516 



FRUIT GARDEN. 



more to their effects upon the aphides as they 

 emerge from the egg than to any effect they 

 have on the egg itself. However, as prevention 

 is better than cure, such an operation should 

 not be neglected. In fumigating, the leaves of 

 the trees should be quite dry : when wet, many 

 of the insects will be found secreted under 

 them, and so escape the tobacco fumes. A still 

 evening should be chosen for the operation, and 

 every opening in the peach-house securely 

 closed, to prevent the wasteful escape of the 

 smoke. Of fumigating instruments there are 

 several. Brown's is probably the best. That 

 most in use, however, is simply a hard-burned 

 flower-pot of 6 or 8 inches diameter, into which 

 a few live embers are put, and over them a 

 handful of damp unrolled coarse tobacco or of 

 tobacco-paper. A small hole being cut in the 

 side of the pot near its bottom, the nozzle of 

 a pair of common bellows is applied ; and by 

 blowing the air in, slow combustion takes place, 

 accompanied with a large quantity of smoke. 

 A little damp hay, old dried pot-herbs, or 

 moss, is often added along with the tobacco, 

 to increase the quantity and density of the 

 smoke. Care must be taken that flames do not 

 proceed from the pot, else the foliage might be 

 injured. Where the house or pit can be con- 

 veniently covered with canvass during the ope- 

 ration of fumigating, and this allowed to remain 

 on all night, few of the aphides will escape. 

 In the morning the house may be freely venti- 

 lated, and the trees subjected to a copious 

 syringing, directing the water with force both to 

 the right hand and also to the left. Some excel- 

 lent cultivators never fumigate at all, but de- 

 pend on copious syringing for the prevention of 

 aphides. 



Peach trees on the open walls are much less 

 capable of being fumigated, unless at a very 

 great waste of tobacco, however well they may 

 be covered over during the operation. Other 

 means are consequently had recourse to, such 

 as burning gas-tar, on a still day, in vessels ar- 

 ranged along the bottom of the wall, the foetid 

 black smoke proceeding from it destroying the 

 insects ; wetting the leaves, and dusting them 

 over with Scotch snuff or finely-powdered dust 

 of tobacco : the damp on the leaves acts on the 

 snuff or tobacco, and is instantly fatal to the 

 tender aphides. Finely powdered quicklime 

 dusted over the trees, when dry, is attended with 

 beneficial effects, and may be applied by Cur- 

 tis's lime-duster, or any of the sulphurators now 

 in common use ; or, in default of these, place 

 the lime in a small canvass bag of thin material, 

 and dust it over the trees. Strong tobacco- 

 water applied with the syringe is also very effica- 

 cious. Four ounces of tobacco to a gallon of 

 water, allowed to stand for a Week, and fre- 

 quently stirred and squeezed, the better to ex- 

 tract the narcotic quality, will be strong enough 

 should half a gallon of water be added at the 

 time of using. 



The scale or turtle scale (Aspidiotus conchi- 



formis), fig. 181, frequently found on the wood, 

 and sometimes on the leaves of the peach, be- 

 longs to the numerous and apparently little un- 

 derstood family of Coccus, of which further 

 notice will be taken under the articles Grape- 

 vine, Pine -apple, &c. English entomolo- 

 gists appear as yet to have made no great pro- 

 gress in the examination, nomenclature, and 

 identification of this troublesome family. Bouche 

 in his " Garten Insecten," and " Naturgeschichte 

 der Insecten," has thrown a good deal of 

 light on those injurious to the gardens in Ger- 

 many; and as we suspect them to be all of 

 exotic origin, it is probable that those he has 

 described may be identical with such as are the 

 pests of our own gardens. Neither of Bouche's 

 works has as yet been translated, and therefore 

 they are unavailable to the English reader. Be- 

 garding their suppression, as they are compara- 

 tively large, and attached to the bark of the 

 peach tree, they are easily recognised during 

 winter, and more especially in spring, when the 

 trees begin to become stimulated into growth. 

 At that time, and for some weeks afterwards, 

 they emit a sweet sort of matter, which Bouche 

 takes to be their excrement, and which, falling 

 on the foliage, produces , effects similar to that 

 of the honey dew (which see). This matter, he 

 also remarks, attracts ants, which not only feed 

 upon it when discharged, but also squeeze the 

 cocci to obtain a larger amount of it, and thus 

 aid us by killing numbers of the scale. They 

 are easily rubbed off by the hand ; but even in 

 removing the adult insect the eggs may be left 

 attached to the bark, or hidden on various parts 

 of the trees. We have found spirits of vegetable 

 tar, when applied during winter, a complete 

 remedy against those secreted on the older 

 branches ; but as this penetrating liquor cannot 

 be safely applied to the young wood of last 

 year's growth, many consequently escaped. It 

 is uncertain at what time their eggs are laid ; 

 therefore, presuming that this does not take 

 place till they have nearly arrived at their 

 full size, it will be well to remove them during 

 winter, or as early in spring as they can be dis- 

 covered by the eye. 



The plum-tree tortrix, Tortrix (Carpocapsa) 

 wceberiana Autor, is often injurious to the peach 

 on the open walls. — Vide art. Plum. 



The oblong weevil (Curculio oblongus) ap- 

 pears in May, and often attacks the leaves of the 

 peach. — Vide page 436. 



The black vine-weevil (Curculio sulcatus) 

 attacks the peach as well as the vine. — Vide art. 

 Grape-vine. 



Hylobius abietis, one of the pine-tree weevils, 

 often also attacks the leaves and young shoots 

 of the peach. — Vide art. Plum. 



The European and Asiatic names of the peach 

 and nectarine are — Le pecher, in French ; Der 

 pfirschenbaum, in German ; Persikboom, in 

 Dutch ; Persico, or Pesco, in Italian ; El melo- 

 coton, in Spanish ; Scheptals, in Kussian ; Ba- 

 ratsk fa, in Hungarian. 



