74 



The beetle, which is about an inch long, pale brown above, 

 with two white stripes along its back, -appears in late spring 

 and summer, and lays its twent^'-five or thirty eggs singly, 

 here and there, in slits it cuts in the bark of the trees near 

 the ground. The tiny grub, or borer, on hatching from the 

 egg, burrows through the bark to the sapwood and there digs 

 out shallow but broad galleries. The bark over these often 

 dries and cracks, letting out "sawdust" which aids in locating 

 the galleries. After resting during the winter, the borer re- 

 sumes its work, still feeding on the sapwood, and if the tree 

 is small, or there are several borers present, girdling may 

 result. After a second winter in the tree the borer works into 

 the heartwood and finally turns outward toward the surface. 

 After a third winter of rest it tunnels to the bark, then trans- 

 forms into the adult beetle, which during the spring or sum- 

 mer escapes from the tree. Eggs are then laid for the next 

 generation. 



The life of an individual from egg to adult is three years, 

 but beginning so late in the year that the fourth calendar 

 year thereafter is the year the adult appears. Small, or weak, 

 unhealthy trees suffer most from the attacks of this pest. 



^Methods for controlling this insect have been experimented 

 with for years, but no entirely successful single way has been 

 found. "Worming" the trees in the fall is perhaps as good 

 as any, so far as results go. To do this, clear away any grass 

 or litter from the base of the trunk and look for "sawdust," 

 tracing this up to cracks in the bark and cutting open the 

 dead bark at these places to find and destroy the borers. If 

 the borers have tunneled deeper into the tree, a flexible, 

 pointed wire c^n be run into the tunnels to kill them there. 



Thick paints are often applied to the trunks to keep the 

 beetles from laying their eggs there. To do this, remove the 

 earth a few inches down around the trunk and paint to about 

 a foot above the ground with pure white lead in raw linseed 

 oil, making it thick and putting on a good coat. 



Several layers of newspaper, building paper or cloth can be 

 used also, wrapped around the lower foot or two of the trunk, 

 to act as protectors, but the bottom of the material must go 

 below ground and the top be tightly fitted to the tree so the 



