x 554 



'" Firstly, from those people who object to being compelled to 

 do anything ; secondly, from those who think it useless ; thirdly, 

 from those who, on account of their orchard being lightly infested, 

 think it is too expensive to bandage and spray hundreds, or perhaps 

 thousands, of trees to catch a few grubs." That class of people will 

 always be found in any community, and therefore it is to natural 

 enemies and to internal parasites of the codlin grub that we must 

 look to in order to minimise the tax it levies on infested orchards. 

 It is a fact worth noticing that, in those countries where the apple 

 tree found its birth place, there nature has wisely provided natural 

 enemies, whose functions in life is to keep in check those insects 

 which prey on the fruit. In America, in Australia, and in South 

 Africa, where apples, although introduced, nourish as well, if not 

 better than on the continent of Europe, the codlin moth was also 

 introduced, but many of its natural enemies and parasites must have 

 accidentally been left behind. The balance of nature has in 

 consequence been disturbed, and the moth has been having it 

 pretty well all its own way. Artificial means, such as fumigation, 

 spraying, bandages, and quarantine laws have, no doubt, done good 

 work, but gradually and surely the pest is spreading, and is getting 

 more troublesome. In Devonshire, in Herefordshire, in Normandy 

 and other localities famed for their apples all the world over, no 

 fumigating, no spraying, no bandaging are practised, and yet there 

 apple-growing continues to be a remunerative and a national 

 industry. It is to these localities that the American, the South 

 African, and the Australian apple- growers will have to look for 

 help, in the shape of codlin parasites. 



The Americans are now well impressed with this fact, and they 

 are already out in the field collecting these parasites and enlisting 

 them in their warfare against the moth. 



What these natural enemies are is a question of considerable 

 moment for the apple-growers, and a list is here given, many names 

 of which are taken from Mr. A. M. Lea's report. 



Birds. Hens in an infested orchard pick up a great number 

 of codlin grubs and tear them out of their cocoons ; in fact they can 

 easily be trained to follow those engaged in lifting the bandages, 

 and are found to be of great assistance. In America, woodpeckers 

 and robins unceasingly seek after these worms during the winter 

 months. In Tasmania, goldfinches, crows, starlings, and sparrows 

 eat enormous numbers of the grubs, the last two, however, in other 

 ways prove themselves destructive birds. In Germany and other 

 parts of Europe the torn-tits do good work. 



Mammals. Mice and rats and bats devour many of these 

 insects. 



Insect enemies are numerous ; of these the internal parasites 

 are amongst the most useful. They include three from Europe, 



