1048 



PB ACTIO AL GUIDE TO GABDEN PLANTS 



APPLE 



of 2 lbs. of sulphate of copper to 10 gallons 

 of water. This wash may also be used 

 for preventing the attacks of the Codlin 

 Moth in early summer. 



When Apple trees, like the Ribsion 

 P-i^in for example, are naturally prone 

 to canker, it is just possible that canker 

 might be checked by growing the plants 

 upon their own roots (obtained either by 

 cuttings or layers) rather than having 

 them grafted upon a foreign stock. It is 

 impossible to say that this would be a 

 cure for canker, but there is reason to 

 believe that trees on their own roots 

 would be less subject to the evil than 

 grafted ones. 



6. Lackey Moth (Bombyx ueustria). 

 In July and August the female Lackey 

 Moth deposits her eggs on the twigs of 

 the Apple and other trees on which they 

 remain until the following spring. The 

 larviE, or Social Caterpillars as they are 

 called, are at first black, and live in colo- 

 nies in a web which they spin over the 

 branches and leaves. If not cleared off 

 by hand-picking, or shaking on to paper 

 spread beneath the trees, they devour the 

 leaves, often stripping the branches com- 

 pletely if unmolested. A good syringing 

 with soft soap and quassia, or a Httle' 

 petroleum mixed with hot water, has been 

 found very effective in destroying the 

 caterpillars. 



The caterpillars usually seek shelter in 

 their webs on wet days, which afford a 

 good opportunity for making a raid upon 

 them. On dwarf bushes a mixture of lime 

 and soot sprinkled over the branches in 

 wet weather is a good remedy. 



As the eggs are deposited spirally in 

 clusters around the twigs they are easily 

 detected in late summer, and may then 

 be scraped off on to sheets of paper and 

 burned. 



The front wings of the Lackey Moth 

 are brownish-yellow, each crossed by a 

 dark band ; the back wings are paler than 

 the front ones, and are fringed alternately 

 with yellow and brown, while the head, 

 throat, and body are of a reddish-brown. 

 ' The caterpillars are at first black, but 

 become brightly coloured with age. The 

 head is bluish-grey with 2 black eye-like 

 spots, the rest of the body being striped 

 with red, blue, yellow, and white, and 

 densely covered with long silky hairs. 

 When nearly fully grown the caterpillars 

 disperse and seek a suitable place, often in 

 the crevices of the bark, under rubbish &o. 



to spin an oblong yellow cocoon inter- 

 mixed with a sulphury powder. The 

 chrysalis is smooth and brownish and 

 from it the new moth emerges in July. 



7. Slugworms (Eriocampa limacina). 

 These are the grubs of certain sawflies, 

 and have earned their name from the 

 black slime covering their hairy slug-hke 

 bodies. They appear in autumn and 

 ravenously devour the upper svirface of 

 the leaves of Apples, Pears, Cherries, and 

 many other plants belonging to the Rose 

 order, turning them brown and preventing 

 the elaboration of the sap to the detriment 

 of the tree. When fully grown they seek 

 the ground at the base of the tree and 

 spin a blackish cocoon. They remain 

 dormant during the winter, emerging in 

 spring. The female deposits eggs in the 

 under surface of the leaves and in less 

 than a week the larvse or slug-worms are 

 overrunning the foUage. 



Dusting with lime and soot, hellebore 

 powder, and spraying with sulphate of 

 copper or Paris green has been found 

 effectual. The soil at the base of the trees 

 may also be turned up in winter and 

 bmrned, its place being taken by fresh soil. 



8. Small Ermme Moth (Hypono- 

 meuta padella). — Apple trees are occasion- 

 ally attacked by the caterpillars of this 

 moth. The eggs are attached to the 

 branches by a sticky secretion about the 

 end of summer. The following spring 

 the caterpillars, which hve in colonies 

 like those of the Lackey Moth, proceed to 

 attack the leaves. They have a brownish 

 head and a grey body spotted with black. 

 They may be destroyed the same way as 

 the Social Caterpillars (Lackey Moth) by 

 syringing with hot water in which soft 

 soap, quassia, or petroleum has been 

 mixed. 



9. Miscellaneous.- — Besides the above 

 pests, there are others which sometimes 

 attack Apple trees, some being fungoid, 

 some insect. Among the fungoid diseases 

 Mildew is often seen. It is a whitish 

 mould living on the surface and may be 

 destroyed by spraying with sulphate of 

 copper. CracTcing is caused by a fungus 

 called Cladosporiwm dendriticum, which 

 attacks the leaves, shoots, .and flowers, 

 and often prevents the development of 

 the fruit. The latter is often more or less 

 densely covered with round eye-like 

 blotches, and the surface becomes dis- 

 figured and cracked. Cracking seems to 

 be brought about by much the same 



