84 MUSTAED. 



Mr. Leonard wrote: — "The weevil appeared in the Holderness 

 district in April in immense numbers on our young Mustard-seed crops. 

 They ate the leaves a good deal, but, owing to the favourable season, 

 the plants grew away without any serious injury being done, excepting 

 in three cases where the farmers sowed their seed during the last week 

 in March or the first week in April, which is much earlier than usual. 

 In these cases, just at the time the plant was breaking into the broad 

 leaf, we had a very sharp frost, which so checked the growth, that the 

 weevil attack completely destroyed it. The land in each case was sown 

 over again, and no further damage has been done by this insect." 



Mr. Leonard also observed with regard to kind of manure used : — 

 " Of three large farmers who have had to sow again, one used foldyard 

 manure only, another a compound manure, and another simply ground 

 bones, so that the kind of manure used cannot have any effect on the 

 prevalence or otherwise of the weevil." — (H. L. L.) 



The exact method of injury, that is, the exact part attacked by the 

 weevil, varies a little, but apparently this is according to what the 

 then state of the plant may afford to be preyed on. At first damage is 

 reported to be by the weevils eating the germinating seed, which 

 necessarily destroys the small young sprouting plant ; later on they 

 will eat off the first leaves just after they have sprouted below the 

 ground ; or, when it is a little more advanced, will nip them off just 

 above ground; or will attack the developed seed-leaves, including 

 Turnip or Charlock leafage in their ravages ; and in the course of last 

 season's observations (though I am not aware of this being noticed 

 before) the beetles were observed in great numbers on what must have 

 been a much more advanced growth, as on shaking the plants the 

 weevils could be heard falling to the ground. 



The note regarding this was sent me on the 19th of July by Mr. 

 Alfred C. Cully, from the Carrow Works, Norwich, as follows : — "I 

 have this day found on some White Mustard-seed in the neighbourhood 

 of Hull some kind of weevil. There are many hundreds af them on 

 the plants, and with the slightest shake you can hear them drop on 

 the ground like so much shot. 



" The farmers in the neighbourhood say that these same insects 

 ate off the young plants almost before they showed above ground in 

 the early spring, and consequently several fields were resown. 



" I rather questioned this, and suggested that it was probably the 

 Turnip Flea, but my informant is positive that these were the 

 aggressors, and that he saw hundreds on the ground th^n. ... I 

 may say that in the same field were some Mustard Beetles proper, and 

 their grubs, but where there was one of the latter, there seemed to be 

 a score of the former." — (A. C. C.) 



Li this instance, the leaves, of which specimens were sent, were 



