38 
It is probable that the female insect punctures the bark and de- 
posits a single egg in the sapwood, after which she proceeds to “ ring 
the stem in the manner already described. The limited dimensions of 
the burrow, which in no case exceeded an inch in length, militates 
against the idea that the ringing is performed in order to provide a 
supply of dead wood for the food of the unborn larve, unless the 
grubs forsake the burrows and pass a portion of their existence on 
dead twigs before entering upon the pupa-stage; but there is no 
evidence to support this conjecture. . 
In all probability the insect to which I have given the name of 
the “‘ringer’’ will prove to be a beetle belonging to the Cerambycide, 
but its position can only be determined by examination in an advanced 
stage. 
OLIVE-STOCKS. 
Four species of olive are indigenous to New Zealand; they are 
commonly called maire, and afford valuable timber. One of thése, 
Olea apetala, is also found in Norfolk Island, where it is known as 
ironwood. 
The other species, O. Cunninghamit, O. lanceolata, and O. montana, 
might be profitably utilised as stocks for the cultivated kinds. It is 
desirable that experiments should be made in this direction. 
In all probability O. lanceolata will prove to be the most valuable 
for this purpose. 
PEACH. 
PEACH-BLIGHT. 
The peach is liable to the attacks of numerous fungoid and insect- 
enemies capable of effecting a serious diminution in the yield, and of 
exhausting the energies of the tree; but the total amount of injury 
caused by these unwelcome parasites during a long series of years 
would be but trifling when compared with the wholesale destruction 
that has overtaken the peach throughout the colony, and to which the 
term “ peach-blight’’ is generally applied. Thousands of acres of 
peach orchards and plantations in the North Island have been 
destroyed—the grand peach-groves of the Maoris in the Hokianga, 
Kaipara, Waikato, Napier, and Wanganui Districts are things of the 
past, and the peach itself, once the most common fruit in the colony, 
has now become the rarest. It is no exaggeration to say that, by the 
destruction of the peach, the value of the yearly food-supply of the 
colony has been diminished to the extent of several thousands of 
‘pounds. 
The first symptoms of peach-blight are usually exhibited after 
cold winds during the flowering season and before the full develop- 
ment of the leaves. The ovaries swell until the young fruits attain 
the size of a large pea, when a sudden arrest of growth takes place 
and they drop from the trees, in many cases not even a solitary fruit 
being -left. The leaves also fall away without attaining their full 
development. Ator before this time orange-coloured dots or punctures, 
