82 



THE GAEDENEE'S ASSISTANT. 



these, if collected and destroyed, will prevent 

 so many caterpillars from being hatched out. 



Cabbage Moth (Mamestra Brassicce). — The 

 moth measures about If inch across the wings, 

 which are dark-gray with black markings, and 



Fig. 99.— Cabbage Moth (Mamestra Brassicce). 

 1. Moth. 2. Caterpillar. 3. Chrysalis. 



a whitish spot near the middle. The caterpillar 

 is dark-gray after attaining some size, with a 

 line of white spots on either side, and infests 

 various members of the Brassica tribe, princi- 

 pally during September, often eating into the 

 heart of Cabbages. 



Remedies. — Hand - picking is tedious and 

 troublesome, but is the surest remedy, and might 

 be accomplished by children at small cost. The 

 matter should have early attention, particularly 

 in the case of Cabbages, before the caterpillars 

 eat their way into the hearts. When they attain 

 some size they often pass the day in the ground 

 and feed at night. A good plan, therefore, 

 would be to spread soot and gas-lime upon the 

 ground and round the plants, but not quite 



touching the stems. 



The gas-lime should be 



exposed to the atmosphere for two or three 

 months to render it harmless to the Cabbages. 

 Deep trenching in winter buries the pupae too 

 deeply to get up again, if the top spit is turned 

 into the bottom and a good sprinkling of gas- 

 lime placed over it. The chestnut -red pupae 

 should also be collected and destroyed when 

 detected in digging. 



Cabbage Powdered-wing (Ale yr odes pro- 

 letella). — The perfect insect is a minute fly with 

 four snowy wings and a dusky spot in the centre 

 of the front ones, also a black head and shoulders, 

 and a yellowish body. The females lay their 

 eggs in clusters on the lower surface of the Cab- 

 bage leaf, and the larvae, when hatched, scatter 

 themselves over the leaves, settle, and get 

 covered with a white scale, under which they 

 live securely, sucking the juices of the leaves, 

 sometimes doing them considerable injury, till 

 they reach the perfect state to repeat the same 

 process, for there are several broods in a season. 



Remedies. — When Cabbages get very badly 

 infested and spotted or withered with the fly, 

 the worst leaves should be cut off and burnt, 

 to destroy the insects under the scales, and also 

 any eggs that may be there. A syringing with 

 strong soap-suds or tobacco-water would act as 

 a deterrent, though less effective than the burn- 

 ing of infested leaves. 



Carrot Aphis (Aphis Baud). — The wingless, 

 viviparous females of this plant-louse are small 

 and green, or sometimes yellowish, tinted with 

 red. They infest the leaves of Carrots in June 

 and July, and in bad cases entirely check their 

 growth, rendering them useless. 



Remedies. — When the cultivator has reason to 

 fear that his plants suffer from this pest, he 

 should examine them in good time and syringe 

 his plants on the first appearance of the aphis with 

 strong tobacco -water, having a little soft soap 

 in it to make it adhere. Another sure remedy 

 is to dust the crowns of the plants with tobacco- 

 powder early in the morning while the plants 

 are wet with dew, or they may be syringed on 

 purpose to wet them. 



Celery Fly (TephritisOnopordinis). — This two- 

 winged fly measures J inch to \ inch across the 

 expanded wings, and has a brown body covered 

 with black hairs. The wings are variegated, 

 with a zigzag brown band. Eggs are laid upon 



Fig. 100.— Celery Fly {Tephritis Onopordinis). 



1. Fly (magnified). 2. Lines showing natural size. 3. Larva and 



pupa figured on blistered leaf. 



Celery and Parsnip leaves, and the grubs tunnel 

 into the soft tissues between the two skins, 

 making pale-brown galleries or patches, often 

 destroying the whole leaf. The insects appear 

 in large numbers during May, and the grubs 

 prove very destructive at that time, seeing that 

 the young plants have but few leaves. There 

 are several broods during the season. 



