37 



tion was impossible, and uprooting and burning the trees seemed the 

 only advisable plan to pursue. 



The Grain Aphis (Siphonophora avenw) was sent to me from several 

 localities, but its appearance was by no means general, and the oat crop, 

 which in Missouri suffers most from this insect, was good in almost all 

 parts of the State. 



The Chinch Bug (Blissus leucopterus) appeared in considerable num- 

 bers in the western and southwestern parts of the State, first on wheat, 

 which it did not materially injure, and later on corn, some fields of 

 which were seriously damaged. The dissemination of the germs of so- 

 called " chinch-bug cholera," by Prof. Snow, of Kansas, and Prof. 

 Forbes, of Illinois, was actively carried on, and the confidence of farmers 

 in this natural remedy for the most serious pest of their grain fields was 

 proved by the extent of the demand for the diseased bugs. Probably 

 not all made use of the latter in a way to accomplish the ridding of their 

 fields of the bugs, but so far as I have been able to learn a very eucour- 

 agiug measure of success attended the introduction of the disease germs 

 into infested wheat and corn fields. 



The Joint- worm (Isosoma grande Eiley) appeared in several sections 

 of the State about the first of June and excited much apprehension for 

 the safety oi the wheat crop. In the samples of grain sent me the larvae 

 were invariably working in the heads, then just in bloom. None were 

 found in any of the lower joints. Infested heads were, of course, utterly 

 destroyed, as from three to six worms were often found in one head. 

 Mr. J. F. lies, of Lexington, found about 80 per cent of the heads 

 injured in a certain field, and anticipated the loss of his crop, but later 

 he informed me that the damage was mainly confined to a portion of a 

 field that had been planted on wheat stubble of the previous year. 

 The specimens reared from larvae sent me were all females, and but one 

 head contained pupae that had the appearance of being parasitized, but 

 I was not able to obtain the flies of the latter. 



The Plum Curculio (Conotrachelns nenuphar). — Notwithstanding the 

 almost total failure in this locality of all cultivated and most of the 

 native stone fruits, for the two preceding years, this hardy and adapt- 

 ive insect presented itself this season in sufiicient numbers to inflict 

 considerable damage upon the sweet cherries, early plums, and free- 

 stone peaches. On the latter, however, its work was not disastrous, 

 and the later varieties escaped with very few punctures. The fruit 

 that tided it over last year was probably the Wild Black Cherry (Pru- 

 nus serotina) and possibly some of the pip fruits, although I have never 

 reared it from any of the latter. I have, however, repeatedly bred it 

 from larvae in gooseberries. 



The Harlequin Cabbage Bug (Mtirgantia Mstrionica) was not only 

 unusually destructive to cabbage, cauliflower, and other cultivated 

 Cruciferae, but in the southern counties attacked beans, peas, and sev- 

 eral other sorts of vegetables. This pest seems to be steadily ad vane- 



