AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
taimjrnxte % larnur, t\t flanier, anil % €arktttt. 
AGRICULTURE IS THE MOST HEALTHFUL, THE MOST USEFUL, AND THE MOST NOBLE EMPLOYMENT OF AMW.-Washinotom. 
CONDUCTING EDITOR, PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY 
ORANGE JUDD, A. Me ALLEN & CO., 189 Water-st., New-York 
VOL. XIV.—NO. 24.] NEW-YORK, THURSDAY, AUGUST 23, 1855. [NEW SERIES.—NO. 102 . 
_ 
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separate sheets. 
THE DESTROYERS OF OUR GRAIN. 
In looking over our Wneat. reports to as¬ 
certain, if possible, the relative amount of 
damage the crop has received from each 
class of the prevailing destructive insects, 
we have been surprised at the confusion of 
terms or names used in the descriptions. In¬ 
deed, there seems to be no intelligent com¬ 
prehension of the difference between these 
various insects. Thus, from the same town 
where all the injurious results appear to be 
traceable to the same cause, we have one 
writer saying. “ We shall lose half our crop 
by the weevil ;” another says, “ The fly is 
doing us immense harm ; and another still— 
more cautious in making a distinction— 
writes, “ Much injury was feared from the 
insect , but it will be less than was antici¬ 
pated.” These three reports from a single 
town are a fair sample of those from the 
country at large. 
It would materially assist investigations 
upon these insects, and also convey a more 
definite idea of the character and amount of 
injury to be estimated, if editors and all-oth¬ 
ers reporting upon this matter, would state 
exactly what kind of “insect” is at work in 
their several localities. To facilitate such a 
course we will give a brief description of 
some of the more generally destructive “ in¬ 
sects ” that prey especially upon the wheat 
crop. Among these are the Grain Weevil , 
the Hessian fly , the Clear-winged Fly , or 
Wheat Midge , several varieties of Grain Moth, 
the Chintz or Chinch Bug, &c. 
The Grain Weevil (Calandra Granaria, or 
Curculio Granarius of Linnaeus.)—There is 
a wrong impression as to the character of 
this insect, and especially in reference to the 
time of its chief depredations. Quite early 
in the Spring, while wheat was not yet in 
blossom, reports came from some interior 
counties of Michigan that the weevil wa 
thus early committing extensive depredations. 
From many other localities we heard similar 
reports, but, a little later in the season. 
These were founded in misconception, for 
the truth is the weevil proper preys only 
upon the grain, commencing its ravages 
about the time of its ripening, and continu¬ 
ing them long after it is gathered into the 
granary ; hence the name of grain or grana¬ 
ry weevil. 
The grain weevil in its perfect state is a 
dark or pitchy red, winged beetle or bug, 
about a line and a half, or one-eighth of an 
inch long. It has a slender proboscis or 
snout, curving a little downwards. The tho¬ 
rax, or chest, constitutes about one-half of 
its body, and is nearly as large as the abdo¬ 
men, or belly, lying back of the middle ring. 
The thorax is punctured with a large num¬ 
ber of holes, giving it a rough appearance. 
Over the abdomen are delicate wings, which 
are shielded by wing-covers, having lines or 
furrows upon their upper surface running 
parallel with their length. The wings do 
not entirely cover the tip of the abdomen. 
The female punctures the ripening or ripened 
grain with her beak or rostrum and deposits 
one and sometimes two eggs. From the 
egg is hatched a grub or worm, which eats 
its way into the grain, closing up the aper¬ 
ture behind it with excrements so that it lies 
perfectly shielded from external injury. 
No mechanical action short of crushing the 
kernel can disturb the destroyer. They 
are effectually destroyed by kiln-drying the 
grain. This worm or grub grows to about 
one twelfth of an inch in length ; its body is 
white and soft, with nine rings around it. 
The head is small, round, yellow colored, 
and provided with cutting instruments. Ar¬ 
riving at maturity, which is not till after the 
flour portion of the wheat kernel has been 
principally devoured, this worm or larvae as¬ 
sumes a nymph or chrysalis state, (like that 
between the worm and the butterfly,) and 
within two weeks after, the perfect weevil is 
formed, which eats its way out through the 
shell, and goes forth to deposit its eggs in 
turn upon other sound kernels. They are 
very productive, a single pair often multiply¬ 
ing to five or six thousand in a single year. 
Both the perfect insect and the grub feed 
upon the grain. 
The Hessian Fly, (Cecidomya destructor,) 
is so named because introduced, or supposed 
to have been, by the Hessian soldiers em¬ 
ployed by the British during the Revolutiona¬ 
ry war. It was first discovered in the vi¬ 
cinity of New-York, from which point it ex¬ 
tended in all directions, its usual rate of ad¬ 
vance being from 15 to 25 miles a year. The 
full grown Hessian Fly is nearly the size of 
a small musquito, which itresembles in gen¬ 
eral form. It has, however, no bill forsuck- 
ing blood, and has preportionately a larger 
thorax or chest, and a smaller abdomen or 
belly than the musquito. There are two 
BznaaaaKSsia 
broods hatched annually, from eggs depos¬ 
ited in September and May. The full-grown 
fly deposits its eggs, which are very small 
reddish grains, in the upper channels of the 
wheat leaf, soon after the stalk begins to 
branch. As this takes place in September 
or early in October, late sown wheat usually 
escapes the Autumn egg. These eggs hatch 
out in abont, 15days, producing a small worm 
which works its way down between the 
leaf-sheath and stalk to a point below the 
surface of the ground, where, in the form of 
a white or spotted maggot, it lies concealed, 
and sucks out thejuice of the plant. In a 
few weeks it arrives at full growth, and 
changes to a pupa or chrysalis state, of a 
cone-like or flaxseed shape. In this state it 
lies until the following Spring, when the 
perfect fly comes forth and deposits a second 
brood of eggs, which attack the wheat stalks 
obove the ground, but near the lower joints. 
Thejuice extracted weakens the stalk and it 
crinkles down. Its effects are not very visi¬ 
ble until the stalk has attained nearly its 
full growth, when by going through a field 
the extent of its depredations is generally 
known by the number of lodged or fallen 
stalks. The flaxseed grub when present 
may be found much earlier by carefully 
stripping down the leaf-sheath from the still 
green and upright stalk. Since the point of 
attack is usually below the gathered portion 
of the straw, the grub is left in the field, 
where it undergoes its transformation to 
come out the perfect, fly again in Autumn. It 
is on this account that burning the stubble 
soon after harvest has proved a partial rem¬ 
edy against future attacks. There is a par¬ 
asitic insect enemy, which multiplies faster 
than the Hessian fly, and to which we are 
indebted for the disappearance of this pest 
after its prevalence during a few years in any 
locality. 
The Clear-winged Wheat Fly, (Ceci¬ 
domya Tritici •)—This fly, by many called the 
Midge or Wheat Gnat, resembles the Hes- 
sian fly in general form and size, but differs 
from it in having an orange-colored instead 
of black body, clear or transparent wings in¬ 
stead of dark ; its antennee or horns are 
longer and more fringed, its legs are longer 
and more slender, and its abdomen is cov¬ 
ered with short hairs and blunt at the ex¬ 
tremity, instead of smooth and pointed like 
that of the Hessian fly. It undergoes its 
changes in the soil and attacks the blossoms 
and immature grain instead of the straw 
These distinctions should be studied, for 
upon a clear understanding of them depends 
the treatment to be pursued. 
The clear-winged wheat-flies conceal them¬ 
selves among the grass and leaves during 
clear midday, but morning, evening, and on 
cloudy days, they appear in swarms over a 
wheat field, and deposit their eggs in the 
heads. In the course of a week or so these 
eggs hatch out orange-colored maggots which 
feed upon the pollen of the flower, and final' 
ly attach themselves to the soft grain. They 
can not injure the kernel after it has acquired 
some degree of hardness. They do not 
