SURFACE CATERPILLARS. 
75 
time before I could discover the cause of the mischief, but at last a 
warm shower mellowed the ground, and the pest came nearer the 
surface. Horse- and hand-hoeing were pushed forward, genial showers 
m 
caused the Beans to shoot out beneath the wound, and a good crop 
was grown. In the case of a piece belonging to a neighbour the 
plants never rallied, and the crop was a failure. The attack was 
pretty general in the Winter Beans round about here, but partial in 
the spring-sown crop.” 
The following observations show the large extent of country over 
which the attack spread in England, and the great amount of mischief 
done. The caterpillars are reported as “ clearing off large patches,” 
“ committing great ravages,” an “ eight-acre field being cleared by 
them,” &c. ; and, with regard to number of caterpillars, they are noted 
by observers variously as “ from one to five or six being found at each 
plant” ; “ you have only to turn over a clod to pick up two or three,” 
&c.; and Prof. Allen Harker, writing from the Royal Agricultural 
College, Cirencester, mentioned “We had an enormous quantity of 
Agrotis segetum larvae in our Turnip and Mangold plots this autumn.” 
None of the remedies which have been tried appear successful, 
except hand-picking, which, though tedious, is sure, and answers so 
long as the plants are in a condition for the treatment to be applied, 
and also (when the ground is empty) turning on pigs to clear the 
grubs appears a good measure, by which the ground may be cleaned 
before the next crop is put in. 
The first notes of severe attack were forwarded on July 28tli by 
Mr. Douglas Yanderstegen, together with specimens of surface cater¬ 
pillars from under his Swedes near Reading. He observed, the grubs 
“ are clearing off large patches of them, and we thought by the Rooks 
laying at them and pulling them up that they were being eaten off by 
Wireworms, so had the Rooks kept off. There is no doubt that the 
grub is doing the mischief, not the Wireworm.” 
Grubs (then about a quarter grown) were forwarded from Asganby, 
as specimens of the grubs which were “ making such work amongst 
our Turnips alike on sand, clay, and fen.” 
Col. G. Coussmaker’s experiments near Guildford are of service in 
showing the little use that various applications often tried are really 
of, and if we had more records of trials such as these it would often 
save loss of crop and money in trying useless applications, just when a 
stringent known remedy is wanted at once. 
On the 3rd of August, Lieut.-Col. G. Coussmaker, writing from 
Westwood, Guildford, mentioned injury from Turnip caterpillar occur¬ 
ring coincidently with injuriously dry weather and north-easterly 
winds. Four acres of Swedes, which a week before had been thriving, 
were at the time of writing devastated by the caterpillar. Two men 
