November, 1918 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



109 







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The white marked tussock moth egg mass is distinguished by 

 the frothy covering 



And while we pause to express our thanks to 

 the minute allies with transparent wings, the 

 tap of woodpecker and challenge of chickadee 

 remind us that an army with feathered wings 

 is also in reserve. Surely the hospitality of the 

 orchard is due them and with a real sense of 

 shame we remember that we have not put out 

 the winter fare of suet. 



Well, that shall be attended to as soon as the 

 orchard is pruned and we resolve also that the 

 New Year shall find us busy planning for bird 

 houses with cat-proof shelves, for the anti- 

 caterpillar army must have suitable camping 

 grounds! 



Men have but begun to use wings in battle, 

 though in our behalf bird and beneficial insect 

 have waged a war through the centuries that has 

 meant a balance of power without which we 

 should have had no more trees in the world than 

 the huns have left in the areas they have 

 devastated. For borers work within and scale 

 insects work without the bark while caterpillars 

 strip the foliage; and what saved vegetation for 

 us so that to-day we have any orchard to protect 

 with pruning hook and sprays? 



It is well enough for us to think about these 

 matters while we prune. It gives our own 

 efforts an added force to feel that we are not alone 

 in our movement for better fruit. What though 

 bird and beneficial insect be as selfish in their 

 aims as we? They toil only for their own food 

 as we for ours but their help is none the less 

 effective for all that. That their methods are 

 based on fundamental needs is indeed a guarantee 

 that they have been evolved along stable lines. 



Where the Tussock Moth Hides 



A FTER a bit of some such orchard philos- 

 ** ophy our attention drifts to four objects 

 attached to the twigs. We have already 'collected 

 the cocoon of one species of moth in which the 

 pupa slept, the hibernaculum of another which 

 sheltered the dormant caterpillars awaiting the 

 reveille of spring, and now we find egg masses 

 of four other species challenging us. For in 

 three different stages do the various moths of 

 the orchard winter, — pupa and partly grown 

 caterpillar and egg. And they all withstand 

 below zero temperature though it surprises us 

 every time we think how life, seemingly so 

 delicate, can winter exposed to elements which 

 hold sturdy trees dormant for months. Well, 

 the insects lie dormant, too, in one stage or 

 another; and it behoves us to be alert while they 

 sleep if we are to take the initiative in the 

 campaign. 



The four egg masses before us now are of 

 interest as they show the close resemblance of 

 related species and yet the distinctive characters 

 due to specific differences. 



Winter Lodgers in the Orchard and How to 

 Destroy Them 



Winter contact sprays, when applied for scales, soak into 

 cocoons and kill the pupae. Spring poison sprays are 

 effective. Burn infested branches which are pruned off. 



Fruit-tree Leaf-roller. Egg-mass on bark in winter. 



10 per cent, kerosene early in spring while tree is dormant. 

 Oblique-banded Leaf-roller. Eggs on bark in winter 



in fiat patches. Same treatment as Fruit-tree Leaf- 

 roller. 

 Leaf-crumpler. Hibernating quarters of larvae among 



crumpled leaves. Pick and burn at pruning time. 

 Trumpet Leaf-miner. Hibernates in fallen leaves. 



Destroyed by late fall plowing. 

 Resplbojdent Shield-bearer. Hibernates in queer, tiny, 



oval, seed-like, yellowish cocoons attached to bark. If 



very abundant, scraping trees is practicable. 

 White-marked Tussock Moth. White froth-covered 



egg-masses on empty cocoon in winter. Gather and burn. 

 Antique Tussock moth. White uncovered egg-mass on 



empty cocoon, in winter. Gather and burn. 

 Bud Moth. Overwintering in brown, dead leaves present 



at tip of twig. When pruning pick off and burn these 



nests. 

 Cigar Case-bearer. Hibernates as a partly grown larva 



in tiny, curved, winter cases on twigs. Watch for these 



while pruning and be ready with arsenical sprays in 



spring. 

 Pistol Case-bearer. Hibernates in pistol-shaped cases 



on smaller branches. Same treatment as for Cigar 



Case-bearer. 

 Ribbed Cocoon-maker of the Apple. The white ribbed 



cocoons in which this insect hibernates, though small, are 



conspicuous against the branches. 

 Apple Leaf-sewer. Rarely troublesome in cultivated 



orchard as the hibernating caterpillars are plowed under 



with the fallen leaves. 

 Apple Bud-borer. Caterpillar hibernates in burrow. 



Clinging leaf petioles an indication of infested twigs the 



terminals of which should be pruned off and burned. 

 Oriental Moth. Hibernates in tough, smooth, oval co- 

 coons attached to bark of branches near axil. Destroy 



cocoons at pruning time. 

 Fall Webworm. Hibernates in thin cocoon in crevice 



of bark or under rubbish near surface of ground. Arsen- 

 ical sprays in spring. 

 Tent-caterpillars. Watch for egg-rings while pruning. 



Remove and burn. Arsenical sprays in spring. 

 Gipsy Moth. Creosote egg-masses in winter. Arsenical 



sprays in spring. 

 Brown-tail Moth. Remove winter-nests while pruning. 



Arsenical sprays in August. 



Beetles 



Eye-spotted Apple-twig Borer. Prune off and burn 

 infested twigs before April. 



Curculios or Weevils. Three species hibernate in rub- 

 bish in or about orchard. Clean orcharding is the best 

 way to avoid tempting them to be present. 



Twig-girdler AND Twig Pruner. Larvae hibernate in 

 fallen branches. Gather and burn in autumn, winter 

 or early spring. 



Flat-headed Apple-tree Borer. Larva excavates an 

 irregular channel extending into sapwood under bark. 

 Severely infested young trees should be removed and 

 burned before May. 



Round-headed Apple-tree Borer and Spotted Apple- 

 tree Borer. Where their "saw-dust holes" are ob- 

 served, spear larva with wire. Apply alkaline washes 

 May to July. 



Crickets, etc. 



Snowy Tree-cricket. Eggs in punctures in bark of 

 wounds. 



Mites 



Leaf Blister-mite. The adult mites pass the winter 

 hidden beneath second or third bud scales. Dormant 

 contact sprays, as for scale-insects, give excellent results. 



Clover Mite. Over winter on apple bark in masses of 

 innumerable tiny round reddish eggs. Color renders 

 them noticeable. Spray, while tree is dormant, with 

 lime-sulphur. 



Aphids, Scales, and Leaf-hoppers 



Aphids. Several species pass the winter as black shining 

 eggs on apple twigs. Burn infested twigs which are 

 pruned off. Order contact sprays for the spring cam- 

 paign. 



San Jose 1 Scale. Small, round concentric. Contact 

 spray (lime-sulphur preparations or oils) while tree is 

 dormant. 



Oyster. Shell Scale. Shaped like miniature curved 

 oyster shell. Dormant spray with lime sulphur. June 

 spray with "Black Leaf 40." 



Other Scales. Treat as for San Jose. 



Apple Leaf-hopper. Winter eggs, in bark of preferably 

 two year-old wood. Indicated by small blister-like 

 swellings. Spring treatment with contact sprays for 

 nymphs. 



Buffalo Tree-hopper. Egg scars noticed at pruning 

 time in uncultivated orchards. Many can be removed 

 and burned. Cultivate orchard. Burn bordering low 

 vegetation in spring. 



J 



The white eggs of the antique tussock moth are 

 spread upon the outside of the empty gray 

 cocoon. Each egg is separately placed and 

 clearly defined against the background. It is 

 here the mother moth laid them when she 

 crept from the cocoon, a wingless bag of eggs 

 awaiting the advent of her winged mate, after 

 which there was nothing else in life except the 

 deposition of those precious eggs. A brief and 



In this silken chamber woven with the dead leaves lurks the 

 brown tail moth 



meagre existence but it fulfilled its function and 

 the species continues. If we do not gather these 

 eggs, from each (unless it be touched by parasitic 

 wand) will hatch in the spring a grotesque 

 little figure which will feed upon our leaves. 

 Its appearance can not fail to attract our atten- 

 tion and call forth our admiring wonder even 

 though we make haste for the arsenical spray. 

 For this invader of our orchard wears a glistening 

 black helmet decorated on each side by a brush 

 of tufted black bristles. A similar bunch adorns 

 its tail while on its back a row of four tufts 

 like soft paint brushes adds to the strange appear- 

 ance of this remarkable though unwelcome 

 orchard guest. 



When full fed (the arsenicals being neglected 

 by careless orchardist) these caterpillars strip 

 ofF their masquerade attire and weave their 

 hairs into the fabric of the cocoon that hangs 

 upon the tree all winter. Unlike the cocoon of 

 the cecropia moth, however, this cocoon hangs 

 empty since the moth emerges from the inside 

 and spreads her eggs on the outside before winter 

 sets in. Such conspicuous egg masses make the 

 gathering of this species easy during pruning 

 time. Some of them do not have eggs upon them, 

 a circumstance due to one of two reasons. 

 Either the inhabitant was a male in which case 

 the cocoon is empty and harmless, or the pupa 

 has been attacked by a parasitic insect which 

 retains the shelter its victim spun, in which case 

 the cocoon is occupied by a friend. So there 

 is a double reason for leaving cocoons of the 

 tussock moth upon the tree unless they are 

 covered by eggs. At best it would be a waste 

 of time and at worst we should kill an ally napping 

 until the spring drive. 



The similar cocoon near by is plastered over 

 with what looks to be a mass of brittle white 

 froth. That is the cocoon of the white-marked 

 tussock, the wingless female of which emerges, 

 like her cousin, only to mate and deposit her 

 eggs. This moth, however, pours out a white 

 protective covering over her eggs as she lays 

 them and this substance gives an easy basis for 

 distinguishing the two species in the egg stage. 

 In the caterpillar stage they are as readily 

 told apart for the larva of the white-marked 

 tussock wears a scarlet helmet which renders 

 its appearance even more grotesque than that 

 of its black headed relative. 



Army Worms in Rest Quarters 



' I 'WO glistening brown rings encircling a 

 •*- twig. The one with the more tapering 

 ends is that of the orchard tent caterpillar. These 

 eggs, if left upon the tree by us and if not de- 

 stroyed by bird or parasite, will hatch into one 

 of the colonies which build silken tents in the 

 forks of the branches, tiny and filmy at first, 



