69 



all the leaf, as well as fruit buds, in this way not only spoiling 

 the symmetry of our trees, but preventing a crop of fruit. It 

 feeds most voraciously in early spring and soon finds its house of 

 the year before too small for it, but, strange to say, instead of 

 enlarging it, it begins to build a new one beside the old, which 

 it securely fastens to the side of the old one, and carries both 

 wherever it goes until it reaches maturity (?). * * * The 

 rascal leaf-crumpler feeds upon the leaves of nearly the whole 

 order Rosaceae, but is most injurious to the apple among our 

 domestic fruit." 



This writer also records the discovery of a hymenopterous para- 

 site, said by Dr. LeBaron to be a new species of Ichneumon. In 

 some parts of the nursery nearly all of the Phycis larvae were 

 destroyed by these parasites, while in other parts it was said that 

 none of them could be found. 



As to remedies, Mr. Wier expresses the opinion that "There 

 is perhaps no noxious insect that can be kept in check by labor 

 alone easier than this." He recommends picking the cases and plac- 

 ing them in such a position that the larvge will starve and the para- 

 sites escape; and adds the following paragraph concerning the 

 application of lime: "Dr. Hull recommended a few weeks ago in 

 this paper, air-slaked lime strewn over the leaves of trees as a 

 preventive of this insect. The application would, I fear, be of 

 little use, for the young larvse are so snugly protected by their little 

 houses that the lime would hardly reach them, and by their 

 activity they would soon find some point uncontaminated by lime." 



In the Fourth Annual Report of the State Entomologist of Missouri 

 (pp. 38-42) Dr. Riley publishes a lengthy account of the species, 

 which, he states, "sometimes become so prodigiously multiplied in 

 young orchards, or in the nursery, as to seriously affect the health 

 of the trees; for it does not confine itself to the leaves, but often 

 in early spring commences on the swelling buds, attacks the young 

 fruit, or gnaws the tender bark." He mentions it as "an insect 

 which is quite comrron in the Western States, and which also 

 occurs in Ontario, but does not seem to be known in the Eastern 

 or extreme Southern States." He adds, "Though I have not met 

 with this leaf crumpler in Southern Illinois, it nevertheless occurs 

 throughout our own State, and is quite injurious in the south- 

 western counties." Concerning the food plants of the species he 

 writes: "I have bred this insect from apple, cherry, wild and cul- 

 tivated; plum, wild and cultivated; quince and crab-apple; and hav<e 

 noticed the cases on peach. Near St. Louis it has been, if any-^ 

 thing, more injurious to quince than to apple-trees. Yet it does 

 not seem to be able to live on the pear." 



This author remarks upon the ease by which the pest may be 

 subdued by hand picking, advising that the plucked cases "be 

 thrown into some small vessel and deposited in the center of a 

 meadow, or field, away from any fruit trees," where "the worms. 



