223 
“The Hessian-fly has not destroyed wheat to any great extent this 
year. However, all white wheat suffered from the attacks of the fly, 
but still not to the extent it did last year. Red wheat has never 
been attacked (vide my article in Rural New Yorker , June 15, 1878). 
The principal bearded red wheat sown in this locality is called the 
Lancaster. An amber wheat called Fultz, a bald wheat, seems to 
be proof against the fly. Mold’s red wheat (bald) is also not at¬ 
tacked. But the Clawson (white), so. extensively sown here and 
elsewhere, was most severely attacked in 1877, very badly in 1 78, 
and this year it was thought to be free from the fly, but when har¬ 
vest came it was noticably short, many heads unfilled, many stunted 
in their height. At this date of writing every piece of Clawson sown 
this fall is being ravaged (however, there are only a few pieces of 
Clawson for miles around here), the Lancaster, as heretofore, re¬ 
maining uninjured. 
“I notice after harvest long stubbles and straws of wheat m held 
and barn-yard, which have many little pin-holes from which the 
imago Cecidomyia escaped. Barley was damaged to an enormous 
extent last year, whole fields having nearly every straw so badly 
damaged that they would break off readily by passing through with 
the horse-rake, throwing it into winrows. This year barley was not 
hurt much. . 
“Now, wasn’t the great spread of the Hessian-fly, which occurred 
many years ago, brought about by that extensively sown wheat, the 
Soules , which was a very similar wheat to the Clawson, which brought 
the fly this time? Or rather, each kind of these wheats, by their 
tender foliage and loose culms, allowed the rapid propagation of 
the fly, being their favorite variety of wheat. We may also add the 
fact that these wheats were popular among the farmers everywhere; 
thus whole wheat districts were sown entirely to this wheat, bringing 
forth countless numbers of the Hessian-fly to every acre. In. the 
former spread of the fly, farmers entirely desisted from raising 
wheat, or resorted to red or Mediterranean wheat, and so the pests 
can be driven back now to their less prosperous plants by the sow¬ 
ing of Lancaster and similar wheats.” 
In conclusion, we may urge that whatever kind of wheat is used, 
much more depends on a rich soil, a vigorous growth, and careful 
cultivation, all of which tend to make the stalk stouter, the growth 
a few days earlier, than the choice of particular varieties. 
SPECIAL REMEDIES. 
Under this head belong the use of lime, dusted on the young 
wheat, rolling, deep plowing, burning the stubble after harvest, &c. 
Such special remedies as these are of little use as compared with 
careful preparation of the ground and late sowing, and some of 
them actually do more harm than good, as we shall see further on. 
Application of lime to kill the maggot or larvae— It has been fre¬ 
quently recommended to spread fine lime, soot, or salt upon the 
young wheat so as to kill the young larvge. As a sample of such 
treatment, which at least can do no harm, we extract the following 
statement from the Kansas Farmer: 
