THE CHERRY. 553 



unremittingly applied, docs not fail, is to cut off the injured 

 branches at once, and commit them to the fire. 



The black aphis, or plant louse, is often very injurious to 

 young trees in the nursery, causing a stunted and distorted 

 growth, and when abundant on newly grafted trees, some- 

 times destroying them. 



The beat remedy is the application of whale-oil soap. A 

 teacupful is dissolved in a pail of water, and applied with a 

 syringe, or by the immersion of the infested branches, which 

 causes the immediate death of the insects, and must be re- 

 peated every few days till no more are found. 



The " Cherry Slug," (Fig. 267,) when in large numbers, 

 *, does serious injury by eating the leaves. This 



^> ^. animal, which appears to be the larva of an 



^^^fjfc^ insect, is about half an inch long, and dark 

 greenish brown when filled with food. Its 

 lg ' 2 7 ' smooth, shining, and jelly-like skin, and snail- 

 like appearance, have given it the name " Slug." It may 

 be repelled by dusting the cherry leaves regularly, while 

 wet with dew, with dry fresh ashes. 



The curculio, so destructive to the plum and apricot, some- 

 times injures young fruit. The orchard caterpillar often 

 defoliates the cherry tree. Remedies have been pointed out 

 in former chapters. 



Sometimes the cherry crop is much lessened by long and 

 heavy rains, at the period of the bursting of the anthers, 

 washing down the pollen, and preventing the fertilization of 

 the stigma and germ. 



At the South and West, most of the finer varieties of the 

 cherry do not flourish. This is supposed to be caused, at 

 the South, by the hot sun upon the trunk of rapidly grow- 

 ing and succulent trees, the, wood of which does not mature 

 and harden sufficiently, to withstand its effects. A partial 

 remedy has been found in sheathing the trunks with straw. 

 The Mayduke and a few other of the sour cherries, succeed 

 best. Grafting upon these hardy ' sorts, may prove useful. 

 A similar disaster is produced in many portions of the 

 ■Western States, caused, perhaps, by severe frost in addition 

 to the other named influences. On the fertile western soils, 

 where the growth is very rapid, the outer and more homy 

 portion of the bark does not expand fast enough, and firmlv 



