34 
February, 1890. 
n 
ORCHARD 
AND 
GARDEN 
suits were as follows. One pound to one 
hundred gallons of water killed forty-eight 
per cent of the beetles: one pound to two 
hundred gallons killed thirty-three per cent; 
one pound to three hundred gallons killed 
twenty-seven per cent : and one pound to 
five hundred gallons killed eighteen per 
cent. From these results we may infer 
that, providing we can be equally success- 
fully on a large scale, Paris green in as weak 
a mixture as one pound to three hundred 
gallons of water, may be advantageously 
used to poison the curculio, and we believe 
this will not injure tht foliage of any tree, 
not even that of the peach. In spraying 
pear, plum, apple and cherry trees, a much 
stronger and hence a much more effective 
m'xture may be used ; yet we believe that 
one pound of Paris green to two hundred 
gallons of water will be found to be strong 
enough for all practical purposes. 
When shall we spray ? Prof. Osborn, of 
Iowa, after conducting some experiments 
in poisoning the curculio, says, •‘They show 
if anything, that the insects are able to 
continue their work for some days after 
having fed upon poisoned fruit.” Other 
experimenters have reached the same con- 
clusion. We must therefore spray as early 
as possible, for if the insects are able to live 
several days after being poisoned, they may 
do much damage even after the trees are 
sprayed. Of course we must not spray be- 
fore the blossoms fall, unless we spray before 
they appear, or we will kill our allies in 
fruit-growing, the bees ; but the sooner we 
spray after the blossoms fall the better. It 
is evident that if we can kill a large propor- 
tion of the beetles before the fruit is large 
enough for them to attack, the battle will 
be practically won, so far as the early beet- 
les are concerned. But “Eternal vigilance 
is the price of safety,” and as the curculio 
continues to come forth all through the 
summer, three or four applications will 
probably be necessary to fully protect the 
fruit. 
Agrilui Kuficollis, Fabr. 
We have lately received from Mr. J. 
Keever, of Galveston, Ind., some dewberry 
canes of the Lucretia variety, with the re- 
port that some insect has destroyed nearly 
all of his vines, and that his Wilson Junior 
blackberries have gone the same way. 
Examination showed the pithy swellings 
on the specimens sent, to be the work of the 
Red-necked Agrilus, Agrilus ruficollis. This 
little beetle is about one-third of an inch 
long, with a small bronzed-colored head, a 
bright copper-colored neck, and brownish 
wing covers. The under side of the insect 
is shining black. The eggs are deposited 
on the young canes probably in July, and 
the young larvae, when hatched, get into 
the canes and by their irritation produce 
the swelling known as the Raspberry Gouty- 
gall. These swellings are characterized by 
having the surface roughened by numerous 
brownish slits and ridges. The latter, when 
cut into, are found to contain the channels 
of a small borer, and usually the larva can 
be found either in the channel or in the soft 
substance adjoining. The body is very slim, 
of a pale yellowish color, and has the an- 
terior segments enlarged and flattened. 
The head is small and brown, the jaws 
black, and the tail is armed with two slender 
dark brown horns, each having three blunt 
teeth on the inner side. When young the 
larva? chiefly inhabit the sapwood and fre- 
quently completely girdle and destroy the 
cane. When full grown, usually in April 
or May, the larva is a little over one-half 
an inch long. It then penetrates into the 
pith to be more secure from its enemies and 
there changes to a chrysalis. The perfect 
beetle emerges early in the summer. 
The only remedy of which we know is to 
cut out and burn the infested canes, early 
in the spring before the beetle escapes. It 
is not necessary to cut out all the canes as 
Mr. Keever seems inclined to do, unless the 
vines are very badly infested. We would 
examine the canes very closely and cut out 
and burn all showing the swelling. 
VINEYARD 
Vineyard Work for February. 
Vines may be pruned this month when- 
ever the weather is mild and vines not 
frozen. Cuttings can also be made of hardy 
varieties, and stored away for spring plant- 
ing. Heel cuttings are the best for vineyard 
planting; short cuttings about 7 inches long 
for propagation to increase a variety. 
Cuttings for indoor propagation should 
now be made about two or three inches long 
with a single bud; cut ratherclose to the bud 
at the top and leave about two or three 
inches below it. Put these cuttings in prop- 
agating bed from the 14th of February until 
the 1st of March, depending on the location. 
The bed should be made of rather coarse, 
clean sand packed tightly and the cuttings 
put in perpendicularly down to the upper 
bud if there are more than one, The bottom 
heat should be gradually raised up to 75 
degrees and kept at from 70 to 80 degrees 
day and night until the cuttings root. The 
top heat shonld always be kept from 10 to 
15 degrees lower by ventilation and shad- 
ing. The cuttings should be kept moist 
all the time by frequent sprinkling. 
In pruning vines we should have some 
object in view and not do it at random. 
The operation of pruning, although very 
simple, is often made to appear a mystery, 
or something very difficult to perform, ex- 
cept by an expert. The whole art may be 
acquired in a few hours in the company of 
an experienced vineyardist. The first gen- 
eral principle to understand is that grapes 
are only produced on new wood of last 
year’s growth. The second is to fully com- 
prehend how much bearing wood should be 
left to a vine. The third is to know how 
to prune and distribute the bearing wood 
so that it will be adapted to a system of 
training. The first principle can be acquir- 
ed by a few minutes observation. The 
second depends upon the variety, age, 
strength and vigor of the vine and the 
manner of training and culture. The third 
may be reduced to but two systems that 
are practical, namely the renewal and spur, 
the former being adapted to vineyards, the 
atter to arbors, 
In some instances both systems may be 
piactised to some extent advantageously. 
For instance, in the renewal system, where 
vines have been neglected or injured by 
pinching or by accident and have not made 
wood growth long enough to be renewed, 
they can be spur-pruned to the amount of 
buds desired. In the vineyard or renewal 
system we prune all the old wood away 
and only leave two or more canes of the 
best new wood from two to four feet long 
according to the variety or strength of the 
vine. For a full bearing Concord vine and 
all of that class, eight feet of bearing wood 
is sufficient. But for Norton, Cynthiana 
and Herman about ten feet of bearing wood 
is not too much, and for such weak growing 
varieties as Deleware, ten feet is enough. It 
is better to prune rather short than too long, 
as the fruit will be finer and the vines more 
enduring. Heavy loading soon leads to 
decay and destruction. In pruning always 
select the medium sized canes with well de- 
veloped buds as they produce the best and 
finest fruit. Remember there is no gain by 
being in haste, let a vine come to full age 
before you load it heavily. In the arbor or 
spur system fill the trellis with canes or 
arms and then prune them only to spurs 
of about two buds each and continue that 
method until it is necessary to renew the 
arms. 
In either system when vines grow too 
strong increase the bearing wood and when 
they lack vigor prune shorter. Everything 
should be got ready now for spring work. 
Lay out now what is proposed to be done and 
work to that. Determine what kind of 
vines are wanted and order them in season. 
Try some of the new varieties on a small 
scale, such as Jewel for early, and Eaton 
for late. — J. Stayman, M. D. 
(•rafting (lie Grape. 
In this latitude and further south we can 
often now do grape grafting, which some 
times succeeds as well as if performed later 
in the season ;but if done now it will be neces- 
sary to cover up the work so as to keep out 
frost, or the crust on the top of the ground 
being fast around the top of the graft, will 
lift it out when thawing. If it is so covered 
that this will be prevented there is no doubt 
that the graft and stock will be callous- 
ing and ready to begin growth as soon as the 
groundis warm enough in the spring. Ful- 
ler, in his treatise on the vine, mentions 
grafting in the fall and putting a flowerpot, 
inverted, on each graft, then covering over 
sufficiently to keep out frost. Any sort 
of material like straw, hay, or weeds will 
answer this purpose. I tried this plan once 
with quite a number of vines, but the result 
