VARIOUS INSECTS 303 



Flea-beetle (Phyllotreta vittata; Haltica striolata, etc.) — Minnie, dark- 

 colored beetles, feeding upon many plants, as turnip, cabbaRo, 

 radish, mustard, potato, strawberry, and stocks. They jump 

 upon being disturbed. Closely related species attack various 

 plants. Very destructive to plants which are just appearing 

 above the surface. 



Treatment. — Bordeaux mixture applied liberally is the best 

 remedy, — it drives them away. 



Four-striped Plant-bug {Pwcilocapsus lineatus). — A bright yellow, 

 black-striped bug about one-third of an inch long, puncturing 

 the young leaves and shoots of many plants. 



Treatment. — Jarring at any time of day into a dish of dilute 

 kerosene. Kerosene emulsion (diluted five times) when the bugs 

 are young, in their nymphal stage. Cut off and burn the tips 

 of the growing shoots in early spring to destroy the eggs. 



Galls. — See Nematode Root-gall, below. 



Gipsy-moth {Porthetria dispar). — Larva, between two and three inches 

 long when mature, dark brown or sooty in color, with two rows of 

 red spots and two rows of blue spots along the back, and with a 

 dim yellowish stripe between them. Devjurs many kinds of foli- 

 age. Confined to New England. It has become a serious pest. 

 Treatment. — Spray with arsenate of lead as soon as the cater- 

 pillars hatch in the spring. Band trees with tanglefoot. 



May-beetle or May-bug (Laclmosterna fusca). — A large and familiar 



brown beetle, feeding upon the leaves of many kinds of trees. 



The common white grub is the larval state. It often does great 



damage to sod and to strawberries. Sometimes called June-bug. 



Remedies. — See under Corn, p 314. 



Mealy-bug (Pseudococcus citri and P. longijilis). — A white, scale-like 

 insect, attacking greenhouse plants. 



Treatment. — Whale-oil soap. Carbolic acid and soap. Re- 

 moving insects with brush on tender plants. House-plants may 

 be washed in soapsuds. The best procedure in greenhouses is to 

 knock them off with the hose. A small, hard stream of water 

 upsets their domestic affairs. 



Nematode Root-gall {Heterodera radicicola). — A disease characterized 

 by the knotting and contortion of the roots of the peach, orange, 

 and many other plants. The knots are mostly rather soft swell- 



