302 connecticut experiment station report, 1907-1908. 



Examining Woodpiles. 



Piles of wood, lumber and rubbish near which caterpillars 

 were found were suspected of containing egg-masses and were 

 therefore overhauled and examined. One pile of old railroad 

 ties at F. Allen's (shown on Plate X, a.) contained seven egg- 

 masses. The pile of waste lumber, packing boxes, etc., at the 

 velvet mill was also looked over, and six egg-masses found. Ten 

 such piles of rubbish, lumber and fuel were examined. 



Pruning and Scraping Orchard Trees. 



There are many old apple trees in and about the infested 

 region at Stonington. Some of these are in orchards and were 

 planted, but others, probably chance seedlings, are scattered 

 over the fields or are growing beside the stone walls. A large 

 proportion of them have been neglected far many years, and the 

 tops were filled with a tangle of living and dead branches, and 

 the trunks and larger limbs covered with lichens and loose rough 

 bark. As the gypsy caterpillars are found on such trees, it was 

 absolutely necessary to put the trees in such shape that effective 

 work could be done in controlling the insect. During January 

 a heavy fall of snow made brush cutting impracticable, and the 

 men went to work pruning and scraping these old apple trees. 

 The dead wood was first removed, then enough thinning was 

 done in the tops to let in the light and air. In all about 450 

 such trees were pruned during the year, and over two hundred 

 trees were scraped. The wounds were painted wherever large 

 branches were cut. Views of the pruning operations are shown 

 on Plate VIII. 



Rough bark on the trunk and branches of a tree enables the 

 caterpillars to find protection under the upturned edges of bark 

 so that they will not crawl under the burlap bands. Likewise, if 

 the top of a tree is thick and dark, the caterpillars there are 

 sufiiciently protected, and cannot be trapped under the bands. 



Filling and Tinning Cavities. 



Many of the trees described above contained cavities caused 

 by the neglect of broken and decayed branches, and these 

 cavities were convenient places for the caterpillars to hide out 

 of reach of all enemies. In them caterpillars will transform. 



