VEGETABLES — DESCRIPTION AND CULTURE. 309 



Another squash bug is the Coccinnella borealis, a 

 species of Ladybird, which with its larva feed upon and 

 destroy the leaves. Most of the ladybirds are beneficial 

 in freeing plants of Aphides, but this is an exception. 

 The color is dull yellow, and upon the thorax and wing 

 cases are nineteen black spots, counting as two those 

 divided by the suture of the wing. The eggs are laid in 

 groups upon the under surface of the leaf. Successive 

 broods are hatched through the summer. The remedy is 

 hand picking. 



The squash vine borer is the larva of ^Egeria cucurbitce, 

 an orange-colored moth, with black spots, which deposits 

 its eggs near the roots of cucumber and squash vines, . 

 often several upon a single plant. When hatched, the 

 larva is a small, white worm that bores into the substance 

 of the vine and soon destroys it. It is very troublesome 

 in Southern gardens. A few ashes placed about the 

 roots of the vine are said to be the best remedy. 



Use. — The squash is a very wholesome and tolerably 

 nutritious vegetable, prepared for the table in the same 

 manner as the turnip for which it is an excellent sub- 

 stitute to eat with fresh meat. To be fit for use after 

 being boiled tender, the summer sorts must be squeezed 

 between two plates, for when full of water, as often 

 served, it is not fit to be eaten. The winter squashes 

 should be boiled dry ; they make a good pie, like the 

 pumpkin and the sweet potato. 



TANYAH. — {Calocasia esculenta.) 



This is a large-leaved, tuberous rooted, perennial plant 

 of the Arum family, much cultivated at the Sandwich 

 Islands, and forms the principal ingredient in the favorite 

 poi, a food much in use there, and remarkable for its fat- 

 tening properties. 



