THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



rl05 



tered during the previous season. Tobacco 

 that is mature or nearly so suffers less from 

 the ravages of the tobacco worms than that 

 which is younger; the leaves of the latter, 



being more tender and Bucculeut, prove more 

 attractive. 



Destruction by Poison. 

 We have not alluded to a custom which has 



DEVELOPMENT. 



'^'^^ 



HATCHING. 



«0^ 



ll(5th " 

 I Day 



FIRST AGE. 



SECOND AGE. 



THIRD AGE. 



FOURTH AGE. 





FIFTH AGE. 



prevailed to a very raodeiate extent araons 

 some groweis of using Paris green as an agent 

 to destroy tobaceo worms. The tobacco leaf 

 is porous and gummy and capiilile of absorb- 

 ing the poisons thrown upon it. These would 

 undoubtedly be retaine<I in the leaf to some 

 extent, enough, perhajjs, to render the tobac- 

 co harmful to those who used it. For this 

 reason we condemn the use of Paris green for 

 this purpose in the strongest terms, and hope 

 the cu.stom of using it will be entirely discon- 

 tinued. South Carolina planters have been 

 in the habit, we understand, of applying a 

 weak .solution of blue vitriol to the plants, 

 which is said to be very efficacions in the de- 

 struction of the worm. 



In addition to the tobacco worms, the grass- 

 hoppers do a good deal of injury during some 

 seasons. Luckily for the tobacco farmers, 

 this IS not often, lKcau.se. for this plague there 

 is absolutely no remedy. Their numbers are 

 SO great and their work so expeditious that 

 when they come along they do tlieir evil work 

 before a remedy could be apijlied. For some 

 years the damage done by these pests iu Penn- 

 sylvania has been comparatively small, and 

 they are not much dreaded, by ouf tobacco 

 growers. 



SILK CULTURE. 

 As an approi>riate sequel to our remarks in 

 another column on this subject, and an ack- 

 nowledgment of our thanks to Messrs. Straw- 

 bridge & Clothier, the great mercantile firm 

 of Philadelphia, for the loan of the cuts illus- 

 trating it, obtained through the courteous in- 

 tervention of the editor of the Daily City Item, 

 Alleutowu, Pa., we insert in The Faioieh 

 the following chart and illustrations for silk 

 growers, by W. C. Kerr, State Geologist, with 

 directions for the management of a cocoonery, 

 republished from bulletin No. 5, of North 

 Carolina Department of Agriculture : 



1. IIATCmiSG. 



The eggs are usually kept at the t«mi)era- 

 ture of ice until hatching time. When re- 

 moved from the ice, put in a cool place two or 

 three days, so that they may be brought 

 gradually to the temperature of the air. As 

 soon as the mulberry leaves have begun to 

 open, spread the eggs on clean white paper ; 

 an ounce will require a square foot of surface. 

 The temperature sliould be about 7(f', and 

 may be gradually increased P or 2^ a day, to 

 75° or 8(P. Tlioy will hatch usually in five 

 days, but the higher the temperature the 

 sooner the hatching. The worms will com- 

 monly hatch out in the morning, for three or 

 four successive days. When the hatching be- 

 gins, spread over them mosquito netting or 

 perforated paper, and when the morning's 

 hatch has crawled through, remove to the 

 (frame, or) platform, making and keeping each 

 day's hatch separate. Better use the net for 

 the first age, and tlie paper afterwards. 



2. FEEDING. 



The worms sliould be fed as soon as hatched 

 and removed by sprinkling young and tender 

 leaves over the net or paper ; repeat the feel- 

 ing every two hours during the first age, and 

 afterwards evciy three or four hours. In 

 general, give the first feed at •") o'clock in the 

 morning, and the last at 10 or It at night. 

 Before each feeding spread a net or paper over 

 the worms and place the leaves on it. About 



