80 FIELD NOTES ON APPLE CULTURE. 



beetle sometiuxes lays its eggs on the upper trunk or 

 branches, it is not to be relied upon. 



Tying heavy brown paper about the base of the tree 

 for a distance of two or three feet above the ground, and 

 smearing the paper with coal tar is often recommended. 



REMEDIES. 



When the chips are discovered, procure a flexible wire, 

 or peel the bark from a small twig and thrust it into the 

 hole. A wire which is set into a handle will be found 

 convenient. A peculiar pressure will tell you when you 

 have struck the grut. When the grub has once reached 

 the hard w6od, it is a barbarous practice to whittle it 

 out with a jackknife. The grubs are easily killed during 

 the first year after they begin work, especially in the fall. 

 During that time they work just underneath the bark, 

 eating out irregular burrows as large as a half-dollar. If 

 more than *'>ne borer should attack the tree, it may be 

 well-nigh girdled the first year. Before the chips of the 

 borer appear, a drop of brown sap may be seen exuding 

 from each hole. One can readily see just where the 

 young borer is, and can kill it by using the jioint of 

 a knife. 



AYoodpeckers often destroy many borers while the grub 

 is working just under the bark. I have frequently seen 

 them digging out the borers in winter. 



The beetles secrete themselves in the tree during the 

 day, and they may be jarred down upon sheets in the 

 manner of catching curculios. They are not attracted by 

 lights at night to any extent. 



N. S. Smith, Buffalo, N. Y., published a remedy nearly 



