ITS 
October, 1890. 
£ 
ORCH RRD 
AN D 
GARDEN 
statement of it > ccurring on currants. 
Should these insects gather in sufficient 
numbers to do serious damage, there is no 
doubt that ordinary insecticides such as 
Paris green or London purple would effect- 
ually destroy them. 
The Red Spider. 
( Tetranychus tdaiiu *, Linn.) 
Perhaps there is no pest that does so 
much damage as the red mite, or, as it is 
improperly called, the “ red spider.” All 
florists have had it to deal with, especially 
those who grow roses. It is not only an 
enemy to the rose but is equally destructive 
when it attacks any tender plant. It has 
been found upon the currant and gooseberry, 
where it did considerable damage to the 
foliage. It has also done harm to quince 
and plum trees. 
The red mite. Tetrcviychus tetanus, (Fig. 1) 
has been found on a great variety of plants, 
and from its shape and habits it was sup- 
posed to be the same insect in every 
instance. This fact has been proved, as 
the reaving of these specimens has brought 
forth the same 
species. The 
mites vary 
much in color, 
from a green- 
ish to a brick 
red. This great 
difference in 
color may de- 
pend upon the 
character of 
the material 
in the aliment- 
ary canal or 
upon the age 
of the insect, 
the older ones 
Fig. 1. 
being of a brick-red color. 
The “red spider” is very small, being only 
about oue twenty-fourth of an inch long. 
The body is of an oval form. The legs are 
eight in number, in the mature mite, two 
pairs extending forward and two backward, 
the first pair being the longest (see Figure 
1). The eyes, which are two in number, 
are very small, and can be seen only by 
means of a highly magnifying power. On 
the posterior portion of the body, and on the 
ventral side, is the spinning organ. From 
this habit of spinning a web many people 
are led to believe this insect a spider, while 
in reality it belongs to the spinning mites. 
The mandibles or jaws are short, and are 
fitted for cutting. Just between the mandi- 
bles is a barbed sucking apparatus. With 
the jaws the mite tears away a portion of 
the leaf, and then inserting its sucking tube 
into the ruptured leaf, takes up the juices 
of the plant, and thus destroys the ceils. 
This gives to the leaves “a yellowish or 
greyish appearance above, with some 
patches of a lighter shade forming a kind of 
marbl ng.” The edges of the leaves are rolled 
back on the under side, and the leaf 
beneath i-> whitish and shiny. The under 
side of leaves having the above-mentioned 
appearance will be found literally covered 
with eggs and mites, in all stages of devel- 
opment and growth. 
In the construction of the web the feet 
aid greatly, and by means of the hairs at 
the ends of the cla%vs the web is drawn out 
and attached. While spinning, the feet are 
very active, and the mite moves about 
freely, but if placed upon a smooth surface 
the movements are more sluggish, and are 
produced with greater labor. The eggs of 
the “red spider” are spherical, and nearly 
colorless. Within less than two weeks the 
eggs hatch, and the young mites appear. 
They differ from the imago or mature mite 
in size, and by having three instead of four 
pairs of legs (. Figure 
2). The young mites 
are of a clear trans- 
parent color, and 
after shedding their 
skin for the last time 
have eight legs. 
In order for the 
red mite to thrive 
well, the atmosphere 
must necessarily be 
hot and drv. From 
» r iu. 
this fact one can readily destroy them by 
means of a thorough spraying with pure 
water. During a very dry year at the 
Michigan Agricultural College, these mites 
were exceedingly thick on the evergreens, 
which they tlrreatened to injure seriously. 
Spraying profusely with pure water seemed 
to be as effective to destroy them as did such 
insecticides as whale oil soap, kerosene 
emulsion, etc. Care should be taken, how- 
ever, to make the application thorough, 
especially on the under side of the leaves, 
as it is here the mites congregate. Sulphur 
has been used extensively as a remedy for 
the “red spider,” The sulphur should lie 
mixed with quicklime and water; about one 
pound of sulphur and two of lime to four 
gallons of water. This will make a solution 
strong enough to destroy the pest in all its 
forms. If the l'eating pipes are painted 
with a mixture of sulphur and lime, the 
pest may be destroyed. This, however, can 
only be practiced upon plants that are 
reared under glass. 
October. 
During this month the most of our fall 
apples should be picked and shipped. The 
winter varieties may remain on the trees 
until about the time of a hard killing frost: 
they will, however, keep longer and better 
if not too ripe. In keeping apples on the 
trees too long they are sometimes caught by 
a hard freeze that injures them. This hard 
freeze has occur rid here several times in 
October, so we should be on the look out 
for it. 
A good time to set out young trees is just 
after the first killing frost. If the leaves 
are not removed by frost, they should be 
stripped off before taking up the trees. We 
once saw a person take up about 20,000 trees 
with a tree digger, without first stripping 
off the leaves, and he lost the whole lot. 
In selecting varieties it is always best to 
consult the list recommended by the County 
or State Horticultural Societies. Often 
local Societies have not the experience to 
give the best lists. From extensive obser- 
vation and experience we can name a list 
of varieties for profit for the following 
States : Kansas, Southern Nebraska and 
Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, 
Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaw are. 
Maryland, and Virginia. The best early 
apples for these are Early Ripe and Early 
Harvest ; the first-named much the best. 
The next in season are Jefferis and Summer 
Extra. The next, following in close suc- 
cession. are Maiden’s Blush, Warfield, 
Orange Pippin, Hemminger, Large Late 
Queen. Later fall apples are Fall Pippin, 
Hoover, Lady Washington of Ohio, Jona- 
than, Grimes' Golden. The best winter 
varieties are Ben Davis, Gano, Winesap, 
York Imperial, and Missouri Pippin. Many 
of these would succeed further north if top - 
grafted on hardy stocks, f have named 
apples only for profit ; we have many other 
kinds of better quality that would succeed 
in the same sections. — J. Stayman, Kansas. 
Notes from Memphremagog. 
THE TRANSPARENT FAMILY. 
These Russian apples are certain to be 
extensively grown in America, and it seems 
to me important that a right choice should 
be made among them. The familv includes 
the apples imported as Yellow Transparent, 
Charlottenthaler, Grand Sultan, White 
Transparent, and Sweet Pear. They are 
not easily distinguished, either in tree or 
fruit, — in fact I do not think that any one 
can correctly separate them when mixed. 
There are those who think they differ in 
size and in flavor, and the Charlottenthaler 
is ranked as the largest, grading down 
through Sweet Pear, Grand Sultan. Yellow 
Transparent, to White Transparent. I have 
been growing them now for twenty years, 
have set them out in parallel rows, treated 
them alike, and watched them carefully. 
The White Transparent shows itself decid- 
edly a smaller and better apple than the 
rest — which with the same treatment, and 
bearing the same crop, will not vary 
between varieties more than between trees 
of the same variety. I have had, this 
season, a good many specimens of Yellow' 
Transparent that -were four inches in diam- 
eter, and weighed close to eight ounces, 
and have never seen a larger Charlotten- 
thaler. There seems little or no difference 
in productiveness, and I see no difference 
whatever between Charlottenthaler, Grand 
Sultan, and Sweet Pear. The only differ- 
erence between these three and Yellow 
Transparent is, that while all are more or 
less liable to that blight of the apple w hich 
so closely resembles pear blight, all but the 
