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Report  on  Wireworm. 
there  is  no  doubt  wireworms  are  encouraged  to  a certain  extent  by  its  exten- 
sive employment  in  bop-land,  but  it  is  certain  that  they  will  not  prey  upon 
the  hop-plants  so  long  as  rape  cake  is  obtainable.  I have  tried  to  oust  wire- 
worms  from  bop-plants  by  putting  nitrate  of  soda,  and  lime,  and  soot  close 
round  the  bills,  but  the  results  were  not  satisfactory.  To  prevent  wireworm 
attack  the  bop-land  should  be  kept  very  clean,  and  the  weeds  and  grass 
growing  on  the  outsides  and  hedgerows  carefully  kept  down. 
“Charles  Whitehead,  Banning  House,  Maidstone.” 
Handpicking. 
“Where  wireworms  are  unusually  numerous  upon  turnips,  there  cannot 
be  a more  effectual  or  cheaper  method  of  dealing  with  them  than  that  of 
picking  them  by  hand.  A field  of  70  acres,  between  Sleaford  and  Lincoln, 
which  was  sown  with  common  turnips,  and  had  a full  plant  nearly  ready 
for  the  hoe,  was  found  to  be  infested  with  wireworms  of  different  ages.  A 
number  of  girls  were  set  to  work,  and  taking  each  a drill-row,  and  guided 
by  the  different  colour,  or  withered  appearance  of  the  plant,  by  a quick  move- 
ment of  the  finger  dislodged  the  ‘ worms,’  and  picking  them  up  placed  them 
in  a small  bottle  carried  in  the  left-hand.  These  wireworms  were  greedily 
eaten  by  the  poultry. 
“ Ralph  Lowe,  Sleaford,  Lincolnshire .” 
“ I have  seen  the  wireworms  caught  in  large  numbers  by  placing  sliced  roots 
in  the  hop-hills,  women  doing  the  work  and  being  paid  by  measure.  A suc- 
cessful but  expensive  plan. 
“ Fred.  Beard,  Horton,  Canterbury.” 
“ I have  not  been  a sufferer  from  wireworm  ravage  this  year,  but  a neigh- 
bour has  found  them  cause  considerable  damage  among  young  hops,  so  much 
so  that  he  opened  each  hill,  and  inserted  pieces  of  potato  in  every  one.  The 
next  day  the  wireworms  had  chosen  the  potatoes,  and  ten  or  a dozen  were 
found  boring  into  the  pieces  at  each  hop-root.  At  least  two  kinds  were 
destroyed,  the  wireworms  or  larvae  of  the  click  beetle,  and  the  Julus  guttatus* 
Thisjnethod  proved  effective,  and  saved  his  young  plantations. 
“ D.  Thrvill,  Alton,  Hants” 
Rooks,  etc. 
Rooks,  serviceable  by  clearing  large  numbers  of  wireworms, 
but  also  frequently  injurious  by  pulling  up  the  plants  (especially 
turnips  after  being  singled)  in  search  of  their  food.  (For  further 
observations  regarding  rooks,  see  Tables  and  Abstract  of  Isle  of 
Man  Report.) 
Notes  as  to  usefulness  of  other  birds,  and  also  of  moles. 
“ In  the  month  of  May  I opened  the  crops  of  several  ‘ Crows,’  as  we  call 
them  in  Scotland  (rooks  in  England),  and  found  them  full  of  wireworms. 
* The  Julus  guttatus.  Fab.  (J.  pulchellus,  Leach),  is  one  of  the  snake  Millipedes 
sometimes  known  as  false  wireworms.  These  feed  on  vegetable  matter,  but  how 
l'ar  they  also  feed,  as  matter  of  regular  diet,  on  animal  food,  as  worms,  snails,  &c., 
is  not]  yet  ascertained.  Polydesmus  complanatus,  Linn.,  the  llattenod  Millipede, 
is  another  kind,  that  sometimes  does  much  damage  to  the  roots  of  wheat. 
