IX PESTS 173 



Boses, especially standards. Anxiously each day in 

 April the amateur watches the dormant buds of some 

 new and precious sort to see if they are starting. 

 At last he sees that something has been biting at 

 the buds, but no trace of any insect is to be found. 

 Day by day the damage increases till at last the 

 buds, even every bit of inserted bark, are eaten clean 

 out of the stock, and still no vestige of the enemy 

 itself is to be seen. This is the work of that most 

 malevolent pest, the weevil. There may be plenty 

 of strong Eose plants close by, but he will touch 

 none of them if there is a dormant inserted bud 

 anywhere where there is a chance of destroying a 

 whole future plant. It is just the same with fruit- 

 trees, as far as I have seen : I have never observed 

 any injury to an established tree (possibly because it 

 would not be noticeable), but a bud or graft is sure 

 to be attacked if there are any weevils of this sort 

 about. 



The reason they are not visible is because they 

 only come out at night. Go with a lamp after dark 

 to the infested places and you will soon find them, 

 little brown beetles with long noses. I used to find 

 the employment of a pretty strong pair of tweezers 

 comforting to my feelings after many buds had 

 been destroyed, but they will drop to the ground at 

 a slight alarm and be most difficult to find. A 

 white cloth spread under the Eose tree to catch 

 them when they fall is a safe precaution. 



Other weevils (Phyllobius), of the most brilliant 

 green colour, may be found on the Eose shoots in 

 the day time. The injury they inflict is but slight, 

 but they should be destroyed, as they form a 

 nuisance when present in large numbers. 



