1880 ] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
273 
1.—THE CATERPILLARS. 
The Leaf-Folder of the Grape-Vine. 
Grape culture is in one respect no different from 
any other branch of horticulture—it is a continuous 
war upon insects. Those who give proper care to 
their vines, meet with a constant succession of in¬ 
sects from the time the young shoots push until 
the fruit is well advanced. One of the earliest in 
this procession is found at the very ends of the de¬ 
veloping shoots ; after a few leaves and embryo 
clusters, or bunches of 
buds have shown them¬ 
selves, something ap¬ 
pears to be the matter 
at the end of the shoot. 
While the lower leaves 
go on and grow, the up¬ 
permost cease to de¬ 
velop ; they appear to be 
stuck together, which 
an examination will 
show to be really the 
case; the leaves are held 
together by threads, and 
in the cavity thus form¬ 
ed will be found one 
or more small caterpil¬ 
lars, as shown in -figure 
1. These caterpillars, 
when full grown, are 
half an inch long, of a 
pale green, and on each 
of the rings are cream-colored warts, each of 
which bears a tuft of white hairs; when very 
young these hairs are not present. In about three 
weeks, during which time it has eaten leaves, and 
it may be the buds, it goes into the pupa state. It 
fastens its head portion by a few threads, and with 
its body standing at an angle of about 40°, and 
curving forward, it turns into a chrysalis, which, 
singularly enough, is green when on the leaves and 
brown when on the bark of the old wood- a meas¬ 
ure of protection, we may suppose, against the at¬ 
tacks of birds. After remaining in this apparently 
uncomfortable position for about a week, its 
changes are complete, and the perfect insect comes 
forth a small moth, shown in figure 2, of the 
natural size, which, as well as figure 1, is from 
Prof. Riley’s Third Report on the Insects of Mis¬ 
souri. The moth is of a tawny yellow color, with 
the front wings marked with white and dark-brown, 
while the hind wings appear like burnished copper. 
This belongs to that group of moths known as 
Flumes, for the reason that their wings are split 
into feather-like lpbes. This is known as the Grape- 
Vine Plume, its scientific name being Plerophorus 
periscelidactylus. The first or generic name means 
iving-bearer, and the other, or specific name, is a very 
long word for expressing the fact that the insect 
has anklets, its legs being surrounded by tufts of 
brown scales. Whether there is more than one 
brood in a year, and in what state the insect passes 
the winter until the young shoots of the vine ap¬ 
pear, are points in its history not well made out. 
The harm the insect does is ordinarily but little. 
Usually each shoot of our native vines bears three 
bunches of grapes, and these appear opposite the 
three lower leaves. Ordinarily these leaves and 
the bunches of buds that are 
to produce the grapes are de¬ 
veloped, at some distance be¬ 
low the bud where the cater¬ 
pillars are at work. We are 
aware that there are exceptions 
to the number of bunches pro¬ 
duced upon a branch, but or¬ 
dinarily all the buds for the crop for the season 
are out of the bud and sufficiently below the point 
at which the insect has tied the leaves together to 
escape, and when a bud is found to contain the 
caterpillars, a pinch with the thumb and finger will 
remove it and prevent the insects from doing further 
mischief. But, many will ask, will not the removal 
of the bud, and thus preventing the further growth 
of the 6hoot in length, injure the vine ? Not at all. 
It is exactly what some vine-dressers would do 
were there no caterpillars in the bud. Grape growers 
differ as to how far beyond the fruit the shoot 
2.—THE MOTH. 
should be stopped, but all agree in stopping it 
somewhere. The successful vineyardists of Mis¬ 
souri, including Mr. Husmnnn, stop the shoot just 
above the last bunch, while others leave two and 
three leaves above. This pinching is done very 
early, so soon as the clusters of buds can be fairly 
seen, and results iu finer, larger, and better ripened 
fruit than can be had by leaving the shoot to grow 
in length. If the pinching is attended to in time 
the caterpillar is despatched before it can eat many 
leaves beyond those in which it incloses itself. If 
the presence of the caterpillars leads to promptness 
in pinching, it may be a benefit ratherthan an injury. 
Planting Fruit Trees for Ornament. 
BY 8AML. B. PARSONS, 
The question is often propounded why a farm in¬ 
tended exclusively for fruit should not be planted 
for landscape effect; why a lawn could not be 
for their arch, which the Gothic arch of the ruder 
ages can not equal. Let us take, as an example, a 
plot 500 feet on each side, which will have an area 
of something less than six acres. From the center 
of each side, run a line through the plot. Take 
the intersection of these lines for the center of the 
circle. In this center plant a strong, smooth and 
round stake. Over this drop the loop of a rope 
which will extend 231 feet. To the other end of 
this rope fasten a strong pointed stick. With the 
rope extended, mark the places for the trees on the 
segment, A, and plant them before touching the 
interior lines. Then shorten the rope 30 feet and 
mark the places for the trees on the circle B , and 
plant them. Then shorten the rope 30 feet more, 
mark and plant on circle O as before. Then 
shorten the rope 24 feet more, mark and plant on 
circle D as before. Then shorten the rope 20 feet 
more, mark, and plant on circle E as before. Thus 
the circles are all planted, and from the dwelling in. 
HIGHWAY 
DIAGRAM SHOWING TIIE CIRCULAR METHOD OF PLANTING. 
planted for ornament and only fruit trees be used. 
The only answer is that it is eminently proper and 
easily practicable so to plant both farm and lawn, 
that these results can be obtained, and the eye, the 
palate, and the pocket, all be gratified. The farmer 
will at once say, and truly, that to this there are 
two objections. The first is that he has no skill in 
the artistic laying out of grounds and grouping of 
trees, and that he can not afford to employ a land¬ 
scape gardener for that purpose. The second objec¬ 
tion is that fruit trees will not flourish when they 
are young without culture, that spade work is too 
expensive, and that he can not plow among trees 
irregularly grouped.—To avoid, therefore, straight 
lines, and yet to retain regularity sufficient to allow 
plowing, may not be productive of the best land¬ 
scape effect, but may produce an approximation to 
it, and will certainly give much pleasure. The ac¬ 
companying diagram will show the simple method 
by which any farmer can plant the space around 
his intended dwelling with fruit trees, and yet so 
preserve their irregularity that from his dwelling 
there will appear no straight lines. 
A circle or its segment is the most pleasing line 
known. It is that of the sky above us, and could 
our eyes grasp it would be that of the earth below. 
The old Romans knew this wlfcn they adopted it 
the center one can scarcely see three trees in line. 
The irregularity is there, and if vistas are wanted 
through the lines the trees can be left out which 
close it. Between these circles, with the planted 
| trees to guide his eyes, a horse can draw a plow 
with as much ease as on a straight line. Circles A, 
B, and C can be planted with apple trees. D can 
be planted with cherries and the taller growing 
pears. A 1 can be planted with plums, peaches, and 
the lower growing pears. The straight outlines of 
3 sides of the plot can be planted with apples ; the 
front side with that stately and beautiful fruit tree, 
the American Chestnut. Now, to an eye looking 
from the house, the interior circle will have a bare, 
uniform, and naked appearance. Therefore this 
uniformity should be broken, as in the drawing, by 
outlying spur^and peninsulas and islands, by plan¬ 
tations of low growing trees and shrubs. Next the 
circle could be placed a few dwarf pears or apples, 
or mulberries or quinces. Then could come black¬ 
berries and raspberries, and filberts and currants, 
and gooseberries and barberries. Then could come 
flat-beds of purple hazel and purple barberry, kept 
down by pruning. Then graded down to the level 
of the lawn could be the strawberries. In one or 
two of the round beds standing alone could be 
placed some rhubarb, the broad leaves of which are 
