PRACTICAL PAPERS—PLANT LICE. 
239 
remedies for exterminating these pests. In green houses, 
graperies, conservatories, etc., the smoke is always potent. 
Small out-door plants can be covered with boxes, barrels, or 
even umbrellas, or any thing that will form a temporary cover, 
will answer, and insure the destruction of the aphides with 
tobacco smoke. But on large trees, and vines, smoking is not 
practicable. The next best thing is a thorough drenching 
with strong tobacco water; say one-fourth of a pound of to¬ 
bacco to one gallon of boiling water. Soap suds has been 
used with good results. A strong decoction of quassia root 
has also been attended with some benefit. But of all reme¬ 
dies for out door trees and vines, I prefer collecting, with a 
net, by sweeping bushes and coarse weeds, the several larvae 
described in this article— aphis-lions and aphis-wolves. 
Several years ago a fine balsam fir, fifteen feet in height, 
standing in my grounds, became overrun with a species of 
woolly aphis, which deformed the leaves, and there was dan¬ 
ger of the tree being destroyed by them. With a net I col¬ 
lected a brave lot of the larvae of ladybirds, and placed them 
on the lousy tree ; at the same time I noticed several packets 
of lacewing eggs. The combined labors of these soon des¬ 
troyed every single louse. The tree, now sixty feet in height, 
lias never, to my knowledge, had an aphis on it since. 
Last year my outdoor grapes became badly in'ested with 
lice; I secured many aphis wolves and aphis lions, which I trans¬ 
ferred to the vines; in less than two weeks the grapes were en¬ 
tirely free of these pests, without resorting to other means. 
I know of many incidents illustrating the woful ignorance 
of persons otherwise intelligent, who were waging an exter¬ 
minating war against insects and birds, at the very time they 
were engaged in the good work of devouring noxious insects, 
