264 



TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND 



without feet, eyes, or other members, while in this date ; and 

 fo much refemble fome kinds of galls, or excrelcences of the 

 bark, as frequently to be taken for fuch. A thin film of a 

 white cotton-like fubftance is interpofed between the flat 

 part of the body and the tree. This is common, in a greater 

 or lefier quantity, to all the fpecies, and appears at fir ft all 

 round the edge as a kind of cement to join it to the tree. 



The males are very few in proportion to the females, and 

 not nearly one fourth of their fize ; they are beautiful little 

 flies, which, after a fhort, but active life, terminate their 

 exiftence without having tailed food, being provided with no 

 ibrt of organs for that purpofe. 



Peach, Nectarine, and Pear trees, are very much infefted 

 with thefe in feels : they frequently cut through the bark, and 

 the trees then appear as if they had been fcratched by cats. 

 I have feen fome trees with this appearance all over them. 



When thefe infects firft appear on the bark, they ihould be 

 fcraped off with a wooden knife, and the ftein and branches 

 of the tree well wafhed with foap-fuds and urine, applied with 

 a fliff painter's hrufh. This Ihould be done in February, be- 

 fore the buds begin to come out, But if the outer bark is 

 perforated, it muft be cut or pared off with a long knife ; 

 and if you find any brown fpots in the inner bark, they muft 

 be carefully cut out. This difeafe is one great caufe of the 

 canker, and of the death of the tree. [See Plate IX. Fig. 3.] 



When this difeafe has made its way through both barks, as 

 is often the cafe, the branches on each fide of the tree may be 

 cut clofe to the ftem, if it has an upright one ; but if the tree 

 be trained fan-fafhion, the beft way is to head it near to the 

 place where it was grafted. I have headed old Pear-trees 

 which were fo dead, except a finall ftrip of live bark on one 



fide, 



