TlIK CaNAIM.W IIOKIK L'l/rUKlST. 



8i 



Till': ONIOX MACCOT. 



Sir, — I luive been trying to collect all the information possible concerning the new 

 system of transplanting onions. I have, iiowever, nut come across, either in Mr. (ireiners 

 book, the " American (Jardening," or tlie Canadi.vn HoKTicn.TiRiST, any mention of the 

 onion maggot. May 1 suppose the new culture has checked this little pest, or has it still 

 to be taken into consideration ? It would appear tbat if he is likely to take a hand in the 

 operations, he may prove verj' much more tiuubleso:rie than under the old system. 



(iEO. P.i NTtrRV, Ouki-ilk. 



^^ 



Some light may be thrown upon this question of Mr. Banbury's by the 

 following article on "The Onion Maggot," written by Prof. Fernald, of the Hatch 

 Experiment Station : 



The onion maggot (Phorhia-ceparum Meig) has caused a great amount of 

 injury to the onion crops both in this country and in Europe. Its life history is 

 briefly as follows : 



The eggs (Fig. 26, a natural size and l> 

 enlarged) which are laid on the leaves near 

 the ground, are white, smooth, somewhat 

 oval in outline and about one twenty-fifth 

 of an inch long. Usually not more than half 

 a dozen are laid on a single plant, and they 

 hatch in about a week from the time they 



b 



Yu:. •J(i. — -4, eggs of onion maggot 

 natural size ; h, c.'gs enlarged : c, larva 

 of natural size ; (/, larva enlarged ; e, 

 are lud. The young larva, as soon as pupaiium of natural size ;/, puparium 



hatched, burrows downward within the sheath enlarged. 



leaving a streak of a pale green color to mdicate its path, and making its way 



into the root (Fig. 27) devours all except the outer skin. When the bulb of the 



plant has begun to form, several of the larva may be found feeding in company 



in it, and after it has been consumed they desert it for another, and still others 



in succession. The larva; reach their full growth in about 



two weeks, when they appear as shown in Fig. 26, c, natural 



^ize, d, enlarged. The smaller end, which is the head, is 



armed with a pair of black, hook-like jaws. The opposite 



end is cut off obliquely, and there is a pair of small, brown 



)»^. tubercles near the middle, and eight tooth-like projections 



around the edge. 



The larva usually leaves the onion and transforms to 



pupte in the ground outside. The puparium is shown of 



the natural size at e and enlarged at / It does not differ 



very much in form from the larva, but the skin has hardened 



and changed to a chestnut brown color within which the 



Fic. 27.— Showing irue pupa is contained. They remain in the pupa state 



the eggs and the larva ^^^Qut two weeks in the sumnur, when the perfect flies 



at work on the onion , . . , r 1 1 1 



plant. (Fig. 28) emerge, after pairmg, the female deposits her eggs 



