50 DECIDUOUS FRUIT INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES. 



The infested clusters shown in Plate VI, figures 1-2, were taken from 

 this vineyard. In not all of the vineyards in this area is serious infes- 

 tation so general. In some of them serious infestation is quite local 

 and in others the injury is almost negligible. Outside of this area 

 infestation in vineyards in Erie County, Pa., is more or less local. 

 Yet the insect is always present in sufficient numbers to become a 

 menace at any time that natural conditions favor its rapid increase, 

 and at the present time the insect is responsible for a greater shrink- 

 age in crop yield than most vineyardists are aware. 



REMEDIAL MEASURES. 



Several methods for the control of the larvae of the grape-berry 

 moth have been recommended, namely, the destruction of fallen 

 leaves, plowing the vineyard late in the fall or very early in the 

 spring, bagging the clusters, picking the infested berries, removal of 

 infested berries from the vineyard during the harvesting season, and 

 the use of poison sprays. 



THE DESTRUCTION OF FALLEN LEAVES. 



Since the larva? of the second brood on leaving the ripening fruit 

 make their cocoons upon the leaves of the grapevine, the destruction 

 of the fallen leaves has been frequently recommended as a means of 

 control. Until within recent years, however, it was not known that 

 practically all of the overwintering larva?, on leaving the fruit, instead 

 of forming their cocoons upon the grape leaves attached to the vines, 

 drop to the ground and form their hibernating cocoons on the small 

 percentage of prematurely fallen leaves. Observations on the hiber- 

 nation habits of this insect in infested vineyards at North East, Pa., 

 in the fall of 1906, showed that practically all of the larvaehad emerged 

 from the fruit by the end of the first week in October and that all of 

 the larvae and pupae found at that date were hi the cocoons made on 

 leaves upon the ground directly beneath the trellis. In practically 

 all cases the leaves upon which these cocoons were made were in 

 close contact with the soil and in a more or less sodden condition, 

 either from moisture absorbed from the soil or as a result of the fall 

 rains. Many leaves bearing cocoons were plastered to the ground as 

 a result of beating rains and even at this early date were in such a 

 state of semidecay that in attempting to gather the leaves they some- 

 times fell to pieces in much the same manner that a rainsoaked sheet 

 of newspaper will do under the same conditions. 



Although hundreds of cocoons were found on these moist leaves 

 upon the ground only one cocoon was found upon the leaves still 

 attached to the vines, and this was imperfectly formed. Practically 

 all of the fruit on the vines examined during the first week in October 

 had been recently infested and was still hanging upon the vines in 

 close contact with the foliage. These observations confirm those 



