1 88 DESTRUCTIVE INSECTS. 



The curculio travels by flying, but only during quite warm 

 weather, or in the heat of the day. The insects mostly con- 

 fine themselves to certain trees. But the fact that newly 

 bearing and isolated orchards are soon attacked clearly shows 

 that in occasional instances they must travel considerable dis- 

 tances. Indeed, they have been known to be wafted on the 

 wind for a half-mile or more, the windward side of orchards 

 being most infested immediately after strong winds from a 

 thickly planted plum neighborhood. 



Their flight appears to be never more than a few feet from 

 the ground, and successful attempts have been made to shut 

 them out of fruit gardens by means of a tight board fence, 

 nine or ten feet high, entered by a tight gate. 



The remedial measures suggested for the curculio are various. 

 Those which merely repel without destroying the insect, and 

 which are consequently inefficient, including such as spraying 

 the young fruit with tobacco or lime-wash, or applying salt, 

 offensive odors, etc. If practicable, avoid setting fruits liable 

 to attack from this insect near woods, hedges, or other 

 places where it can easily find such good shelter during the 

 winter. As infested fruits, except cherries, often drop before 

 the grubs mature, the gathering and destruction or feeding to 

 stock of all fallen fruits daily will materially aid in reducing 

 the numbers of the insect. It has been found that if swine are 

 allowed to run in infested orchards, or where the trees are 

 grown in poultry yards, good crops are often secured. 



Several years ago it was discovered that the adult insects 

 did considerable feeding both on the foliage and fruit of their 

 food-plants. This led to extensive experiments in spraying 

 with Paris green to kill the beetles, and the results were very 

 encouraging, especially on cherry trees. Many fruit-growers 

 now spray their trees two or three times, early in the season 

 when the beetles are abroad, with Paris green or some similar 

 poison at the rate of one pound in one hundred and sixty or 

 two hundred gallons of Bordeaux mixture or water, and they 

 are convinced of the effectiveness of the method so far as se- 

 curing a profitable crop is concerned. Other extensive plum- 

 growers claim that when the curculios are plentiful and there 

 is not an abundant setting of fruits they have been unable to 

 save the crop by spraying, and hence have discarded this 



