172 Kollar's Vier Hawptfeinde der Obstg'drten. 



solved common salt, or chalk ; fumigating them with brimstone, tobacco, &c. ; 

 with all of which time is lost, and nothing useful gained. 



What, then, are the means of destruction which the gardener or amateur is 

 to be made acquainted with ? No other than teaching him how to know the 

 enemy of his orchard, in the different stages of its existence; so that in summer, 

 when the trees are clothed with verdure, as well as in winter, when they are 

 deprived of their green covering, the enemy may be detected ; and also in 

 spring, when it has already undergone a change, and when, while feeding ra- 

 paciously on its booty, it may be combated with the least loss of time. 



There are a great many people who do not actually know what the worms 

 or caterpillars are which strip the trees of their leaves, and also who do not 

 know what they arise from, or what at last becomes of them, because they 

 disappear without being seen in a dying state. 



To those, therefore, who are not acquainted with the nature of these worm- 

 like appearances, I submit the following observations for their instruction. 



All caterpillars, or worms (as they are improperly called by country people), 

 proceed from small eggs which moths and butterflies lay, sometimes on the 

 leaves, branches, or bark, of trees, at different times of the year. The number 

 of caterpillars, therefore, depends on the number of butterflies, to which they 

 owe their existence: thus, if we had no butterflies, we should have no cater- 

 pillars to dread ; and if we could destroy the butterflies before they laid their 

 eggs, no caterpillars would make their appearance. 



From what has just been said, it may be seen that, if you wish to protect 

 your fruit-trees from the caterpillar, you must begin by destroying the butterfly. 



All butterflies, or rather all their caterpillars, are not equally injurious ; many 

 of them feed on other plants besides fruit-trees, and even on weeds ; it is 

 therefore not worth the trouble to catch the butterflies that do so little injury; 

 and thus, as it is necessary to know the appearance of those butterflies which 

 produce the most destructive caterpillars, I will give a full description of each, 

 when describing the caterpillars to which they belong. 



To destroy the enemies of our orchards, therefore, we must begin with the 

 destruction of the butterflies found in them. Butterflies are furnished with 

 wings, and, therefore, easily can escape our pursuit ; and we know what trouble 

 it gives an active and light-footed boy to catch one with his net. I, therefore, 

 by no means recommend the pursuit of butterflies, particularly as they have 

 enemies which are sure of capturing them. I mean birds of all kinds ; which, 

 although they may despise large hairy caterpillars, eagerly pounce on butterflies 

 for food for themselves and their young. Instead, therefore; of frightening 

 birds out of a garden, they ought to be encouraged ; and particular care should 

 be taken to induce them to build in orchards, because they destroy an endless 

 number of insects, and butterflies in particular, which are their favourite food, 

 and which are necessary to them for the support of their young. 



The gardener can also give great assistance in destroying butterflies. They 

 consist of males and females, and in general the male only is disposed for flight, 

 and flutters from one flower to another ; while the female sits at rest, and 

 seems only to have the wish of fulfilling the chief object of her existence ; viz., 

 that of depositing her eggs. The fluttering males, therefore, may be let alone, 

 and the females only sought for, and destined. As the females generally vary 

 in size and colour from the males, this peculiarity, and their places of resort, 

 shall be particularly attended to in my description of them. 



We now know that caterpillars proceed from eggs which are laid by butter- 

 flies or moths. Is it not, then, possible to destroy the eggs, and by this means 

 to check the evil in the bud ? Certainly, in many cases this is quite possible : 

 but, in the first place, we must know the appearance of the eggs of those but- 

 terflies that do so much mischief ; also, where they are concealed, and at what 

 time of the year we ought to look for them ; all of which shall be explained 

 when treating of the different caterpillars. 



In the meantime I will only make the general observation, that although the 

 eggs of moths are, in general, very small, yet, when the places are known where 



