﻿AFFEMBIX 
  IX, 
  

  

  EXPEEIENGE 
  WITH 
  THE 
  SPEING 
  CANKER- 
  WOEM. 
  

  

  By 
  Martin 
  A. 
  Howell, 
  Jr., 
  of 
  Greemvood, 
  Henry 
  County, 
  Illinois. 
  

  

  Dear 
  Sir 
  : 
  I 
  take 
  pleasure 
  in 
  submitting 
  to 
  you 
  the 
  details, 
  in 
  sub- 
  

   stance, 
  of 
  the 
  means 
  employed 
  to 
  save 
  my 
  apple 
  crop 
  during 
  the 
  year 
  

   last 
  past, 
  which 
  was 
  threatened 
  with 
  complete 
  extermination 
  by 
  clouds 
  

   of 
  canker 
  worms, 
  which 
  have 
  become 
  a 
  scourge 
  to 
  the 
  orchards 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  

   portion 
  of 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  State. 
  Having 
  purchased 
  this 
  farm 
  but 
  the 
  

   year 
  previous, 
  being 
  unaware 
  of 
  their 
  presence 
  in 
  such 
  numbers, 
  and 
  

   preoccupied 
  vfith 
  other 
  duties, 
  I 
  found 
  no 
  time 
  to 
  devote 
  to 
  them 
  such 
  

   attention 
  as 
  the 
  necessities 
  of 
  the 
  case 
  demanded 
  at 
  the 
  late 
  hour 
  their 
  

   discovery 
  was 
  made 
  known 
  to 
  me. 
  

  

  As 
  a 
  means, 
  however, 
  of 
  reducing 
  the 
  labor 
  of 
  the 
  following 
  season 
  

   of 
  work 
  I 
  procured 
  a 
  competent 
  person 
  to 
  trim 
  the 
  trees 
  of 
  their 
  excess- 
  

   ive 
  central 
  shoots 
  and 
  branches, 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  open 
  up 
  the 
  interior 
  and 
  

   enable 
  us 
  to 
  reach 
  more 
  effectively 
  our 
  object. 
  (This 
  was 
  done 
  in 
  June.) 
  

   In 
  the 
  interim 
  the 
  soil 
  for 
  some 
  12 
  feet 
  distant 
  from 
  the 
  trunk 
  was 
  

   loosened 
  up, 
  a 
  copious 
  dressing 
  of 
  liquid 
  manure 
  turned 
  in, 
  and 
  the 
  

   surface 
  top 
  dressed 
  with 
  good 
  dry 
  compost 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  give 
  all 
  possible 
  

   vigor 
  to 
  the 
  trees 
  to 
  enable 
  them 
  to 
  withstand 
  the 
  shock 
  of 
  the 
  loss 
  of 
  

   foliage 
  and 
  pruning 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  season. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  winter 
  of 
  1877-'78, 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  remembered, 
  was 
  one 
  of 
  

   unusual 
  mildness, 
  the 
  spring 
  opening 
  early, 
  the 
  weather 
  unusually 
  fair, 
  

   and 
  the 
  soil 
  in 
  condition 
  very 
  favorable 
  to 
  insect 
  life. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  warm, 
  showery 
  weather 
  of 
  March, 
  when 
  the 
  bark 
  was 
  soft 
  

   and 
  friable, 
  I 
  scraped 
  the 
  bark 
  of 
  the 
  trunks 
  and 
  larger 
  branches, 
  after 
  

   which 
  they 
  were 
  washed 
  with 
  a 
  preparation 
  of 
  lime 
  and 
  sulphur 
  thick- 
  

   ened 
  to 
  the 
  consistency 
  of 
  paste, 
  with 
  good 
  alkaline 
  soft 
  soap, 
  which 
  

   afforded 
  considerable 
  amusement 
  to 
  the 
  farmers 
  as 
  they 
  passed 
  by, 
  and 
  

   was 
  reckoned 
  a 
  waste 
  of 
  time 
  and 
  money 
  to 
  no 
  purpose. 
  

  

  A 
  casual 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  trees 
  revealed 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  other 
  

   enemies 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  left 
  comparatively 
  undistarbed 
  for 
  some 
  years 
  

   l^rior 
  to 
  my 
  occupation. 
  Among 
  these 
  I 
  will 
  mention 
  the 
  leaf-crump- 
  

   lers 
  in 
  abundance, 
  and 
  the 
  scale, 
  which, 
  in 
  conjunction 
  with 
  the 
  canker 
  

   worm, 
  were 
  -making 
  the 
  life 
  of 
  the 
  orchard 
  a 
  brief 
  one. 
  A 
  careful 
  ex- 
  

   amination 
  of 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  nests 
  of 
  the 
  leaf-crumplers 
  brought 
  to 
  light 
  a 
  

   goodly 
  store 
  of 
  eggs, 
  which 
  aroused 
  my 
  susj)icion 
  at 
  once 
  j 
  these 
  were 
  

   placed 
  under 
  a 
  glass 
  and 
  hatched 
  out 
  in 
  the 
  sun 
  in 
  a 
  few 
  days, 
  every 
  

   egg 
  producing 
  a 
  canker 
  worm. 
  I 
  called 
  the 
  attention 
  of 
  several 
  of 
  my 
  

   neighbors 
  to 
  the 
  matter, 
  and 
  advised 
  prompt 
  and 
  decisive 
  measures 
  to 
  

   destroy 
  them 
  early 
  in 
  life, 
  ^o 
  action 
  was 
  taken 
  by 
  them 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  

   named, 
  and 
  in 
  every 
  case 
  the 
  foliage 
  and 
  crop 
  were 
  entirely 
  destroyed. 
  

   These 
  new-fangled 
  notions 
  of 
  theoretical 
  farmers 
  were 
  looked 
  upon 
  

   with 
  much 
  suspicion, 
  and 
  the 
  plucking 
  of 
  the 
  nests 
  of 
  these 
  leaf-crump- 
  

   lers 
  was 
  postponed 
  sine 
  die. 
  

  

  With 
  the 
  bursting 
  of 
  the 
  leaf 
  buds 
  came 
  swarms 
  of 
  canker 
  worms, 
  

   [82] 
  

  

  