September io, 1898. 



GARDENERS' 



MAGAZINE 



589 



ALLIES OF THE WINTER MOTH. 



The caterpillars of several other moths, besides those of the Winter Moth, cause 

 h rm to apple trees in the spring, when the leaves and blossoms are forming. In 

 me seasons, when there is a bad attack, as many as four distinct species of cater- 

 ^llars have been found devouring the foliage and bloom, in company with those 

 of Cheimatobia brumata. These last are considerably smaller than the other 

 species found with them, and differ in colour from them, except perhaps in the 

 case of the caterpillars of Anisopteryx sescularia, though the green colour of these 

 is more vivid than that of the Winter Moth caterpillars, and they are, besides, 

 easily distinguished by their greater size and different shape. The four species 

 found in the company of the Winter Moth are the Mottled Umber or Great 

 Winter Moth (Hybernia defoharia), the Scarce Umber (Hybernia aurantiaria), 

 the Pale Brindled Beauty (Phygalia pi/osaria), and the March Moth {Anisopteryx 

 \siidaria). According to the Board of Agriculture, in its journal, there are two 

 other moths whose caterpillars have been seen on apple trees in the spring, the 

 Belted Beauty (Nyssia zonaria) and the Small Brindled Beauty (Nyssia hispitfaria\ 

 but these are comparatively rare, and need not be described. The males of all 

 these species of moth are winged, and are bright and attractive in colour, while 

 the females are dull coloured and wingless, or have mere rudimentary wings. 

 The females crawl up fruit trees and other trees, and fruit bushes, and deposit 

 eggs on the bark or twigs, from which caterpillars come in the early spring, just 

 as the leaves shoot and the blossoms form. 



The commonest of these is the Great Winter Moth, or Mottled Umber 

 {Hybernia defoliaria), also called the Leaf Stripper. The male moth is large, 

 having a wide expanse of over one and a half to one and three-quarter inches. Its 

 fore-wings are yellowish, or light orange, dusted with dark brown, and have two 



thick dark wavy patches on each. The 

 hind-wings are a duller yellow, with a very 

 small central spot, and are dusted with 

 light brown. The female has no signs of 

 wings, and is ochreous, thickly covered 

 with black spots. The winged male moths 

 may be first seen in the twilight towards 

 the end of October, flying round apple 

 and other trees, and if careful search is 

 made the wingless females can be found 

 upon the ground under the trees, and 

 upon their trunks. The date of the first 

 appearance of these moths depends upon 

 the weather, and in some seasons they 

 may be noticed as late as December. The 

 females, which can run quickly, go up 

 the trees after pairing, and deposit long 

 yellowish-white eggs, which become 

 darker later, singly upon the shoots and 

 twigs near the buds. A female will lay 

 as many as three hundred eggs. In the 



ctlerDillar* *r* h»tnU«A 1 • ?P rin £' as the bud s begin to swell, the 



I hi Ittrmu: t c fh f * and ™ med,ateI Y ^eep into them, feeding upon the leaves 



I C is at^ • V* 11 ™***?™** colour with chestnut-brown mark- 

 H the 2k caterpillars up to the end of June. When fully 



he n otS £Tn l ° ^ f '° m *** 



Gkiat Winter or Mottled Umrer 



Moth. 



(Winged Male and Wingless Female ) 



It has yellowish- 



"teSSfe^ its numerous 



E^i^TS 23&£ fr atTi The wingsof 



The hind wings 



^'lyhalfiQi^t w{rti 8 ° ,d Coloured ,- The female is greyish-brown, 

 *ith brown It is Zt h2 r f u . dime, ? ta 'y W1 "B^ of a light grey colour, flecked 

 *>ths appear to JJrds fhe TJ ?n ^ ° f the MotlIed Umber. These 

 •*wm£uo£T 'i„ S f ° \ and ^ be seen as late as January if 

 ffui < spurs by the iemale "If 1 ^"'"g dai *er in time, are laid upon the 

 , th, \JA.l[T* ]es .> wmch ™n UP the trees The caterpillars are hatched 



•hen the buds swell 7*" ,7*** MW " i,,c caierpu 



<»« an inch l 0n r lenSer in f ° e at ° nce u P on them. 



^^'^y^lIo»2h " PUrp!e - br ° wn co!our ' ^ t« e sides 

 «Si^7£^ h » P-tical.y th 



They are just 



U »be' moth/a nd the iniurToLf- P™ 1 "* 1 * the ?ame as lhat of the Mottled 

 . Th« male'of t he ?al? B Jl ? v ^ ^ter pi liars is quite 

 »k>ut one ,nA ' v!, ^ ale , Brl ndled Beauly ls a handsome mn.h „it 



ut one and a half inrh*»c tu~ t " • ™„v. muui, wnu wing expanse 



P«nUh shadings, and ZLw T*™^ V 6 of a ,! g ht mous ^ colour with 

 ■5! rwiD & are of raZ Si?, T define ^ark transverse lines, or bars. The 



The fc B K£^A , ^ nd ^ h ? b f y is ^ h wi,h a Pronounced 

 .The perfect Insect appearsln 5™ y ,egS ' and ^ uite with out wings. 



* trees and lays eg^S'" J T*T ^ ^ greyish ^"S 1 " 3 femaIe asc ^ nds 

 ^'"'Ptical, £ £ Si of a n °° tS - ? C £ gg 15 greenish > with brown 



4, SmVut 8 ^SSSSi^ seed - The Citerpi,Iar is ,arge ' from 



Es anH° fa r,ch " brown colour, 

 ^nth JIi°. S ?_ on the sixth and 



as great, 

 some moth, with wing expanse 



«n on 

 5* EdrbSi**!*?*"^'^ large), 



tipsy ii^z- U J « 



between ^ a great "sem- 



u!. ,h "3 That of ^ Cat c erpiUar of this 

 ^ty. the Small Brindled 



22* » t£ tSf 1 ?" 1 ^^ them 

 ^ anH Z. Wa f ts of the latter beina 



Ma rch Moth 



to fruit 



The 



; r «j and 



£3** and'coK rtT? kinds ' an d 

 ^ » *inele« k bUShes ' 



& 2S &ZSSSL* ft 



the 



oth S a> * re ve ^y long, 

 SSv U *b?«t the size 



Pale Brindled Beauty Moth. 



Male and Female. 



''••■a.' 'rx. Wr" edgT an ^ e a W ^ fi* a pale transverse ,ig zag 



««b«. .V"* rnoths a ?e V, ' a! ? ,a ' * >e hind wings are somewhat 



""ftimng 01^., J" 1 seen ,n March, and the female crawls up the trees 



own, barrel-shaped eggs ,n series of rings round the small 



shown 



attack them. 



Thev «« 2 i" ■ Vhe ° the , buds swe11 the caterpillars are ready to 



back, and greeniK ts h^nTt? ^1 ^l 1 ™'^ ^ lines down the 

 Winter Moth caterE Zt ?? f ° Ut 1 4 IDChes I ° J ng ' and not un,ike the 

 so thick as these LkeJhti y -n re l0 ? g f' °l a m ore decided green, and not 

 pupate in the ground ke . * e f v Cater P llIars of th ? other moth s described above, they 



lined wiS S g The DUD a Si * Iong ° vaI C0C00 ^ 



ine pupa is bnlhant-brown with a green ^.hade. 



Th Prevention and Remedies. 



Winter Moth ^tbe tST"! ** «~»»«dcd for adoption against the 

 described and fibred abov e P W t0 the f ° Ur m ° ths that have ^ 



entrlo'thTcraS bandin ^ the trees with sticky substances to 



trees P to lL fcm * ,e moths and to P revent *™ from going up the 



r ^ ffi a PP"* to made of woodlnd tin 



KreSSorfwSr 1 L ^h ? baCk " Cart ^ rease P ufc thickly on bands of 



It tKuKTiv?^ • • ™& by gr0CerS ' is the best Stance for this purpose, 

 thick r S aS ^i?*^ the treeS - In the case of old treeswith 

 of oauer to t ffi PUt °/ the bark must be scra P ed off to allow the bands 



-baS smeared S t0 ^ BandS ' made ° f ° ld oi,cake " or manur e 

 oags, smeared with sticky compositions, may be employed, but thev must be 



c^Zt i° Se Tl\ th ? StemS ° r the moths crawl ^ them. Hay ban£ 

 paper U ' ^ ^ 1§ D ° thing SO effectuaI as the smeared g^se-proof 



.n/'jL^* 5 ^^ ° r must be in worki ng order by the middle of October, 



"J mu l be constantly, and grease applied where it has 



?hrZL Jt°^^ ¥ SCemS that this Ending should be continued 



throughout the winter and far on into the spring, as it has been shown that there 

 is a succession of eggs laid by the various moths enumerated above from October 

 up to the end of March. The moths, which lay eggs in spring, are not so 

 numerous as the winter moth, but a few of them are sufficient to produce swarms 

 of caterpillars, which might cause serious injuries to fruit crops. To keep bands 

 m order from October to April is an expensive process, but some fruit growers do 

 it and find that it answers. The guard employed by growers in the United 

 States and Canada might be usefully adopted in this country, and though the 

 initial cost would be greater than that of banding, the subsequent expense would 

 be inconsiderable. This guard consists of a girdle of tin fastened so as to hang 

 three or four inches out from the trunk of the tree, held there by a circle of rine 

 sacking, or linen, and fixed by a cord, to which the sacking is sewn. The tin is 

 smeared all round inside with an offensive substance applied by the means of a 

 small brush, which causes the insects to drop to the ground as soon as they come m 

 contact with it. 



Spraying the trees when the caterpillars are at work is most necessary. A few 

 growers begin to spray directly the caterpillars are noticed. A still smaller 

 number spray before caterpillars are seen, with Paris green solution, consisting of 

 I lb. of Paris green to 220 gallons of water. This poisons the foliage and kills 

 the tiny delicate caterpillars, which at first are mere threads, hardly distinguishable 

 without a glass. 



Spraying with Paris green may also be done later on, and until the apples are 

 formed or have become any size, but it would he unsafe to run the risk of the 

 poison adhering to the fruit. In America Paris green is regularly and most 

 advantageously used, even when the apples are of some size. 



Quassia and soft soap solutions may be used at any time, not being poisonous. 

 These do not poison the caterpillars, they merely make their food bitter and 

 distasteful. They are put on usually in the proportion of 7 lbs. of quassia chips and 

 6 lbs. of soft soap to 100 gallons of water. Some growers use a much stronger 

 quassia wash than this. 



Spraying is the only really useful remedy for these caterpillars, and it must be 

 repeated from time to time. 



5WIS5 NATIONAL CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY. 



Since writing my last notes, in which a brief allusion was made to .'the founding 

 of the above society, I have received the rules and also a copy of the schedule of the 

 first exhibition of the above society,which will take place next November at Geneva, 

 and of which it is announced 50 per cent, of the profits are to be devoted to some 

 charitable objects. (Foreign exhibits are requested, but only in the class for new seed- 

 lings not already in commerce. The aim and objects of the society are briefly set forth 

 thus : To encourage and develop the culture of ths flower hy organising shows, 

 awarding medals or subsidies, awarding certificates of merit to deserving novelties, 

 arranging conferences, offering advice to other societies desirous of holding shows 

 and preparing schedules, supplying information to members on all points concern- 

 ing the chrysanthemum at home and abroad, and finally assisting amateurs to make 

 suitable selections of the best novelties to grow. 



There are three grades of members, viz., active, honorary and corresponding. 



Early in the year the society will issue a journal containing the official report, 

 balance-sheet, a catalogue of the best varieties shown during the autumn, and a 

 ceries of articles dealing with the flower and its culture. C. II. P. 



Cactus Dahlias.— When Mr. Burrell first exhibited that curious and inter- 

 esting cactus dahlia Fantasy, with its crab's- leg- like petals and quaint form, there 

 was a not unnatural impression that a new and distinct race was foreshadowed. 

 So far there has been no special product seen of the nature indicated, but there 

 is vet ample time, as only two years have elapsed since Fantasy was first exhibited. 

 I believe Mr Burrell has some very novel seedling flowers in hand to show at the 

 Crvstal Palace on the second inst., but of these more may be written after they 

 h been seen But Mr. Burrell holds that the cactus dahlia as a fl >wer form 

 or Action is yet in its infancy, and that there is no telling what beautiful things 

 may in time be produced. As evidence of that Messrs Keynes, Williams, and 

 Co of Salisbury, a firm closely associated with the dahlia for many years m all 

 its ' divers forms, had, in a stand of special blooms at the Shrewsbury show, a 

 flower of so interesting a character that the firm had named it Progenitor, a very 

 suitable name, as, without doubt, in their hands it will ultimately produce some 

 novel successors. This flower, of a nch reddish colour, had the usual cactus 

 form and petals, but the tips of these latter, instead of being pointed, were so 

 far deeply divided that they bore the appearance of miniature stag's-horns. It 

 be a question with florists as to whether the variety can be admitted into the 

 ranks of true cactus forms, and I venture to suggest that in a competition it may be - 

 unwise to present it. But if it should become the progenitor of a distinct race of 

 ct-W* hnm Detailed flowers that still possess the cactus form, then we may hops to 

 see the present popularity of the dahlia largely extended. A. D. 



