550 



(which is frequently matted together with web) rapidly turns 

 mouldy, but it appears never to turn mouldy when the grub itself 

 is present. 



4. Wormy fruits often colour and show signs of ripening a fort- 

 night or more before healthy ones, and they will frequently drop. 

 Soon after they strike ground, and often within a day or so, the 

 concussion will urge the grub to come out. 



5. When the grub has made its exit a noticeable hole is seen 

 on the fruit. 



How to Fight the Codlin Moth. 



1. The first essential of a successful attack against the codlin 

 moth and, for the matter of that, against all manner of plagues, 

 blights, and pests is concerted action. 



2. Where an outbreak first takes place in a clean country or 

 district, the readiest and most reliable way of stamping it out is the 

 starving out method. This, when carried out in an energetic 

 manner, is unquestionably the best means of coping with an out- 

 break. Thus Mr. T. H. A. Thabart, then Chief Inspector under the 

 Codlin Moth Act in Tasmania, in his annual report published 10 years 

 ago : " I still hold the opinion (which is that expressed by practical 

 orchardists, and some whose very livelihood is dependent on the 

 success of the fruit industry) that the picking of the whole of the 

 fruit from orchards where infection has been present during the 

 preceding season must be adopted if any permanent good is desired. 

 It daily becomes more patent that eradication will not be complete 

 from simply picking a portion of infected fruit, leaving a large per- 

 centage unpicked, in which the grub is developed and allowed to 

 escape." 



3. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Never 

 use second-hand fruit cases. 



4. The life-history sketch of the moth indicates that each 

 female moth is good for 80 eggs or more, half of which are females. 

 It thus becomes apparent that every worm, or every moth, destroyed 

 at the beginning of the season is worth a great number later. 

 Every effort should, then, be directed towards their destruction in 

 the early spring. With this end in view, all apple sheds or storerooms 

 should be thoroughly disinfected by means of hydrocyanic acid gas, 

 sulphur fumes, or hot steam. Every apple storeroom should be 

 made secure against escape of the moth ; for this purpose wire 

 screenings should be placed over the inner doors and windows, 

 which should fit well. 



5. The apple orchard should be free from rubbish heaps. Wire 

 fences are less subject to harbouring the grubs than wooden ones. 

 The ground should be kept well cultivated and clean, and the older 

 trees should have the loose bark scraped. 



