388 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  9,  1901. 
Injurious  Insects.' 
This  is  the  twenty-fourth  annual  report  prepared  and  published 
by  MiBS  Ormerod,  and  she  announces  that  it  will  be  the  last.  Byron 
expressed  a  common  feeliDg  amongst  men  when  he  said  there  was 
i-omethiDg  touched  us  in  the  finish  of  what  is  unpleasant  ;  this 
word,  however,  could  hardly  be  applied  to  such  reports  as  Miss 
Ormerod  has  issued.  They  may  not  be  cheeriDg,  since  they  tell  of 
the  injuries  caused  by  insects,  but  they  have  always  suggested 
valuable  remedies  or  means  of  prevention.  The  work  that  these 
leports  have  entailed  has  been  very  great  during  most  of  the  time. 
Miss  Ormerod  received  much  aid  lrom  a  sister  now  deceased.  It  has 
been  put  upon  entomologists  as  a  reproach  that  the  majority  of  them 
did  little  by  their  studies  to  benefit  the  gardener  or  farmer.  All  give 
honourable  mention,  however,  to  Curtis,  Douglas,  Newman,  and 
Westwood  in  the  past,  and  we  might  single  out  for  commendation 
several  entomologists  of  our  own  time,  but  Miss  Ormerod’s  labours 
through  nearly  a  quarter  of  century  have  been  unique,  at  least  in 
Britain.  We  may  .-ay  that  the  insect  pests  of  the  farm,  the  orchard, 
aud  the  kitchen  garden  have  now  been  fairly  investigated,  though,  of 
course,  new  foes  occasionally  occur.  But  there  is  a  very  promising 
field  open  to  an  aspiring  entomologist — that  is,  to  give  us  a 
comprehensive  account  of  the  insects  that  haunt  the  flower  garden, 
flames,  and  greenhouses. 
Considering  the  aphis  group  of  insects  to  be,  on  the  whole,  our 
worst  garden  pest,  from  the  variety  and  persistency  of  their  attacks, 
we  look  first  to  see  what  the  report  has  to  say  about  them.  Evidently 
the  year  1900  was  not  specially  remarkable  as  an  aphis  season.  There 
were  some  complaints  about  the  American  blight  or  woolly  aphis,  but 
nothing  particular.  A  German  scientist  has  recently  pointed  out  that 
t his  objectionable  fly  may  be  of  service — first,  in  supplying  food  to 
many  birds  and  insects  which  would  otherwise  attack  vegetation  ; 
secondly,  in  drawing  winged  insects  to  flowers  that  are  partly 
fertilised  by  their  agency.  Nearly  related  to  aphis  is  the  Apple- 
sucker  or  Chermes  (Psylla  Mali),  a  minute  insect,  which  has  given  a 
lot  of  trouble  by  sappiDg  the  strength  of  the  blossoms  during  April. 
The  mature  insects  are  about  in  autumn,  when  the  eggs  are  deposited 
upon  various  parts  of  the  Apple  tree.  While  young  it  ejects  tiny 
globules  with  threads,  which  are  more  discernible  than  the  chermes 
itself.  The  Toddington  Orchard  Company,  near  Winchcombe,  has 
proved  that  the  most  effective  remedy  was  softsoap  wash,  forcibly 
(.riven  into  the  trusses  of  blossom. 
One  of  the  enemies  of  the  Apple  which  came  prominently  under 
the  notice  of  Miss  Ormerod  was  the  caterpillar  of  the  Pith-moth, 
Laverna  atra,  which  had  been  somewhat  complainrd  of  in  1889  and 
1898,  but  the  visitation  of  1900  was  far  worse,  and  extended  over  a 
wide  area — Worcester,  Ross,  and  Polegate,  Sussex.  At  the  last  place 
2  bushels  of  infected  twigs  were  cut  from  130  trees.  We  detect  the 
presence  of  this  caterpillar  by  the  drooping  or  dying  of  the  blossom 
and  leaf  buds,  consequent  upon  its  boring  in  the  centre  of  the  shoots. 
On  completing  its  growth  the  insect  turns  to  a  chrysalis  near  the  end 
of  its  burrow.  It  is  needful  to  distinguish  the  attacks  of  the  pith 
moth  from  those  of  the  eye-spotted  Bud-moth  (Tinetocera  ocellana) 
That  species  may  occasionally  enter  the  shoots,  but  usually  it  woiks 
amongst  the  buds  and  new  leaves,  tying  them  together.  At  present 
we  have  not  ascertained  where  the  eggs  are  laid  and  the  young 
caterpillars  feed,  but  it  is  suspected  they  hybernate  under  the  bark  of 
a  twig  close  to  a  bud,  and  begin  to  tunnel  in  April.  Whether  when 
more  is  known  about  the  habits  of  the  moth,  which  emerges  during 
July,  some  means  might  be  found  to  destroy  them  before  they  have 
laid  their  eggs,  remains  to  be  seen.  The  only  measure  that  is  now 
taken  is  to  break  off  the  infested  shoots  in  May,  and  burn  them. 
Currant  bushes  were  rather  troubled  in  1900  with  those  smail  but 
pertinacious  pests,  which  have  been  much  observed  the  last  few 
years.  One  of  the  valuable  experiments  tried  by  Miss  Ormerod  and 
friends  upon  Phytoptus  ribes,  the  Currant  gall  mite,  indicated  by 
results  that  the  insects,  whose  galls  are  so  conspicuous  on  the  upper 
portions  of  the  shrubs,  evidently  also  find  lodgment  low  down  on 
the  stem,  and  even  on  the  roots.  Often  it  happens  that  Black 
Currants,  which  are  the  abode  of  this  mite,  flower  profusely,  yet  no 
fruit  is  formed.  Two  of  the  cures  recommended  by  the  Board  of 
Agriculture  have  proved  valueless — viz.,  petroleum  emulsion,  one  to 
twenty  of  water,  also  a  2  per  cent,  somtion  of  carbolic  acid.  Ocher 
vaunted  remedies  have  failed.  A  recent  and  expensive  one  is  the 
vapour  of  hydrocyanic  acid,  scarcely  applicable  to  a  plantation.  The 
Red  Currant,  too,  has  been  having  its  turn  ;  several  complaints  were 
made  last  year  about  the  white  woolly  scale  (Pulvinaria  ribesise), 
supposed  to  have  arrived  here  from  France  in  1889,  but  not  observed 
to  any  amount  till  lately.  The  first  signs  are  in  May;  about  July, 
*  Report  of  Injurious  Insects  and  Common  Farm  Pests  during  the 
year  1900  ;  with  Methods  of  Prevention  and  Remedy.  By  Eleanor  A. 
Ormerod,  LL.D.,  V.M.H.,  &c.  London  :  Simpkin,  Marshall,  Hamilton, 
Kent  and  Co.,  Ltd.,  1901. 
if  unmolested,  the  shoots  become  covered  with  masses  of  wool  dotted 
with  brown  scale.  It  occurs  sometimes  on  the  other  Currants. 
Attention  is  drawn  to  the  Pear  Cluster  mite.  Of  the  remedies 
tried,  kerosene  emulsion  is  the  best,  the  trees  being  sprayed  after  the 
leaves  have  fallen  and  before  the  buds  are  swelling.  Of  course,  a 
mixture  containing  softsoap  and  paraffin  is  of  benefit.  Also  the 
Pear  gnat  midge  was  noticed  about  many  districts  in  1900.  This 
report  contains  some  valuable  remarks  on  “pocket”  or  “bladder” 
Plums,  at  one  time  thought  to  be  the  work  of  insects.  Very  likely 
insects  may  afterwards  be  present,  but  it  is  a  fungoid  infestation, 
the  species  being  Exoascus  Pruni.  Food  supplies  in  excess  are 
furnished  to  the  pulp,  and  withheld  from  the  stone.  Of  course 
all  such  Plums  should  be  burnt,  but  it  is  necessary  to  look  after 
the  old  wood,  as  the  mycelium  can  live  on  the  branches. 
The  Gooseberry  sawfly  is  a  pest  which,  when  it  occurs  in  a  locality, 
is  apt  to  be  more  troublesome  than  the  commoner  caterpillar  of  the 
magpie  moth.  Some  schoolboys  at  Bunbury,  Cheshire,  were  set  to  work 
in  July,  and  they  cleared  about  15,000  by  hand-picking.  In  districts  of 
Lincolnshire,  the  familiar  caterpillar  of  the  silver  Y-moth  did  some 
damage  to  Potato  leafage,  an  unusual  circumstance.  Our  well-known 
foe,  the  Cabbage  moth,  made  a  new  departure  in  Aberdeenshire,  by 
stripping  rows  of  Peas,  devouring  both  the  leaves  and  the  young  pods. 
This  report  gives  a  short  account  of  the  flatworm,  or  “  land  planarian,” 
Bipalium  kewense,  a  curious  worm  with  a  variable  head,  which  has 
been  imported  in  plants  or  soil.  It  is  not  injurious,  being  carnivorous, 
and  preying  chiefly  on  earthworms. 
- 4+m** - 
manuring  of  Fruit  Trees. 
We  have  seen  that  while  nitrogen  produces  rankness  of  growth, 
phosphorus  produces  fruitfulness  and  earlier  ripening.  Potash  does 
what  there  is  left  to  do — namely,  improves  the  quality  of  the  fruit, 
both  in  colour  and  in  flavour.  It  is  especially  necessary  for  sugar- 
producing  crops,  of  which  fruit  is  one  of  the  most  important.  Analyses 
have  shown  that  Grapes  and  Beet  grown  on  soil  rich  in  potash  have  a 
larger  proportion  of  sugar  than  those  on  soil  which  is  poor  in  potash. 
III. — Potash  Manuring. 
Well  cultivated  garden  ground  rarely  lacks  potash.  Farmyard 
and  stable  manure,  as  we  saw  in  treating  of  nitrogenous  manures, 
contains  twice  as  much  potash  as  phosphate  ;  and  as  potash  suffers 
practically  no  loss  from  drainage,  a  good  black  garden  soil  has 
generally  a  rich  store  locked  up  in  the  humus  of  the  soil,  and  it  only 
noeds  unlocking,  which  is  brought  about  by  the  addition  of  lime  or 
basic  slag.  Where,  however,  trees  have  been  growing  some  years, 
and  the  soil  has  lost  a  good  deal  of  its  original  store  of  humus,  as  we 
saw  in  the  first  of  this  series  of  articles,  and  with  it  the  potash,  the 
application  of  potash  becomes  a  necessity  if  fruit  of  the  highest  quality 
and  flavour  is  wanted.  There  are  two  things  to  be  remembered  in 
applying  potash.  One  is,  if  the  soil  is  deficient  in  lime,  the  latflr 
ought  to  be  applied  before  the  potash  ;  the  other  is,  that  the  potash 
should  be  applied  in  the  autumn  or  early  winter,  when  the  roots  are 
at  rest  and  the  impurities  of  the  potash  can  be  washed  out  by  the 
winter  rains.  The  most  usual  form  in  which  potash  is  applied  is  in 
the  form  of  a  kainit,  which  contains  about  12  per  cent,  of  potash  and 
11  per  cent  of  magnesia,  besides  common  salt  and  sulphuric  acid.  This 
is  very  cheap,  and  probably  the  most  economical  of  any  potash  manure 
to  use.  It  should  be  applied  in  the  autumn  or  early  winter,  at  the  rate 
of  3  to  4  lbs.  per  40  square  yards,  equivalent  to  3  to  4  cwts.  per  acre. 
Some  crops,  like  Raspberries,  will  stand  more  than  this.  It 
should  not  be  used  ar  all  lor  Strawberries,  as  they  do  not  like  kainit, 
though  they  benefit  by  an  application  of  sulphate  of  potash.  This 
latter  is  much  richer  in  potash  than  kainit,  the  90  per  cent,  grade 
being  about  four  times  as  rich  in  potash  as  kainit.  If  it  is  desired  to 
apply  potash  in  the  spring,  this  is  probably  the  best  form  in  which  to 
apply  it  at  that  season.  Muriate  of  potash,  or  the  common  salt  of 
potash,  contains  49  per  cent,  of  potash,  but  is  a  very  dangerous 
manure  to  use  on  some  soils.  It  sometimes  produces  splendid 
results,  better  than  sulphate  of  potash,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  if  it 
comes  in  contact  with  the  tender  rootlets  of  plants  it  kills  them, 
especially  in  the  spring.  If  it  is  used  it  ought  to  be  tried  at  first 
only  experimentally  in  small  quantities,  and  with  great  care. 
The  most  valuable  potash  manure  of  all  is  phosphate  of  potash, 
but  it  is  too  dear  to  apply  to  the  soil.  Another  source  of  potash  is 
wood  ashes.  All  the  refuse  of  the  garden  which  cannot  be  buried  or 
kept  in  a  heap  to  decompose,  should  be  burned.  The  ashes  in  their 
dry  state  contain  about  half  as  much  potash  as  kainit,  but  if  allowed 
to  get  wet  their  value  is  greatly  lessened.  Poultry  and  pigeon 
manures  are  also  valuable  for  fruit  trees  for  the  potash  they  contain, 
the  former  containing  about  12  lbs.  of  potash  to  the  ton,  and  the 
latter  about  25  lbs/  If  well  rotted  manure  of  this  description  is 
