18 G 1 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
&f>3 
The “Army Worm.”— {Leucania unipunda.) 
For a mouth past we have been receiving 
recounts of the ravages of this pest, with 
frequent samples of the worms themselves, from 
various localities, too numerous to specify here. 
Few of those forwarded by mail from a dis¬ 
tance have arrived in a live, or even in a perfect 
state. All the descriptions point to the same in¬ 
sect, though some are described as dark brown, 
or black, with yellow stripes on the sides, and 
others are called dark green, light green, etc. 
This variation in color has probably resulted 
from the light in which they were observed, and 
the kind and amount of food they had just con¬ 
sumed. Dr. Fitch, our State Entomologist, says 
this is the larva or caterpillar, of the Leucania 
unipunda —a moth measuring about lj inches 
across the spread wings. The color of the fore 
wings is a tarnished yellowish drab, with a small 
white dot near the center, and a dusty oblique 
streak at their tips. The hind wings are a 
smoky brown, with a purplish gloss, and nearly 
transparent. The abdomen, or hind body, is 
smoky gray above, and ash gray beneath. 
The moths deposit their eggs upon the grass 
near the ground, which soon hatch out little 
worms that feed upon green herbage, and rapid¬ 
ly develop into worms li to 1| inches long. 
The general descriptions sent to us cor¬ 
respond with the worms we obtained near 
Greenport, on Long Island, and others brought 
to the Agriculturist office from localities so near at 
hand that they have been transported alive 
and in vigor. The general color of the worm 
is dark brown, or they appear nearly black 
when crawling on the ground. The legs are 
sixteen in number, with yellowish stripes along 
the body just above the legs, and three other 
stripes of the same color along the back. The 
stripes are not very plain at the middle, but quite 
distinct nearer the ends of the body. The head 
is marbled with dark lacework on a yellowish 
ground; and from the top of the head two dark 
lines run down in front, spreading apart in 
a curve near the mouth. The body appears nak¬ 
ed, but a close examination shows a few short 
hairs, which are most numerous near the head. 
The worms move with considerable rapidity. 
Where they were moving in a path at ordinary 
speed, we marked the sand before them, and 
tested their speed by the watch and rule; it av¬ 
eraged full feet per minute, or over 200 feet 
per hour. When not feeding, they seem to be 
“always in a hurry to get somewhere.” 
They are called the “ army worm,” becaixse 
they appear to move together in vast numbers; 
but from what we have observed of their hab¬ 
its, we judge their being together thus, is a mat¬ 
ter of chance, arising from circumstances favor¬ 
ing their production and development in a par¬ 
ticular locality. They feed upon the leaves and 
heads of grain, corn, grass—in short upon al¬ 
most every green thing, though they seem to 
have a choice for the grain and corn fields, and 
unless in great numbers, do not attack po¬ 
tato vinos, pumpkins, and some other vegetables. 
They probably enter the ground at maturity, 
and change to the chrysalis state, and, similarly 
to the butterfly, come forth a moth another sea¬ 
son, to reproduce another army of worms from 
eggs. From their sudden appearance in so great 
numbers, it is possible that they may in part lie 
dormant for years, and come forth at long inter¬ 
vals when circumstances of weather, etc., favor 
their development. Of these matters, however, 
we car uot speak with any degree of confidence. 
Turkies and hogs feed upon the worms and 
destroy great numbers of them, and it is proba¬ 
ble that working the ground in Autumn or ear¬ 
ly Winter, may disturb the chrysalides and pro¬ 
mote their destruction by frost. Fires lighted at 
night, at the time the moths appear, would 
probably attract and destroy large numbers of 
them. The best remedy yet discovered, though 
very imperfect, is partially effective. This is to 
plow a deep smooth furrow in their pathway, 
turning the slice toward them, and leaving a 
smooth steep landside, up which they can not 
well climb. A billet of -wood drawn through 
the furrow occasionally, will kill them. Some 
have spread straw in the ditch and on the 
turned furrows, and when this was covered with 
the worms, set it on fire. Care must be taken 
to leave no straw's against the land side for them 
to climb out upon. Others have made large, 
deep holes at intervals along the furrows, 
and the worms falling into them, are un¬ 
able to crawl out. We hope other methods 
of destruction, or prevention, may be speedily 
discovered, for if, in the many localities where 
they have appeared this year for the first time, 
they multiply as rapidly another season, we may 
well be solicitous for our future crops. We 
shall be glad to receive any useful information 
on the subject for the columns of the Agriculturist. 
--—aaO * ---- 
Another Grain Destroyer. 
The drain Aphis {Aphis Avence)—Letter from 
Dr. Asa Fitch. 
Just as we w r ere going to press with the August 
No., several communications were received con¬ 
cerning the depredations of an insect which had 
not before been known to be sufficiently numer¬ 
ous on grain to cause marked injury. Mr. 
Ebenezer Selleck, Niagara Co., N. Y., forward¬ 
ed specimens of wheat ears on which the insects 
were very numerous, and others were brought 
in from Long Island. They were at once re¬ 
cognized as Aphides, or plant lice, a general de¬ 
scription of which genus appeared in the Amer¬ 
ican Agriculturist , Vol. XIX, page 80, (March 
I860). In order to obtain more specific informa¬ 
tion concerning them, we forwaixled specimens 
to Dr. Asa Fitch, who responded as follows: 
“ The insect you send me is the grain Aphis, 
Aphis Avence of entomologists. This insect is 
vastly more numerous here, this year, than I 
have ever noticed it before, and is exciting 
considerable alarm among the farmers in this vi¬ 
cinity. It is a small plant louse; some are grass 
green, others deep orange or reddish, (I have 
seen both colors born from the same parent,) 
which stations itself mostly at the very base of 
the chaff in which the kernels are inclosed, and 
sucks the juices which should go to perfect the 
kernel. Thus the grain will be shrunken and 
light of weight where these insects are numer¬ 
ous. A large portion of the ears, in every wheat 
field I have examined, had a little cluster of these 
lice crowded together around the base of almost 
every kernel. As the wheat, rye, and barley, be¬ 
come ripe and juiceless, the insects disappear 
from them and gather upon the oats, this crop 
being so mixch later in ripening. Hence oats 
more than any other grain crop, are liable to be 
thronged by them. 
I do not know as there is any feasible remedy 
for this aphis. I would recommend a trial of 
dry chloride of lime, sowing or dusting freely 
over a small space of the field, perhaps repeat¬ 
ing it a day or two after, and in a day or two 
more it can be seen whether this smothers and 
destroys these insects sufficiently to render it 
worth while to resort to a more extensive use of 
it. A neighbor tells me he is unable to find any 
of this article in the stores hereabouts, that is 
not deliquesced, and thus unfit for this use— 
else I should have tried its effects myself.” 
P. S. Since preparing the above, we have made 
several excursions in various directions from 
New-York, and have found the insects very 
abundant upon oats. In Southern Connecticut, 
and especially on the eastern portions of Long 
Island, we have seen them in great numbers. In 
a field near the center of the Island, we could 
not find a single head of oats on which there 
was not a complete circle of the aphides around 
the neck of every kernel. In many places they 
appeared in such numbers as to change the color 
of the fields of grain. They have also been 
forwarded to us from many counties in Penn¬ 
sylvania. Some farmers seemed to think they 
will do no harm, while others say they 
suck the entire life out of the grain, which 
we found to be the case where the oats were 
not nearly mature before the development ol 
the insect. We are now daily receiving in¬ 
formation which indicates that the appearance 
of the insect has been very general over the 
country. How to account for this, whether it 
is to depart, or return in still greater abundance 
another season, and what remedy, if any, can 
be resorted to, are questions we can not now 
answer. Several insects, particularly the well- 
known lady bug, feed upon these aphides, and 
it isworthy of remark that these friendly insects 
are very numerous the present season, so that 
we may hope the increase will be checked. 
Anything throwing further light on the subject, 
will be of special interest to the country at large. 
Teaching Hogs to Destroy Thistles. 
A writer in the Southern Homestead says: “ I 
will give a method of exterminating thistles 
which I have tested and found effectual, and 
which costs nothing. It consists in teaching 
hogs to eat the roots of the plant. Tramp on 
the buds of a goodly number of the largest plants 
in the Spring, and place on each bud a teaspoon¬ 
ful of salt; then turn your hogs on them. They 
will eat the roots of the salted plants first, and 
will thus acquire a fondness for the roots, and 
will continue to eat them daily as long as any 
can be found. If but one hog be educated in 
this way, he will teach the whole herd to eat 
them, and they will exterminate all on the farm.” 
■--—- 
Sowing Wheat and Rye with Buckwheat. 
A correspondent of the Prairie Farmer says: 
“ Last season I tried sowing my rye with Buck¬ 
wheat. Put in that way it did much better than 
that sown after the buckwheat was cut, and it 
produced heads nearly twice as large. The rye 
must be well harrowed, sowing the buckwheat 
afterward, and brushing it in. If the rye is only 
brushed, it is apt to be drawn out with the 
growth of the buckwheat. The rye will seldom 
be found to grow too much under the bixclc- 
wheat; if it should, it may be fed down in the 
Fall. The readers of the Agriculturist will re¬ 
member the recommendation of Dr. C. Harlan, in 
Feb. No., page 35,to sow buckwheat with Winter 
grain in the Fall. It is cut down by frost beforo 
maturing, and serves as a protection to the grain 
through the Winter. Let the experiment be re^ 
peated on a small scale by others, this Fall, 
and the results noted next year, and reported, 
