

THE RASPBERRY-CANE BORER 269 



"The eggs are laid in the early summer, usually during the 

 month of June. They were not observed in the blackberry; but 

 when the insect infests raspberries, the first indication of the 

 injury noticed is usually the withering and drooping of the ends 

 of the young shoots. If these be examined, there will be found 

 at the base of the wilted portion two rows of punctures encircling 

 the cane about half an inch apart, and between them a small hole 

 in which an egg has been deposited. This double girdling of the 

 cane is done by the beetle with her jaws at the time she lays her 

 egg. It has been suggested that the purpose served by this gir- 

 dling is the arresting of the circulation of the sap in this part of 

 the cane ; and in this way the prevention of the crushing of the 

 tender egg by a vigorous and rapid growth of the tip of the 

 cane." The larvae bore downward in the pith of the cane, prob- 

 ably reaching the root in autumn, where they transform and pass 

 the winter. "The burrows are about one-eighth of an inch in 

 diameter ; they wind from side to side of the pith, and at frequent 

 intervals penetrate the woody part of the cane. In some of the 

 cases where the woody part of the cane is penetrated, an opening 

 is made through the bark. These openings occur at intervals of a 

 few inches throughout the length of the tunneled portion of the 

 canes ; they are small, being about one -third of the diameter of 

 the burrow ; and their object is to enable the larva to deposit its 

 excrement outside of the burrow." 



Remedies. "The methods of combating this insect are simple, 

 but they require prompt attention. As soon as the tips of the 

 canes begin to droop they should be cut off below the point where 

 they are girdled. In this way the larva can be destroyed before it 

 has begun to bore into the lower portion of the cane, and thus 

 only the tip of the cane will be lost. When, however, the first 

 indication of the presence of this pest is the dying of the entire 

 cane, caused by the boring of the larva, the infested canes should 

 be promptly cut out and burned. These canes can be readily 

 recognized by the dying of the leaves and by the small holes in 

 them described above. They are most likely to be observed at the 

 time of the blackberry harvest. It is of the utmost importance 

 that the cutting and burning of these canes should be done 



