10 
APPLE. 
covering of light liair-like excreted matter, up to perfect develop¬ 
ment. 
But here we come on a very curious point, to which attention was 
drawn by Dr. E. L. Taschenberg. Is there a summer brood ? Although 
in the case of Schmidberger’s observation the Apple-suckers were 
developed in the first fortnight in May, nothing was noticed of egg- 
laying until September. In our case the perfect insects were not 
observable until early in July, which brings the dates of the first 
appearance and the reproduction nearer; but while on one hand it is 
curious and unusual that pairing and egg-laying should be so long 
delayed, on the other, even under the close attention paid by the 
observers, we have no record of appearance of the Apple-suckers in 
the young state, nor of observation of the change of colour so eminently 
noticeable at the September date of pairing preceding egg-laying. 
Various specimens of young insects were sent me for inspection ; but 
where I was able to examine all details, these differed in material 
points from the young of Psyllas, and minutely resembled that of the 
pupae of a species of Eupteryx or “ Frog Fly,” of which a figure is given 
in both 1st and 2nd Editions of my Manual of Injurious Insects. 
Pkevention and Remedies. —Many of the eggs which have been laid 
near the ends of the twigs may be removed in winter pruning, and it 
would be desirable to destroy the prunings, or at least to take them 
well away from the neighbourhood of the trees, lest by any possibility 
the young Apple-suckers should creep up the trunks. 
As they feed by driving their suckers into the soft tissues it is not 
likely that poisonous washes will have much effect upon them, and 
caustic applications if used at a strength to kill the insects, would 
probably also kill the tender tissues, such as the buds or young stalks 
from which they were drawing their food. 
Where the young Apple-suckers are numerous enough to be 
causing real mischief and are accessible , probably the best remedy would 
be soft-soap wash with some addition of sulphur, or of quassia, or 
tobacco ; but there is sometimes a difficulty in getting at them. 
Mr. Hiam mentioned, “ I have used insecticides with little effect, on 
account of their habit of secluding between the stems of the Apple 
bloom in the cluster or truss. I am using an old umbrella daubed 
or painted with the tree dressing inside with considerable effect, as the 
insects fiy out and are caught when the tree is shaken or disturbed.” 
The above plan appears very practicable and might be acted on in 
an enlarged form, by putting tarred cloth beneath the trees, and 
shaking down on a broad scale.* 
The observation of Mr. Gibbon, that the attack was most present f 
* For recipes for soft-soap washes, see Index. 
