drive away the 

 few birds that would feed upon them. Of such, 

 according to Prof. Lintner, there are but four, 

 namely: the Robin. Baltimore Oriole, Black-billed 

 Cuckoo, and the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, all of which 

 should be cherished. 



GRAPE LEAF HOPPER, ERRONEOUSLY CALLED 

 THRIPS, {E)-y- 



season. 



23. DUST.ASHES 



OR Dry Slaked 

 Lime— Such sub- 

 stauces applied to 

 the slimy coat of 

 the slugs will 

 cause them to 

 sicken and die. 

 Lime, or ashes 

 are more effective 

 than common 

 road dirt but also 

 unpleasanter to 

 apply. The oper- 

 ation should be 

 repeated as nec- 

 essary. In parts 

 of trees not easily 

 accessible, a Ught 

 muslin salt bag 

 filled with the 

 dusting material 

 and attached to 

 a long Ught pole 

 may be shook 

 over them the 

 dust sifting 

 through the 

 meshes of the 

 cloth. A thing in 

 favor of these 

 substances is that 

 they are non 



Fig. 12. Butterfly of the Cabbage Worm. 

 Remedies 36 and 37. 



Fig. 13. The Red Spider 

 greatly magnifled. 



Fig. It The Com or Boll 

 Worm. Remedies 53, M. 



poisonous, hence may safely be applied at any time. 



24. LiQOiD Hellkbork.— One pound of Hellebore 

 powder to twenty-five or thirty gallons of water, 

 finely sprayed over the affected trees or bushes, is 

 one of the best and most easily applied remedies. 

 The Hellebore kills not only by contact but also by 

 being eaten. Hence Professor Lintner finds that 

 the addition of a small quantity of flour to the water 

 gives it greater adhesiveness and worth, over a 

 longer period. 



25. Kerosene Emdlsion.— Same as 5. 



BORERS IN APPLE, PEACH, MOUNTAIN ASH, 

 ACACIA, PINE, FIR AND OTHER TREES. 



Of Borers there are different species, operat- 

 ing mainly by boring underneath the bark or 

 in the wood of the trees. The one most com- 

 monly known is the species which affects fruit 

 trees near the ground. Another kind called 

 the Western or Flat-headed Borer affects the 

 tree more or less throughout the length of its 

 trunk and large limbs, and especially on the 

 southwest or sunny side. 



26- The same as Remedy 8, applying the wash 

 during June. 



27 . Coal Tar Paper —Bands of paper thorough- 

 ly saturated with coal tar, and eighteen inches 

 wide, tacked around the base of trees troubled by the 

 Root Borer have proved successful. 



28. Coal Tar Direct.— Mr. Chas. A. Thesher, 

 of Shawnee Co., Kansas, recently wrote to the 

 Prairie Farmer as follows; " I have lost one or- 

 chard by the Roimd-headed Borers. In another 

 orchard I am having better luck, keeping them out 

 with coal tar. I apply with a brush to the tree up 18 

 inches, after first looking for any borers then in 

 the tree. It has no bad effect. As the tree grew, 

 open spaces of new bark appeared up and down 

 the trunk. Next year I filled these up. That year 

 the bark under the tar loosened more or less, ex- 

 posing healthy new bark. Next year I scraped off 

 the rough loose scales and put on a new coat. 

 That, or something else, has kept out borers. Any 

 way it don't kill the trees." 



CATERPILLAR ON HORSB-CHBSTNUT, ELM, 

 FRUIT, AND OTHER TREES, (Orgyia 

 leucostigma). 

 The weU-known Caterpillar, to which atten- 

 tion is here called, is the larva of the White- 

 marked Tussock Moth, and is shown feeding on 

 a leaf in figure 16. It is more commonly 

 familieu' in the cities than elsewhere, owing 

 to its depredations, often severe, on street 



throneura vitis) 

 This active lit- 

 tle insect is one 

 of the most 

 troublesome 

 ones known to 

 the Grape 

 grower. It is 

 hardly above an 

 eighth of an inch 

 long; it jumps 

 with great vig- 

 or, and dodges 

 around quickly 

 with a sidewise 

 motion when 

 approached. It 

 congregates in 

 great numbers 

 on the under- 

 side of the leaves 

 where it sucks 

 up the sap,caus- 

 ing numerous 

 brown spots and 

 often kiUing the 

 leaves. Of this 



GROUP NUMBER TWO OF DESTRUCTIVE INSECTS.— (See page 128.) insect there are 



several species, differing only in color. 



33. Torch Remedy. Pass between the rows 

 with a strong torch at night, one person to carry 

 the torch and one on each side to slightly shake the 

 trellise for starting them towards the fiame. They 

 fly readily to the light and being small are at once 

 destroyed. 



34. Kerosene EMCLSioN.—Same as 5. 



35. Cleanliness —As they pass the winter un- 

 der leaves, loose bark of the stakes, etc. Cleanli- 



Fig.-a. Sluts at viork tm a Pear leaf. Remedies iS-iA. Fig.W. Caterpillar of the White Tussoek Moth. Remedies it-at. 



this troublesome one on close examination re- 

 veals a marked degree of beauty. 



29. Arsenical Poisons.— Same as 1 . " London 

 Purple, as already shown," says Professor Riley, of 

 the Department of Agriculture, in his recent re- 

 port. " is perhaps preferable to white arsenic or 

 Paris green, in that it is not so liable to burn the 

 leaves, while its color enables one to readily dis- 

 tinguish poisoned from non-poisoned trees. More- 

 over it is very cheap. From one-quarter to three- 

 quarters of a pound of this substance and three 

 quarts of cheap or damaged flour, to render the 

 mixture adhesive and to lessen the tendency of the 

 poison to burn the leaves, should be used to a barrel 

 of water. The greater quantity of the poison may 

 prove too strong for delicate young trees, and it 

 will be best for general application to make the 

 amount from three-eighths to one-halt pound to 

 the barrel. An apparatus for applying can be 

 readily constructed, such as has been used on the 

 grounds of the Department. It should consist of a 

 water tank mounted on a cart and furnished with a 

 strong force pump, operated by one man and 

 furnished with two sets of rubber tubing, each 

 supported by a bamboo extension pole (figure 10. 

 May issue), with a cyclone nozzle at tip. With such 

 an apparatus as this three men could drive along 

 the streets and thoroughly spray two trees simul- 

 taneously ; while if it were found advisable, four 

 independent tubes and four men to work them 

 could be employed, with a sufHciently powerful 

 pump, and thus expedite the work. 



30. Destruction of the Orgyia Eggs. — This. 

 Professor Lintner suggests, may be accomplished 

 to a great extent with moderate labor. During 

 June and later, and especially late in fall and 

 during winter, the egg-masses may be seen as 

 glistening, slightly woven white objects, becoming 

 weather-worn after long exposure, and often oc- 

 curring in patches of a dozen or more. They may 

 be met on the trunks or larger branches of trees,— 

 a favorite location being where limbs have been 

 cut,— in the corners of angles about fences, under 

 window sills, etc. Childern prove ready collectors 

 for a small reward. Those out of arm's reach can 

 be removed with a scraper, prepared tor the pur- 

 pose. To show how effective may be this means of 

 preventing the Caterpillar's appearance, it may be 

 said that over 700 eggs of these have been counted 

 in a single egg-mass. 



31. Cotton Bands.— The indiscriminate use of 

 these, says our able State Entomologist, Prof. J. A. 

 Lintner, in his last report, must be condemned. 

 They may be of service, and they may be decidedly 

 objectionable, from the fact that the attack, in 

 almost every instance, proceeds from the eggs 

 deposited the preceding year upon the tree. If, 

 therefore, remedy 29 could be applied with the cer- 

 tainty that no egg clusters are upon the tree, then 

 a band applied would prevent any wandering 

 Caterpillars from ascending its trunk. But with 

 the eggs or the young larvee being already upon 



ness in removing and burning the leaves in the tall 

 as well as cleaning away all lodging places is 

 of the first importance. 



THE CABBAGE WORM OF THE RAPE BUTTERFLY. 

 (Pieris rajiha'.) 

 This worm, produced from the eggs of the 

 white Butterfly represented by Fig. 12, is a 

 most injurious pest to Cabbage in most places, 

 and especially in small gardens. They come 

 in two broods, the first Butterflies being seen 

 in May, the second 

 in August, and the 

 progeny of these 

 cause the most 

 trouble. Either the 

 same or else a very 

 similar worm also 

 devours the Mig- 

 nonette and some 

 other plants. 



36. Pyrethrum— 

 Liquid Form. — A 

 teaspoonful of the 

 pure powder to a 



17. Cut Worm--^ turned g?!'"" 9' ™'e«-. .aP- 

 RemedvU plymg it by sprink- 



h.emeay m. ^^^ ^^^.^ ^ watering 



pot, or better yet. by force with a pump. A re- 

 markable peculiarity of this powder is that it is not 

 poisonous to human beings, but strangely enough 

 it kills most kinds of insects or spore-breathing 

 creatures. Pains should be taken to procure the 

 article fresh and pure and to keep it in air-tight 

 bottles or boxes, tor its active principle is reduced 

 through exposure to the air. This powder is the 

 insect powder of the stores, but in that form apt 

 to be adulterated. 



37. Pyrethrum— Dry Form. One part of the 

 dry powder mixed with forty parts of water or 

 finely sifted wood ashes, dusting this over the 

 Cabbages. If the mixture is prepared a dav or 

 two before using, keeping it in a perfectly tight 

 vessel in the meantime; it will have even a better 

 effect than when used freshly mixed. 



Fig. 

 away. 



