TRUCK-FARMING AT THE SOUTH. 



The injury to the seed-leaves of young plants by flea- 

 beetles is annoying, but never extensive enough to war- 

 rant the application of a remedy over the large area of a 

 melon crop. Of the several plants in each hill a vigorous 

 one may be expected to escape injury, until the develop- 

 ment of rough leaves, when the danger from this source 

 ceases. 



The watermelon is a food plant of the yellowish green, 

 nearly translucent larva of an insect very similar to the 

 pickle-worm moth, Phacellura Jiyalinitalis. If this in- 

 sect has two broods, the first, or spring brood, must be 

 very limited in numbers ; for I have never known the 

 early melon crop for shipment to be damaged, while later 

 crops suffer very severely. Not only are the leaves de- 

 voured, but the worms gnaw and penetrate the fruit. It 

 is, of course, the policy of the farmer to destroy the in- 

 sects in all its stages, whenever possible ; but no remedy 

 has as yet been found that can be profitably applied. The 

 Phacellura is known to be subject to two parasitic in- 

 sects : the Pimpla conquisitor, and a Tachina fly. 



CHAPTER XXX. 



THE STRAWBERRY (Fragaria). 



Fraisier, French ; Erdbeere, German ; Aardbezie, Dutch ; Tianta di fragola, 

 Italian ; and Fresa, Spanish. 



The Strawberry, with the majority of the cultivated 

 fruits of Northern climates, belongs to the Rose family. 

 It well deserves its botanical name, Fragaria (from fra- 

 gro, to emit a sweet odor), for no other fruit is so frag- 

 rant. While some who have written upon the straw- 



