November  10,  1898. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
353 
out  for  you  already,  and  any  nurseryman  of  repute  will  supply  you 
with  bulbs  of  all  descriptions  suitable  for  bedding  purposes  which 
flower  simultaneously.  Give  them  the  list  of  the  colours  you  require 
and  reliable  bulbs  will  speedily  he  forthcoming. — H.  LX 
(To  be  continued.) 
THE  CODLIN  MOTH— AN  APPEAL. 
Referring  to  my  appeal  on  the  above  subject  on  page  181  in 
“  our  Journal,”  I  have  been  looking  for  a  response  in  every  week’s  pages 
since,  but  up  to  the  present  issue  just  to  hand  not  one  word  of  reply  has 
been  given  Has  neither  Mr.  G.  Abbey  nor  any  of  your  experienced 
and  able  contributors  no  guidance  to  offer  ?  then  surely  the  Editor 
cannot  fail  to  say  what  can  be  said  in  answer  to  my  appeal.  To  have 
large  quantities  of  the  finest  specimen  fruits  of  Cox’s  Orange  and 
Ribston  Pippins,  to  say  nothing  of  Doyenne  du  Comice  and  others  cf 
the  finest  Pears  destroyed  after  the  closest  and  best  culture,  is  an  evil 
seeking  a  remedy  from  the  best  judges  in  the  land. — S.  S. 
[We  entirely  sympathise  with  our  correspondent,  but  must  remind 
him  that  we  complied  exactly  with  his  desire.  He  did  not  request 
editorial  information,  but  particularly  asked  that  his  letter  should  be 
inserted,  thus  leaving  the  matter  in  the  hands  of  our  readers.  We 
supplemented  it  by  expressing  our  readiness  to  publish  “  records  of 
experience”  by  which  the  injury  caused  by  the  pest  in  question  could 
be  mitigated  or  averted.  We  did  not  expect  to  be  overwhelmed  with 
responses,  but  thought  it  possible  that  some  fortunate  grower  might 
have  made  the  hoped-for  discovery  of  the  easy  eradication  ot  the 
destructive  visitant. 
Mr.  G.  Abbey,  whom  “S.  S.”  mentions,  in  all  probability  thought 
the  same,  and  therefore  did  not  repeat  what  he  has  more  than  once 
advised  in  dealing  with  the  enemy;  nor  did  we  ask  him  to  do  so,  or 
we  knowr  he  would  have  complied.  Until  the  Sirdar  made  a  clean 
sweep  of  the  Dervishes  no  one  new  exactly  how  that  could  be  done, 
and  we  had  only  the  faintest  of  hope  that  some  modern  conqueror  of 
the  enemies  of  fruit  trees  had  distinguished  himself  by  sweeping 
away  the  codlin  moth  by  some  easier  and  more  certain  means  than 
had  hitherto  been  published. 
We  strongly  suspect  that  the  enemy  under  notice  cannot  be 
mastered  by  any  one  method  of  procedure,  and  not  at  all  in  the 
absence  of  repressive  measures  perseveringly  and  systematically 
carried  out.  We  agree  with  our  correspondent  in  his  observation  on 
page  181,  September  8th,  that  “continually  picking  up  fallen  fruits 
aDd  destroying  them  is  troublesome,  and  not  (alone)  effective.”  It  is 
one  means,  and  a  certain  one,  of  reducing  the  enemy,  but  its  effective¬ 
ness  depends  on  the  promptitude  in  picking  up  the  fruits  with  maggots 
in  them,  as  all  have  not,  while  those  within  the  fruits  quickly  emerge 
after  they  fall  to  the  ground.  The  moth  often  attacks  with  great 
persistency  some  particular  tree,  and  we  found  in  a  case  of  this  kind 
that  when  the  first  maggoty  Apple  fell,  by  at  once  shaking  the 
branches  numbers  of  others  were  brought  down  with  th-  enemy  i  i 
them,  and  these  promptly  removed  and  destroj  ed,  the  emergence  ot 
numbers  of  moths  was  prevented. 
Our  correspondent  has  perhaps  not  had  an  opportunity  of  watching 
pigs  when  turned  into  an  orchard  in  'which  some  of  the  trees  ate 
infested  with  the  pest  in  question.  We  have,  and  noticed  they  soon 
find  out  such  trees,  and  do  not  wander  very  far  from  them ;  tin  n 
when  they  hear  an  Apple  fall,  as  they  quickly  do,  there  is  a  race  for 
a  speedy  end  of  it  and  all  it  contains.  That  is  an  example  of  quick 
picking  up.  Pigs  have  been  found  of  enormous  value  in  old  orchards 
into  which  they  could  be  turned,  by  decimating  the  moth,  and  in 
other  ways.  In  most  instances,  however,  the  invader  has  to  be  fought 
without  the  aid  of  the  humble  but  useful  pig. 
Many  caterpillars  leave  the  fruits  before  these  fall,  and  crawl  down¬ 
wards  till  they  find  a  suitable  lurking  place  in  the  bark  to  enter  into 
the  chrysalis  state;  others  let  themselves  to  the  ground  by  a  fine  web, 
and  crawl  up  the  stems  of  trees  for  the  same  purpose.  The  moths 
emerge  the  following  season,  and  deposit  eggs  near  the  eye  of  the 
incipient  fruits.  When  the  petals  fall  the  larvae  which  result  tunnel 
to  the  core,  eat  till  they  are  satisfied,  spoil  the  fruit,  and  crawl  out  to 
find  a  favourable  place  for  their  natural  change  and  hybernation. 
Knowing  the  habits  of  the  intruder  active  persons  tie  folds  of 
sacking  round  the  stems  with  a  piece  of  string  or  wire,  leaving  a  flap 
above  and  below  the  string,  examine  the  shelter  provided  frequently, 
and  crush  the  larvae.  Hay  bands  are  also  used  for  the  same  purpose. 
The  banding  should  be  done  in  June  and  remain  till  November,  then 
be  removed  and  burnt  to  destroy  the  chrysalids. 
The  rough  bark  is  also  well  scraped  in  the  winter,  caught  on  sheets 
or  mats,  and  burned.  Then  the  trunks  and  thick  branches  of  infested 
trees  are  washed  with  a  caustic  solution  applied  with  a  limewash 
brush,  and  all  the  smaller  branches  sprayed  with  the  solution.  This 
is  made  by  dissolving  a  pound  each  of  caustic  soda  and  pearlash  in 
10  gallons  of  water.  Some  American,  followed  by  English,  authorities 
advocate  reducing  the  pearlash  to  about  half,  and  adding  half  a  pound 
of  dissolved  softsoap.  This  addition  of  soap  may  be  good,  but  the  full 
quantity  of  pearlash  is  sate  for  hardy  fruit  trees  in  winter 
Then  follow  spring  and  summer  sprayings  with  Paris  green  in 
paste  form,  1  oz.  of  the  paste  to  20  gallons  of  water,  or  1  lb.  to 
300  gallons,  the  liquid  to  be  constantly  agitated  for  keeping  the  arsenic 
in  suspension,  for  it  will  not  dissolve,  and  in  the  absence  of  stirring  or 
constantly  shaking  the  knapsack  sprayer  on  the  man’s  back,  sinks 
through  the  water ;  thus  that  at  the  top  of  the  vessel  is  too  weak 
in  the  poison  to  be  useful,  while  that  towards  the  bottom  becomes  fix 
strong  to  be  safe. 
As  far  back  as  1887  Mr.  Thomas  Meehan,  of  Philadelphia,  wrote 
to  us  that,  “  in  some  regions  of  America  it  is  impossible  to  get 
an  Apple,  because  of  the  codlin  moth,  but  spraying  with  Paris  green 
secures  a  crop.”  Mr.  Leonard  Coates  also  subsequently  wrote  from 
California,  “  We  spray  our  Apple  and  Pear  trees,  as  soon  as  the  fruit  is 
set,  with  Paris  green  (at  the  strength  above  stated).  The  worm  as  it 
hatches  out  dies  after  its  first  meal  at  the  poisoned  end  of  the  youn» 
fruit.”  If  rain  falls  soon  alter  the  application,  one  or  two  subsequent 
Fig.  61.— Codlin  Moth  (Carpocapsa  pomonella). 
References. — Upper  figure,  moth  enlarged  ;  line,  natuial  expanse  of  wings.  Central 
figure,  grub  enlarged  on  Apple  shoot.  Lower  figure,  larva  in  Apple,  showing 
entrance  by  the  eye  channel  and  destruction  of  pips,  with  channel  to  the 
rind  serving  as  an  outlet. 
sprayings  may  be  needed.  The  work  ought  to  commence  when  the 
trees  are  in  blossom,  or  bees  would  be  killed  ;  it  is  after  blossoming  that 
the  codlin  moths  commence  operations  which  often  end  so  destructively. 
The  most  complete  riddance  of  this  foe  of  the  Apple  and  Pear 
grower  within  our  recollection  was  effected  at  Glewston  Court,  by  Mr. 
S.  T.  Wright.  He  used  the  caustic  solution  when  the  formula  first 
appeared  in  the  Journal  of  Horticulture  for  the  destruction  of  scale 
and  cleansing  the  trees  generally.  This  was  effected  to  his  great  satis¬ 
faction,  and  the  work  was  regarded  as  a  necessary  part  of  the  winter 
routine.  Not  less  important  was  the  spraying  of  the  trees  with  Paris 
green  in  the  spring  for  poisoning  the  voracious  caterpillars  of  the  winter 
moth.  The  combined  operations  effected  the  immediately  desired 
objects,  and  more,  for  they  completely  ousted  the  codlin  moth, 
destroyed  the  eggs  of  red  spider  and  other  enemies,  till  it  was  difficult 
to  find  an  insect  or  caterpillar  of  any  kind  on  the  thousands  of  trees 
and  bushes  which  were  and  still  are  so  profitably  grown.  Let  “S.  S.” 
act  with  the  same  persevering  determination,  and  he  may,  as  we  trust 
he  will,  succeed  equally  well.  He  can  at  least  no  longer  complain 
of  lack  of  information,  and  we  certainly  do  not  complain  of  his  not 
unnatural  disappointment  as  above  expressed.  For  the  above  illus¬ 
tration  from  the  “  Fruit  Growers’  Guide  ”  we  are  indebted  to  the 
courtesy  of  Messrs.  J.  S.  Virtue  &  Co.,  Ltd.] 
