PROTECTING PLANTS 



203 



the next May, June, or July, depending on the season. When the adults 

 appear, jar them from the tree on sheets or curculio-catchers and 

 destroy them. To determine when they appear, jar a few trees daily, 

 beginning the latter part of May in New York. 



Currant-worm. — In the spring the small green, black-spotted larvse 

 feed on the foliage of currants and gooseberries, beginning their work 

 on the lower leaves. A second brood occurs in early summer. When 

 worms first appear, spray with 1 lb. Paris green or 4 lb. arsenate of 

 lead in 100 gal. of water. Ordinarily the poison should be combined 

 with bordeaux (for leaf -spot) . 



Cut-worms. — Probably the remedy for cut-worms most often prac- 

 ticed in gardens, and which cannot fail to be effective when faithfully 

 carried out, is hand-picking with lanterns at night or digging them out 

 from around the base of the infested plants during the day. Bushels 

 of cut-worms have been gathered in this way, and with profit. When 

 from some cause success does not attend the use of the poisoned baits, 

 to be discussed next, hand-picking is the only other method yet recom- 

 mended that can be relied upon to check cut-worm depredations. 



The best methods yet devised for killing cut-worms in any situation 

 are the poisoned baits, using Paris green or arsenate of lead for the 

 purpose. Poisoned bunches of clover or weeds have been thoroughly 

 tested, even by the wagon-load, over large areas, and nearly all have 

 reported them very effective; lamb's quarters (pigweed), pepper- 

 grass, and mullein are among the weeds especially attractive to cut- 

 worms. On small areas the making of the baits is done by hand, but 

 they have been prepared on a large scale by spraying the plants in the 

 field, cutting them with a scythe or machine, and pitching them from 

 wagons in small bunches wherever desired. Distributed a few feet 

 apart, between rows of garden plants at nightfall, they have attracted 

 and killed enough cut-worms often to save a large proportion of 

 the crop; if the bunches can be covered with a shingle, they will 

 keep fresher much longer. The fresher the baits, and the more thor- 

 oughly the baiting is done, the more cut-worms one can destroy. How- 

 ever, it may sometimes happen that a sufficient quantity of such green 

 succulent plants cannot be obtained early enough in the season in 

 some localities. In this case, and we are not sure but in all cases, the 

 poisoned bran mash can be used to the best advantage. It is easily 



