April, 1910.] 



323 



Plant Sanitation^ 



Mr. Nicholson apparently applies the 

 mixture with a brush, which must be 

 somewhat costly. I would suggest sub- 

 stituting* "Imperial Bar" soap for the 

 ' Mottled Blue.' Mr. Antram (Entomo- 

 logist to the Indian Planters' Associa- 

 tion) reports that this brand is not 

 only the cheapest in the market, but 

 that it forms a mixture quite tree 

 from sediment, so that it can be sprayed 

 through a cyclone nozzle without any 

 difficulty. 



The 'Pulvinaria' Bug, 

 This species (Pulvinaria psidii, Mas- 

 kell) has been known to occur on tea 

 for many years. But it usually confines 

 its attacks to individual or small groups 

 of bushes. It is allied to the ' Green 

 Bug,' but may be distinguished— in its 

 later stages— by the presence of a con- 

 spicuous white ovisac, when it resem- 

 bles more nearly one of the 'mealy 

 bugs.' In its earlier stages it resembles 

 almost exactly the 'green bug,' the 

 only noticeable difference being that 

 the latter has a curved series of blackish 

 spots on its back. Both species affect 

 the bushes in a similar manner, and 

 the same remedies are applicable in 

 each case. 



A ' Mealy Bug ' or Tephrosia Candida. 



I have observed specimens of this 

 plant — now cultivated as a green manure 

 — infested by a mealy-bug (Phenacoccus 

 iceryoides)- This bug has but recently 

 attracted attention in Ceylon, though 

 I have received it from India, on several 

 occasions. It is one of the largest of 

 its kind and appears to be remark- 

 ably prolific. If unchecked, it might 

 develop into a serious pest. The speci- 

 mens submitted to me were being preyed 

 upon by the carnivorous larvae of a 

 small butterfly (Spalgis epius) ; but it 

 would not be wise to trust entirely to 

 natural enemies which are uncertain in 

 their action. The pest is a conspicuous 

 one and cannot well be over-looked. The 

 insects congregate upon the stems of the 

 plant, covering them thickly with hemis- 

 pherical masses of white mealy secretion 

 which conceal innumerable eggs. Affect- 

 ed plants should be cut out and burnt. 



The ' Paddy Fly ' (Leptocorisa acuta). 



Mr. Drieberg sends me a report from 

 one of his Agricultural Instructors, giving 

 particulars of experiments with a sweep- 

 ing net against Paddy flies (as suggested 

 by Mr. Lef roy). The treatment appears 



* Since writing the above I have been inform- 

 ed that "in some instances 'Gossages' Bine 

 bar' is cheaper, because of the heavy cost of 

 transporting 'Imperial' from Calcutta to, say, 

 the Nilgiris," 



to have been effective, as — after the use 

 of the bag— no more insects could be 

 seen in the field. 



Mention is made of two varieties of 

 paddy ('Burma Drought-resisting' and 

 ' Kiushu ') that were very severely 

 attacked, and of one variety ('Thillai- 

 nayakam ') that appeared to resist the 

 pest. Such observations are of great 

 importance and should be carefully 

 collected. It may be possible to breed 

 a strain that will combine the resistant 

 properties of ' Thillainayakam ' with the 

 more valuable qualities of some other 

 varieties. 



It has been suggested that the im- 

 munity of ' Thillainayakam ' paddy is due 

 to the fact that " this variety has the 

 peculiar tendency of flowering during 

 the midday (at which time the flies take 

 shelter at the bcttom of the stalks) and 

 of closing up by 2-30 or 3 p.m., before the 

 flies come up." This explanation requires 

 corroboration, firstly, as to the state- 

 ment that the flies take shelter at midday; 

 and, secondly, as to whether this open- 

 ing and closing process is continued each 

 day during the ripening of the crop. 

 Damage to the grain does not usually 

 occur at the time of flowering, but 

 later, when the grain has begun to form 

 and while it is still soft and milky, 



A Blood-Sucking Bug. 

 A correspondent has sent me speci- 

 mens of an evil-looking bug which had 

 been gorging itself at his expense. It is 

 quite distinct from the notorious ' B- 

 flat' (or bed-bug— Cimex lectularius), 

 though it has acquired the same objec- 

 tionable tastes and habits. The exam- 

 ples first received were small and im- 

 mature, but their bodies were fully 

 distended with blood. My correspond- 

 ent reports that he was disturbed at 

 night by the bites of these creatures and 

 found several of them crawling about the 

 bed. The consequent irritation was 

 severe. Subsequently the adult insect 

 (probably the parent of the troublesome 

 broody was discovered in the same 

 situation. It proves to be a Reduviid bug^ 

 (Conorhinus rubrofasciatus), an insect 

 of quite formidable size, measuring over 

 an inch in length. 



Bugs of this family normally prey 

 upon other insects; but several species 

 of Conorhinus have gained an evil 

 reputation as systemtic blood suckers. 

 C sanguisugus is a troublesome domestic 

 pest in parts of the Unitsd States. 

 Darwin, in his 'Voyage of the Beagle,' 

 describes a species of Conorhinus that 

 attacks travellers when camping out ou 

 the Pampas of South America. As far 

 as I know, the present record is the first 



