268 CULTURE OF FARM CROPS. 



fectly efficient, must be taken at the very earliest stage 

 of the attacks of the aphides. 



64. Beans are also subject to the attacks of another species 

 of beetle, named, but named erroneously, " bugs." These 

 belong to the order " coleoptera," family " bruchida?," and 

 genus "bruchus," so called from their "destructive nibbling 

 propensities." The eggs of the insect are deposited in the 

 flowers of the bean, and the maggots resulting from these 

 eat their way into the seed. Before changing into the pupa? 

 condition, the maggot eats a round hole from its cell to 

 the rind of the seed ; the rind at this part is also probably 

 " partially cut through," so that when " the beetle " is 

 ready to come out of its cell, it readily forces itself through 

 the rind. Fortunately the maggots do not destroy as a 

 rule the germ of the seed, although often they do so com- 

 pletely eat all the interior that nothing is left but a hollow 

 case or rind. To kill the maggots, therefore, the beans 

 used for sowing are recommended to be steeped in brine 

 or in hot water for a minute or so before sowing. Mr. 

 Curtis states that " seed should be examined before sow- 

 ing, and the infested beans may be detected by dull cir- 

 cular spots in the skin, where no holes are to be found." 

 Another insect which attacks beans, in common with corn 

 and other vegetables, is the " mole cricket." This belongs to 

 the order "orthoptera," family "achetidse," genus "gryllo- 

 talpa," species "gryllotalpa vulgaris." Residing under the sur- 

 face like a mole, it burrows horizontally, and has astonishing 

 muscular powers. It commits its ravages upon the crops 

 in the night. The only plan recommended to the farmer 

 on the large scale, is that quoted by Curtis as adopted by 

 Kellar " when there is a flat area of 500 or 600 yards, 

 dig three or four pits in September, 2 or 3 feet deep and 

 n foot wide* then fill them with horse dung and cover 

 them over with earth. Attracted by the warmth, all the 

 mole crickets will resort to those pits from the surround- 

 ing neighbourhood on the first frost, and may then be 

 easily destroyed." It is a singular and fortunate circum- 

 stance that, although most prolific, their disposition is so 



