150 COLEOPTEKA OK BEETLES. 



fall to the ground, where they pupate just under the soil. The 

 pupa is a pale-coloured body, with the parts of the future flea- 

 beetle marked out upon it. In this position they remain ten 

 days, when the mature beetle appears. There are a great 

 number of broods during the year, the last or winter brood 

 hibernating in all manner of places, — beneath stones, amongst 

 the rough grass of the headlands, in the hedgerows, and wher- 

 ever else they can get shelter. Cabbage, thousand-headed kale, 

 broccoli — in fact, all cultivated and wild Cruciferse — are alike 

 attacked. 



Prevention and Remedies. — There are some hundreds of ways 

 recorded of preventing and destroying this pest, but for all 

 practical purposes they can be reduced to some half a dozen 

 methods. Needless to say, the state of the land and the 

 weather affect this pest very much. If plants can be got 

 into the rough leaf there is little fear of any great loss ; 

 good cultivation therefore helps to keep down the damage. 

 Where we are subject to the fly, steeping the seed in kerosene 

 or paraffin is very often successful, especially if germination 

 is rapid.' The smell remains on the seed when it is pushed 

 up above-ground and wards off the fly : a great number of 

 farmers find tliis plan very beneficial. When we see the fly 

 commencing to destroy we can also keep them off to some 

 extent by broadcasting over the young plants, early in the 

 morning ichen the deio is on the leaf, soot, lime, and road-dust 

 mixed in equal quantities. This compound sticks to the young 

 leaves and drives the fly off for some time ; a dressing of super- 

 phosphate at the same time would push the growth on, and so 

 get the plant out of the young and vulnerable stage. Those 

 who have a " strawsoniser " cannot do better than run the 

 machine over the young plants directly they are up, spraying 

 them with pure paraffin at the rate of li to 2 gallons to the 

 acre. The destruction of all winter shelter should also be paid 

 attention to. 



' Turpentine lias also lieen used with excellent results. 



