36 COBN AND GRASS. 



season has made it less apparent by keeping up the vigour of the 

 plants. The Wheat is all cut in this locality, and the greater part 

 carried in the beginning of last week ; there are many indifferent 

 samples among those threshed, and the price for the best varies from 

 23s. to 24s. per quarter. The stems sent showing infestation were 

 picked from among the stubbles ; from having elbowed down they had 

 escaped cutting. The Barley stems were taken from the growing 

 crop of a tenant on this property, and I did not require to go off the 

 headland to find what I wanted." To this Mr. Gibb added the 

 following note as to heavy rains, which may prove of some interest to 

 record relatively as to what may be the amount of presence or absence 

 of Hessian Fly in 1895 amongst Wheat or Barley growing where, pre- 

 sumably, very many of the flax-seeds must have been destroyed by 

 lying in the wet. Mr. Gibb observed : — " Should you require a further 

 supply, please let me know soon ; it may be more difficult to send a 

 supply later on. Since Monday, the 20th inst., we have not had a dry 

 day, while on Friday and Saturday there have been terrific thunder- 

 storms with such abundant downpours of rain as to cause flooding, 

 damage to bridges, &c., and some low-lying ground is still under 

 water." 



Measures of prevention and remedy have been too often entered on 

 to need further reference ; but it may be remarked that the great point 

 to prevent recurrence of the attack is to destroy the "flax-seeds"; 

 that is, the flat brown chrysalids from which a new brood of the 

 Hessian Fly might be expected in due time to appear. For what 

 remain on the field, where stubble is not mixed with other crop, deep 

 ploughing of a kind to bury the flax-seeds thoroughly down, and leave 

 them buried, is one of the best modes of treatment. If the furrows 

 are only turned so that the position of the slice does not fairly bury 

 down the chrysalids, the fly will be very likely to develop uninjured, 

 and make its way out. 



For what are carried from the field on the reaped corn, the simplest 

 treatment is to burn or destroy them in the light rubbish thrown out 

 by the threshing-machine. This is of no value, and as these light 

 screenings lie together with the flax-seeds in them, it is little trouble 

 or expense to have them gathered up and destroyed in whatever may 

 be the most convenient manner. It is now eight years since the 

 Hessian Fly was first observed in this country as certainly present as 

 an agricultural pest, and the experience of those years give reason to 

 hope that it will never be the scourge here that it is in some of the 

 other countries to which its presence has spread in recent years. 

 Nevertheless it does quite enough harm here, and needs watching, 



