43 



tions on forest insects had shown him that the large cerambycid larvae from eggs 

 laid early in the season produced the perfect insects the next year ; but those laid 

 late passed two years before coming to maturity. He had taken a female of 

 Monohammus confusor with the abdomen filled with eggs as late as the middle 

 of September. The attacks of Nematus eriohsonii on larches in the Provinces of 

 Quebec and New Brunswick were described. 



Prof. Webster asked whether Agrotis fennica had been observed feeding on 

 cereals. 



Mr. Fletcher had found that it fed primarily on clover, but when occurring 

 in numbers is almost omnivorous. Asparagus beds, raspbeiTies and strawberries 

 were injured and some young forest trees grown in nursery rows and of various 

 species had had the terminal buds destroyed. 



Prof. Cook had found the larvae to eat everything. It had attacked blue 

 grass and timothy severely. He was not positive about its attacking grain but 

 believed it would. 



Prof. Smith, speaking of the best way to use pyrethrum powder, said that he 

 liad found it most satisfactory in water. 



Mr. Beckwith had found it could be used most satisfactorily with lime. 



Mr. Fletcher asked whether the dry powder was not as a rule better than the 

 water mixture. He bad found it so in his experience. 



Prof. Cook and Prof. Gillette had found it so also. 



Prof. Summers found that the difficulty with water mixtures was to make 

 them adhere to the plant : he asked whether the addition of soap would make 

 them stick better. 



Mr. Fletcher said it would on such plants as threw off liquids by reason of a 

 waxy secretion on the leaves, as the cabbage, etc., etc. 



Prof. Cook asked whether Mr. Fletcher still made up his cut-worm traps in 

 bundles. He had found it most satisfactory to put a supply of poisoned vegeta- 

 tion on a platform waggon and then pitch it off with a fork. 



Mr. Fletcher answered that he did and not only that but he found that it paid 

 for the extra trouble to cover the bundles with shingles which kept them from 

 drying up so soon. He warned those who advised this remedy to mention that 

 the cut-worms do not lie under them in sight, but burrow beneath the soil and 

 are not seen unless looked for. They sometimes wander off to a distance of two 

 or three feet. 



Prof. Cook confirmed this. He used clover largely. He sometimes sprayed 

 a patch with poison as it stood and then mowed it and used it as traps. 



Mr, Fletcher had found that clover was not the most satisfactory plant for 

 liim at Ottawa. It is frequently not far enough advanced in the early spring 

 when needed and did not hold the poison well. He always recommended any 

 succulent plant and was careful to tell farmers that they could use almost any 

 weed growing about their fence corners, He had found Lepidium Virginicum, 

 pepper grass, a very attractive plant. Ghenopodium album, lamb's quarters, is 

 also greedily eaten by cut-worms ; but it is difficult to make the poison adhere to 

 it. For such plants it is necessary either to dust them with dry powder after 

 •damping them or to rub up some soap in the water. 



Prof. Cook had found mullein to be a most attractive plant for cut- worms. 

 The meeting adjourned to meet again next year at Washington. 



