CHAPTER XIV.
INSECTS.
When the preparation of this work was undertaken, the author desired to make it as perfect as possible in all its parts. He very soon discovered, from his own observations in the orchard, that one of the greatest difficulties we all have to contend against in fruit-growing, was the ravages committed upon our fruits and fruit-trees by hosts of noxious insects.
Here then was a new branch of investigation, a new field of study to be entered. He was not an entomologist, nor could he gain any assistance from his friends who were such, because, though they were scientific, and able to assist him in names and descriptions of the insects presented, still they were not _practical entomologists_; their knowledge of these creatures was purely scientific, and while they could descant learnedly upon the systems set up by the great masters of the science, for the most perfect classification of insects, they could render us practical men but little aid in combatting our insect foes. Great assistance they have rendered, however, in providing names for all these wonderful creatures, in describing their habits and their economy, and in assigning them places in the beautiful classification that has been provided for them.
On turning from men to books, but little more assistance or encouragement was met with; these too would only give the names, the places, and the descriptions, in the most approved language of the science, but they are not attractive nor intelligible to the unlearned. Any person can soon acquire the language of the science, with a little study, but these scientific books do not give us directions how to rid ourselves of the pests.
Among the books that are accessible and that are adapted to the general reader, and to the student of practical entomology, two were found of eminent utility as far as they went. These are the excellent reports to the Massachusetts and the New York Agricultural Societies, by Messrs. Harris and Fitch, which are clothed in popular language, and which treat particularly of the insects injurious to vegetation, and they put us in the way of combating our foes. The former, which has been reprinted and illustrated in beautiful style, is worthy of a place in every farmer's library, and will prove a valuable aid in the study: the latter is printed in connection with the Society's reports. To both of these, the author acknowledges his indebtedness, and from both has he drawn liberally.
Other popular treatises, though attractive, have proved of very little practical value, and the student will find even the reports above referred to imperfect, as they were prepared for a limited region, and do not mention several insects that are common in other parts of the country than the States for which these reports were prepared. It were much to be desired, that every State Society would have similar reports, respecting the insects, peculiar to its state.
Thus the author found himself compelled to investigate this broad field of study for himself--it became necessary to grasp the elements of the classification, and to go into the field and the orchard, to use his eyes, and to observe for himself. This was a labor of time, and required considerable effort; but it brought its own reward in the pleasure attendant upon this delightful study. At the same time there was great satisfaction in the thought that all these facts, gathered from the works of men of science, confirmed by personal observation, and rendered useful and applicable in practice by his fellow laborers in the garden and orchard, would be a valuable contribution to them, and would constitute a useful portion of the _American Pomology_ he was then preparing.
Unfortunately for himself, he has discovered that his collections, in this department, covered several hundred pages of manuscript, and that, if printed, they would render his volume too cumbrous. Upon consulting with his publishers, it was concluded best to lay the matter aside, for the present at least, and to prepare anew a brief account of some of the insects most injurious to the orchard, with short suggestions as to the best methods of combating their ravages. This conclusion has been the more readily yielded to, because the public now have a medium of communication with the scientific entomologists, which well supplies the great want we had begun to experience. I refer to a monthly publication, issued by the Entomological Society of Philadelphia, in which the questions, that are constantly occurring to farmers, are answered in the most simple, clear, and satisfactory manner.[23] Besides this, we find in our best agricultural journals, a page or a column, devoted to the consideration of insects injurious to vegetation.[24]
For the sake of convenience and system, these notes will be presented in the order of the approved classification of insects. Omitting further introduction or discourse upon the wonderful instincts and habits of insects, and explanation of their metamorphoses and the principles of classification, and confessing my poor qualification for the task, let us proceed at once to the catalogue.
=COLEOPTERA.=--BEETLES.
In this class of insects we find both, friends and foes. The former assist us by their voracious appetites, that can only be satisfied with gourmandizing upon other insects, particularly the juicy bodies of their larvæ. The latter embrace some of our most troublesome pests, especially as they consume vegetable matters, in the perfect as well as in the larval condition, and in both stages are exceedingly voracious. Moreover, they generally commit their depredations under cover, or at night. Some live in the soil and consume the roots of our plants, and others mine their way into the solid wood of the stems of our finest trees; while some only affect the twigs and smaller branches, and others devour the foliage, flowers, and fruits. A few of the most familiar and troublesome of these will now be introduced; and allusion will also be made to some of those which befriend us by their destruction of other insects.
=Saperda bivittata.= (_Say._)--The Apple Tree Borer.--This is a nocturnal insect, which has been found very destructive to our orchards. The female deposits one egg in a place, generally low down on the stem of the tree; this hatches, and enters the tissues of the bark, where it feeds for a time, a footless grub. As it grows, it burrows deeper, and upward, until it reaches the sap wood, upon which it feeds. When half grown, it burrows still deeper, and upwards into the heart of the tree, and then outward through the sap wood to the bark, but retires again toward the centre, as to a place of safety, to undergo its transformation, after packing the hole with shreds of wood and with its castings to make its retreat secure. In the spring, the perfect insect opens its way outward, and emerges to the light of day.
REMEDY.--Observe the bark of young trees very closely during the summer, to discover the castings that are ejected; notice the discolored or depressed portions of bark, and cut into them to find and destroy the worm--if it has penetrated the solid wood, pursue it with a piece of stout but flexible wire.
PREVENTIVES.--Alkaline washes have been highly recommended, as a means of driving away the mother beetle; soft soap may be used, and a portion of soft or hard soap, placed in the forks of the branches, will dissolve with the rains, and wash down on the bark. These applications, to be efficacious, should be made in May or June. In August, the bark should be examined, and when the worms are cut out, the soap suds may be injected with advantage, especially if the larvæ have not been reached. Birds should be encouraged, particularly the Picæ tribe, which destroy many grubs of the wood-boring insects.
=Chrysobothris femorata=, or the Thick-legged Buprestris, is another kind of apple-tree borer, very common in some parts of the West. The perfect insect may be seen running up and down the stems of our trees, in June and July. It is a blackish beetle, about half an inch long. The hole, bored by the grub, is flat, and not cylindrical like that of the _Saperda_. This beetle attacks the stem higher up than the _Saperda_, but burrows under the bark, and then sinks into the wood much in the same way.
REMEDIES and PREVENTIVES are similar to those above mentioned. Seek for the young worms in their shallow burrows in August, before they have gone deeply into the tree.
=Dicerca divaricata=, (_Say._), or the Cherry-tree Borer, is similar in its habit of boring in the sap wood under the bark, and may be combated in the same way. The perfect insect appears in June and July.
=Prenocerus supernotatus=, or the American Currant Borer, feeds upon the pith of the stalk. The larva is a small, white grub, which changes into a slender, long-horned beetle; black, edged with chestnut-brown. The wing covers are marked with two small grey dots, anteriorly, and a crescent-shaped one behind the middle.
It is very injurious to the currant bushes in many parts of the country, and constitutes a serious obstacle to growing the plants to a single stem, tree fashion. In the bush form of this plant, the constant reproduction of new shoots compensates for the destruction caused by the borer.
There is another currant borer, an European, which is confined to young shoots; as it is not the larva of a beetle, but of a butterfly, it will be treated in its proper place.
=Bostrichus bicaudatus=, or the Apple-twig Borer, affects the small twigs, and when numerous, will produce an effect like that called twig-blight, by causing the death of the part and the withering of the leaves, at mid-summer. A small hole will be found near the axil of a leaf; this turns with the twig, and often extends several inches along the pith. The insect is a small, chestnut-brown beetle, 0.25 to 0.35 of an inch long, and is characterized by two projections or horns at the hinder end. Has been found rather common from Michigan to Kansas.
REMEDY.--Kill, when found.
=Scolytus pyri=, or the Pear-blight Beetle, affects twigs of pear, apple, and other fruits, which wither and die at mid-summer. Small perforations, like pin holes, will be found, and issuing from them small cylindrical beetles of a deep brown or black color.
REMEDY.--not known.
=Lucanus dama=, or Horn-beetle, is a large insect, the larvæ of which are said to feed upon the trunk and roots of old apple and other trees. The perfect insects are of a dark mahogany color, smooth, and polished. Like other Stag-beetles, they fly at night, are not very harmful, and are believed to be several years in reaching the perfect state.
=Leptostylus aculiferus=, bores under the bark of apple trees. It is a short, thick, brownish-gray beetle, with thorns upon its wing-covers; hence, the scientific name of needle-bearer. Length, 0.35 inch; season, August. The larvæ are small worms, occurring in multitudes under the bark, and making long-winding burrows.
=Tomicus mali=, or the Apple-bark Beetle, is described by Dr. Fitch as new. He says, it is a small, smooth, black or chestnut-red, cylindrical beetle; the larvæ feed under the bark, and then enter the wood, killing the young tree.
=Conotrachelus Nenuphar=, (_Herbst_), is the noted and notorious and yet little known Plum Weevil, that is such an abomination to plum planters, and which has proved very injurious to our peaches and is even accused of producing deformities in our pears and apples.
The egg is deposited in the fruit, where it soon hatches and feeds, approaching the stone. This causes the fruit to fall, and when the grub has attained its full size it descends into the ground to perform its transformation. The perfect insect, a small, dark-gray beetle, either crawls up the stem, or flies to the trees. Mr. Walsh reminds us that Dr. Trimble has found these insects hybernating in sheltered places.
REMEDIES.--It is lamentable that we have been able to do so little to prevent the ravages of this insect. The plan of shaking off, and destroying the affected fruits, promises the best results, by diminishing the next crop. It was suggested by David Thomas, of New York, but is most successfully practised by Dr. E.S. Hull, of Illinois, who has invented an inverted umbrella on wheels, which receives the insects, as well as the defective fruits, when it is bumped against the trees. By the use of this, he is enabled to harvest splendid crops of stone-fruits.
=Pomphopoea Sayi=, (or _Cantharis pyrivora_, of _Fitch_), is called by him the Pear Blister-fly. He describes it as a long blistering beetle, of a green-blue color; found on a pear tree about the first of June, eating the young fruit voraciously.
=Euryomia Inda=, or the Indian Cetonia, is a beetle about six-tenths of an inch long. The head and thorax dark, copper-brown, thickly covered with short, greenish-yellow hairs; wing-cases light yellowish-brown, changeable, with metallic tints. These are called flower-beetles, because they consume the pollen, and bury themselves in our flowers; but in the autumn, they consume our choicest fruits, especially peaches.
=Lachnosterna fusca=, (_Froelich_), is the White Grub, or May Beetle. A heavy brown insect, an inch or more in length, which makes its appearance with the first warm evenings, when the Black Locust begins to open its fragrant blossoms, to which these beetles are attracted. They also attack the foliage of other trees, particularly the cherry, which they entirely strip of leaves and fruit. Though very destructive in the perfect form, these insects are most to be dreaded while in the larval condition, which is supposed to continue for some years. They then work under cover, and can only be traced by the ravages they commit. Every strawberry grower is familiar with the large White Grub that so often destroys his hopes of a crop, by killing the plants when in full growth and fruitage, by cutting off all the fibres.
REMEDY.--The full-grown insects are very busy in the evening, but become stupid and lethargic before morning, clinging to the leaves and twigs, when they may be shaken down, caught on sheets, gathered, and destroyed. If let alone, they will fall to the ground toward day break, and secrete themselves in the grass and soil until night. All that can be killed in this stage of their existence, the better, as this will prevent the deposition of innumerable eggs. The White Grubs must be destroyed one at a time in cultivated grounds; kill them whenever found. Encourage chickens and birds to follow the plow and spade, as they will consume great numbers. Hogs will find and eat them greedily, and may be allowed to root them out even from a meadow, if badly affected; for, though a harsh remedy, it is not so bad as the disease.
=Pelidnota punctata=, or the Spotted Pelidnota, is a large yellowish insect, with a black dot on each side of the thorax, and three others on the outer side of each wing-cover. It is found in the day time, upon the leaves of the grape vine. Like the rest of the tribe, these insects are voracious, and the grubs may also feed upon the roots of the grape; therefore they had better be destroyed, though as their numbers are seldom large they are not found to be very injurious.
=Haltica chalybea=, or the Grape Vine Flea-beetle, appears early in the season, and eats holes in the buds and leaves. It is small, 0.16 inch long, oval; shining, deep greenish-blue, or deep green, or purple. This insect spends the winter in the earth about the roots of the vine, and feeds upon them.
=Anomala lucicola=, or the light-loving Anomala, is found on the grape vine in July. It resembles the May Beetle, but is smaller, being 0.35 inch long.
These are not all the beetles that feed upon the grape vine.
=Macrodactylus subspinosa=, or the Rose-chafer, is another melolonthian beetle, which is exceedingly destructive to grapes and various other plants in many parts of the country, in May and June. This insect is smaller than the others of its group, but is equally destructive as a leaf-eater, on account of its numbers. On the grape, it cuts off the young bunch of buds and blossoms, and thus seriously diminishes the crop, as well as by destroying the foliage. It is of a buff-yellow, with black feet, about 0.33 inch long. They continue to ravage vegetation about a month, and then retire into the ground, an inch deep, and deposit their eggs, which hatch in about twenty days, and the young grubs feed upon tender roots, attaining their full size, three-quarters of an inch, before winter, when they descend deeper to hybernate.
The Rose-beetle has many natural enemies, among which are the Dragon-flies; but we must depend upon human efforts for their destruction, an almost hopeless task, for their name is legion, but so much the greater necessity for the effort, and as they are sluggish, they may easily be caught and thrown into hot water, or otherwise destroyed.
=Tree Pruners= are the larvæ of beetles that excavate a burrow in small limbs of trees, so as to make a section almost across their substance; most of them then bore upward into the limb, and await the action of the winds to break off the part and waft them to the ground, where they pass through their change to the perfect insect. They exercise a wonderful instinct in leaving just fibres enough to support the branch until they are ready for their descent, but it often happens that the twig breaks off partially and hangs by a thread, dying, of course; we see the brown leaves on the trees, and this is the first indication of the presence of the insects. If we examine the fallen spray, we shall be surprised to observe the cause of its falling. In the case of the oak tree, the damage is done by the _Elaphidion villosum_, (Fabricius), a long-horned beetle. The larva remains in these twigs until the next season, hence the importance of gathering and burning all that fall to the ground.
An insect of somewhat similar habits often cuts off stout shoots of the Hickory, making a very neat section of a small limb, leaving only the bark, so that it readily breaks off with the wind; and a similar effect has been observed in strong annual shoots of the pear, toward the end of summer. The fallen piece and the stump are cut as neatly as by the shears, but no perforation is discovered along the axis, in which the larva could be concealed; hence we have but to suffer the trimming thus performed without our will, and look upon it as a sort of natural shortening-in of our trees.
=Blister-flies, or Beetles.=--There are several species of these insects, each of which appears to have its favorite pasturage. They are exceedingly voracious, but confine themselves chiefly to the destruction of herbaceous vegetation, and are therefore obnoxious to the farmer and gardener, who know them as the potato insects, than to the fruit-grower. Their appetites are not very discriminating, however, and when they are abundant they may consume the foliage of our trees. These Blister-flies belong to the genus _Lytta_, and are used as a substitute for the Spanish-fly of Europe, as they are possessed of blistering qualities in no mean degree. They are wholly different from the new potato destroyer of the West, the _Doryphora 10-lineata_, which is hemispherical, and is a leaf-eater, in the larval as well as in the perfect state.
REMEDY.--Catch and kill all that can be found in the garden, or potato field; scald, dry, and sell to the apothecary.
Before closing this section, it is but due to our many insect friends in this order, to introduce a few of them to the reader. There are several large families that are really serviceable to man; some of these are called Scavengers, because they consume large quantities of decaying matter that might prove noxious to us, were it allowed to decay upon the surface of the ground. Among these are the Dung-beetles, and the Carrion-beetles: others are carnivorous, and some of these are called _Cicindelidæ_, or Tiger-beetles, from their voracious consumption of other insects, which they devour in great numbers, both in their larval and in their perfect form. These day beetles are large, brightly colored, and very active in their movements, as they run about in the sunny paths and roads, and cannot fail to attract attention. Few persons are aware, however, of the valuable aid they are rendering to man, nor of the credit that is due to them for the preservation of our crops from the invasion of other insect foes. Too often they are either unobserved and overlooked, or even treated with the aversion and cruelty of men who ignorantly attempt to stamp out all insect life, as though these creatures were intruders upon their preemption. The intelligent observer of nature will soon learn to respect each aid, which has been so wisely furnished to assist him in his labors as a cultivator of the soil, and all may admire the Wisdom that has provided at the same time such beautiful and such useful creatures for the work.
=Calosoma scrutator=, is well named the handsome, for it is one of our most beautiful insects of this class. This, and the red-spotted _C. calidum_, may be seen upon trees, seeking caterpillars, upon which they feed. One of our most intelligent horticulturists has so high an appreciation of these insects, that he will not allow them to be disturbed, and whenever he sees any caterpillars in his orchard, he takes these beetles to the tree, and gives himself no further concern, knowing that the Calosoma will soon destroy every worm.
=Coccinelidæ=, or Lady-birds, are most valuable aids to the cultivator, who is constantly liable to have his crops destroyed by the various species of Aphides. These little hemispherical beetles are familiar to every one, and known to the children as Lady-birds; but all may not know their value, nor be so well acquainted with the larvæ of these insects, which are the chief agents in the destruction of our troublesome plant-lice. Most persons would be very apt to crush these curious, diminutive, lizard-looking creatures, even at the time they were attacking the Aphides, instead of leaving them to carry on the warfare more effectually without our aid.
These little friends have had a superstitious regard shown to them in many countries, which indicates that a glimmering idea prevailed respecting their usefulness. The Germans call them the _Marienkaefer_, or Lady-beetles, of the Virgin Mary. The French call them _Vaches de Dieu_, the Lord's cows, and our own children are all familiar with the nursery rhyme about the Lady-birds. These insects find their way to trees or plants that are infested with their proper food, the Aphides.
These beetles hide under the leaves that cluster in sheltered nooks about or between the large roots of forest trees, where they can be found on any mild winter day, and may be carried to the green-house or to the window plants that are infested with plant-lice. They will not only devour these pests, but will soon lay eggs that hatch and produce the larvæ which are so voracious as to clear the plants in a short-time. A little attention to the habits of these insects may spare us great losses from the plant-lice.
=ORTHOPTERA.=--GRASSHOPPERS.
The insects of this order have an imperfect transformation. The eggs hatch at once into young insects, that resemble their parents in form and habits, excepting that they do not get their wings till they approach the adult state. The young consume food voraciously, and the perfect insects are not only still more hungry, but, having increased powers of locomotion, they are more widely destructive. These are the true _Locusts_, and though chiefly injurious to the farm and garden, infesting the meadows and corn-fields, the grasshoppers, when winged, often attack the foliage of our young orchard trees toward the end of summer. But when we contemplate the invasion of the great western plague, belonging to this order, which rivals that terrible scourge, the Locust of the eastern continent, in numbers and voracity, we may well dread their increase and appearance in other parts of the country. The grasshoppers that have invaded Kansas and other Western States are, like all the rest of this group of _Orthoptera_, true Locusts.
This order is called _Orthoptera_, from their straight wings; it embraces several groups, cockroaches, crickets, grasshoppers, or locusts, etc., which are all injurious, except the _Mantis_, which is predacious, and therefore useful.
=HEMIPTERA.=--BUGS AND HARVEST-FLIES.
This order contains many insects that are injurious to the nurseryman, to the orchardist, and to the gardener. They are characterized by having a proboscis instead of a mouth with jaws; they can suck, but they cannot bite. The proboscis is often horny, and armed with two pair of bristles, when it becomes a more formidable weapon for attack. Bugs have four wings; they do not pass through the usual metamorphoses of insect life; but are born with legs and feeding apparatus like the perfect insects, except that some have no wings. Bugs are all injurious to man, excepting such as are predacious, which are serviceable by destroying other insects. Many are very small; and yet their countless numbers and wonderful fecundity enable them to do immense damage, as is true of the _Aphides_ and _Coccidæ_, the _Tingis_, the _Tettigonia vitis_, called the Thrips by our vine-dressers; and still more so of the Chinch-bug of the Western prairies, which destroys whole crops of our most important cereals.
The colored juice of some bugs is used in the arts. The coccus of the prickly pear, in Central America, is gathered and dried to form the cochineal of the shops.
Hemipterous insects are divided into two groups. True bugs, called _Hemiptera heteroptera_, having the wing-covers opaque at the base, and laid horizontally, and crossing each other obliquely at the end, overlapping; and the Harvest-flies, such as Plant-lice and Bark-lice. These, the _Hemiptera homoptera_, have the wing-covers of one texture throughout, not horizontal, but more or less sloping, and not crossing one another behind. Among these, which all feed upon plants, some very troublesome pests will here be noticed.
=COCCIDIANS.=--BARK-LICE.
=Aspidiotus conchiformis=, or the Apple Bark-louse, is very numerous in many parts of our country, particularly north of latitude 40 degrees. It commits sad devastations in some sections. Individually, it is but a little scale; but these animals are wonderfully prolific and soon cover every twig of the tree, obstructing its transpirations, and abstracting its vital juices; the leaves, and even the fruit are overrun with these miserable scales, but the twigs are their favorite resort. These scales are oblong, shaped like an oyster shell; flat and brown, often crowding upon one another. In the winter and spring, they contain or cover a number of small, round, white eggs, which hatch out in the spring, in May, attach themselves to the bark, and absorb the juices: various remedies have been suggested, and more or less thoroughly tested. The restoration of the thrifty growth of the tree is considered essential to success; and without this, all remedies are looked upon as unavailing. Some orchardists think that thorough drainage and cultivation of the land would alone banish the lice, but this can hardly be hoped. Strong lye, or solutions of potash, or soda, white-wash, and sulphur, have been used, and tobacco boiled in lye, soft-soap and tar mixed with linseed oil, which makes a kind of varnish. Mr. Walsh tells us that applications, to destroy this insect, are better made in May or June, as the eggs are protected by the scale in winter, and it is impermeable to watery solutions. This pest has been imported from Europe. Walsh recommends the use of Lady-birds to check the Bark-lice.[25]
=Lecanium pyri=, (_Fitch_), or the Pear Bark-louse, is a hemispherical brown scale, as large as a split pea. They may be found in summer on the under side of the limbs, and are the remains of dead females, which cover the eggs and young brood. This insect would be very injurious, were it to increase in numbers considerably. Let young trees be examined in June, when the scales may easily be found, removed, and destroyed.
=Lecanium persici=, or the Peach Bark-louse, is described, by Fitch, as similar in size to the above, found on smooth bark near a bud; it is blackish, uneven, shining, with a pale margin.
Another pear tree bark-louse was described by the lamented A.O. Moore, of New York, as a white, papery scale, giving a claret-colored juice when scraped. This, in the winter, consists of a defunct mother and her brood of eggs, the breaking of which gives the color. Alkaline washes are recommended to be applied in the spring. Mr. Walsh thinks this insect cannot be the same as that mentioned by Dr. Harris, on p. 222 of his report, under the name of _Coccus cryptogamus_, (_Dalman_), who found it upon the Aspen, and therefore he has named it _Coccus? Harrisii_.[26]
=Lecanium vitis=, (_Linn._), or the Vine Bark-louse, is mentioned by Fitch as having been found on grape vines in June. It is hemispherical and brown. A cottony substance was extruded from one end of the scale, and this increased until July, when minute insects crept out and scattered over the bark, upon which they fixed themselves. This insect is not very common, but its first appearance should be closely watched, and its destruction promptly effected.
=APHIDES.=--PLANT-LICE.
These are the most extraordinary insects, being found upon almost all parts of plants, and there is scarcely a species which does not support one or more kinds peculiar to itself. Then they are so exceedingly prolific! Reaumur proved that one individual, in five generations, may become the progenitor of nearly six thousand millions of descendants. Most of these insects, which we find so abundant upon our trees, are wingless females. Winged insects, both male and female, appear later in the season, and after laying their eggs, they soon perish. Some lay in the fall, others wait till spring. When these eggs hatch, the brood consists wholly of females, which are wingless, and do not lay eggs, but are viviparous and produce from fifteen to twenty young lice in the course of a day. This second generation are also wingless, and at maturity produce their young, and so on to the seventh generation, without the approach of a single male, until the autumn, when a brood of males and females appears, which are both winged at maturity, and then the eggs are laid for the next year's brood, and the parents die.[27]
The injuries occasioned by plant-lice, are much greater than would at first be expected, from an observation of the small size and extreme weakness of the insects; but these make up by their numbers what they lack in strength individually, and thus become formidable enemies to vegetation. By their punctures and the quantity of sap they draw from the leaves, the functions of these important organs are deranged, or interrupted, the sap is withdrawn or contaminated, and unfitted to supply the wants of vegetation. Plants are differently affected; some wither and cease to grow, their leaves and stems become sickly, and die from exhaustion. Others, not killed, are greatly impeded in their growth; the tender parts, which are attacked, become stunted and curled. The punctures of the lice appear to poison some plants, producing warts or swellings, which are sometimes solid, sometimes hollow, containing within them a swarm of lice, descendants of a single individual.[28] These last are often seen upon the leaves of the Elm, and upon some Poplars, and other trees; but I have not found any upon the foliage of our cultivated fruits, unless it be those on the grape.
=Aphis mali=, or the Apple Leaf-louse, is a small, green insect without wings, accompanied by a few black and green ones having wings. These are all crowded together upon the green tips of twigs, and under the leaves, sucking the sap. The eggs remain in deep cracks of the bark during the winter, and hatch as soon as the buds expand in the spring. The most successful treatment is to scrape off the loose bark, and to apply to the stems of the trees alkaline or lime washes. Many of our familiar little winter birds consume these eggs. In the spring and summer, alkaline solutions may be used with advantage, syringed or sprinkled upon the affected shoots and foliage.
The smell of these insects is peculiar, which, indeed, is generally characteristic with bugs. Each sort seems to derive a special flavor from the tree or plant upon which it feeds. Most insects of this family secrete copiously a sweetish fluid, called the honey dew, which is ejected from two little horns or nectaries, that project, one on each side of their bodies. This sweet material attracts a great many flies, and other insects, particularly ants, which are the constant attendants of these creatures, and are said to protect them from their enemies in order to obtain their sweet secretion. Some entomologists have called _Aphides_ the Ants' cows.
No one, who is acquainted with the _Aphides_, and the various insects which prey upon them, will ever permit a valuable plant to suffer injury from these pests. He will collect some of the _Aphis'_ enemies alive, carry them to the affected plant, and set them free to do their work; there they will remain while the food lasts. The _Aphides_ have more numerous, more active, and more inveterate enemies than insects of any other group--these are the means by which their wonderful fecundity is kept in check. Among them are the Aphis-lions, which are the larvæ of the Golden-eyed and Lace-wing flies, belonging to the order _Neuroptera_. They are reddish-brown, with a dark stripe down the middle, and a cream-colored one on each side; bodies long, narrow, and wrinkled transversely. Their jaws are long, curved like sickles, projecting forward from their heads horizontally.[29]
The _Coccinellidæ_, mentioned as useful members of the order _Coleoptera_, on a previous page, are among the most active enemies of the _Aphides_. The eggs are laid in clusters of twenty to forty on the under side of a leaf, to which they are closely glued; they are oval, and light yellow. They hatch into small blackish larvæ, which are active, and which boldly attack an _Aphis_ much larger than themselves, leaving only the empty skin. They consume hundreds while in the larval state, about two weeks, when they attach themselves by the tail, and go into the pupa state. One of the largest of these Lady-birds is the _Mysia 15-punctata_; the larva is a clear white, the middle of the back tinged with red, and two or three black spots on each segment--nearly a hundred species of Lady-birds are found in this country. The perfect insect, as well as the larvæ, feed upon _Aphides_, and instead of being destroyed, they should be cherished and encouraged.
Besides these, there are other inveterate enemies of the plant-lice in the _Syrphidæ_, which are two-winged flies, resembling the common house-fly, but handsomer. They deposit their eggs where _Aphides_ exist; the maggot, which hatches from these, seizes upon the first _Aphis_ that comes within his reach, and sucks its fluids. A medium-sized worm will consume a hundred lice in an hour. They are always found in a colony of _Aphides_.[30]
=Aphis prunifoliæ=, or the Plum Leaf-louse, is black, with pale green abdomen. It is found on the under side of the leaves, which become wrinkled and distorted. It is not so abundant as some other species, but its habits are similar.[31]
=Aphis cerasi=, (_Fabric._), or the Cherry Plant-louse, is very common, very numerous, and very black. They appear with the first expansion of the leaves, and continue or are renewed when destroyed, and remain until mid-summer, when they generally disappear. Their numbers are almost incredible, and they give a young cherry tree a wretched appearance. On the under surface of a small leaf, three-fourths of an inch long, Mr. Fitch counted one hundred and ninety lice, on one side only of the midrib. Their natural enemies come to the rescue to check their wonderful increase, and sometimes will utterly rout the _Aphides_ in a single week.[32]
The remedies advised for the apple tree _Aphides_, are equally applicable to those of the cherry, and their natural enemies are the same and equally efficacious; but _Aphides_ have internal foes likewise, that may be named here. The Ichneumon-flies are parasitic, their larvæ feed upon the substance of the _Aphides_. The genus _Aphidius_ is particularly provided to furnish parasites to these insects, in which they deposit a single egg selecting a louse of the proper size to sustain their progeny: the egg hatches to a larva, which exhausts the _Aphis_ by the time it has attained its growth, when the poor creature fastens itself securely to the leaf, and dies, leaving its carcase a secure resting place for the pupa of the Ichneumon. These parasitic-insects, which feed internally upon the _Aphides_, are as effective in their destruction as the Aphis-lions, or any other class of their enemies.[33]
=Aphis persicæ=, or the Peach Tree-louse, punctures the leaves of this plant, and Dr. Fitch[34] thinks, is the common though not the only cause of the curl in the peach tree leaves. Our intelligent orchardists have found these insects occasionally in the curled leaves of the peach, but do not agree with this distinguished entomologist, in considering them a cause of that malady.
=Aphis vitis?=, or the Vine _Aphis_, is often quite troublesome on vigorous young shoots of the grape vine, both wild and cultivated, particularly the former. These insects soon cripple the growth of the shoot. The species is not known to be different from that of Europe. This insect is briefly mentioned by T. Glover, in Patent Office Rept. for 1854, p. 79. Dr. Fitch describes as a grape leaf-louse, the _Pemphigus vitifolia_, which inhabits the gall-like excrescences upon the foliage of some varieties, particularly those with thin leaves.
=Aphis ribis=, (_Linn._), is the _Aphis_ of the currant. It causes the leaves to present a blistered appearance above; the lice are found on the under side; the wingless are pale yellow, the others have glossy wings, mostly black, with abdomen light green.[35]
=Aphis lanigera=, now called _Eriosoma_, or the Woolly _Aphis_, was first described in 1801 as infesting the apple trees in Germany. It has been noticed in England in 1787, and has since acquired the name of American Blight, from the erroneous supposition that it had been imported from this country; but it was known to French gardeners for a long time previous.
The eggs of this insect are microscopic, and are enveloped in a cottony substance. They are deposited in chinks of bark, and crotches of limbs, at or near the surface of the ground. When first hatched, the insects are covered with short down; as they grow, the down increases in length. When fully grown, they are one-tenth of an inch long; the head, antennæ, sucker, and skins, are blackish, the abdomen of a honey-yellow color. Their punctures produce warty excrescences, the limbs become sickly, the leaves turn yellow and drop off, and the whole tree perishes as the insects spread over it. The remedies appear futile on badly affected trees. Young trees were treated by painting over the affected parts with a mixture of melted resin and fish oil, in equal parts, applied warm. Sir Joseph Banks removed them with a stiff brush. Spirits of tar, turpentine, oil, and soft soap, have been recommended. After scraping off the rough bark, wash the tree with alkaline solution, apply the same to the main roots after laying them bare of earth.[36]
=Phemphigus pyri=, _Eriosoma pyri_, (_Fitch_), or _Pemphigus Americanus?_, (_Walker_), is the Apple-root Blight. It produces a similar condition in the roots, and was also called the American Blight in England. It is composed of warty excrescences upon the roots, containing in their crevices minute lice, having their bodies covered with a white cottony substance. Removal of the earth, and the application of soapsuds, has been recommended as a probable remedy for the injuries done by this insect.[37]
=Psylla Pyri.=--Some _Aphides_ have the power of leaping, like the leaf-hoppers, but they differ from those insects in having very large transparent upper wings, which cover the sides of the body like a steep roof. The genus embracing these insects, is called _Psylla_. One of the species was observed by Dr. Harris, upon a pear tree. They live by suction, and having gorged themselves, the juice runs down on the bark, producing a blackish color; young trees suffered excessively. As Dr. Phumb, of Salisbury, Conn., had observed them in 1833 on some imported pear trees, of which he lost several hundred in a few years, Dr. Harris suspected the insect to be the _Psylla pyri_, of Europe. Kollar recommends brushing off the insects, and crushing them under foot; and also advises to destroy the winged females in the spring. This being tedious and uncertain, it is recommended to wash the twigs with a brush, dipped in a mixture of strong soapsuds and flowers of sulphur, before the buds expand, to deter the insects from laying their eggs. A weaker solution, or the whale oil soap, might kill the young insects after they have fastened upon the bark, if applied with a syringe.[38]
=Cicada septendecim=, or the Seventeen-year Locust, as it is erroneously called, is no Locust at all, but should be called _Cicada_, because, as already stated, when considering the order _Orthoptera_, the true Locusts, are, what we call Grasshoppers.
This insect is remarkable for the long period of its pupal existence, which is subterranean, and during which it feeds upon the juices of roots. In its perfect state, it does not eat, and is neither able to bite nor to sting. The injury it does to our orchards is effected by its piercer in depositing its eggs, causing twigs to break and fall off. There are several Harvest-flies that belong to this order.
=Tree Hoppers=, being members of the same order, feed upon the juices of plants, through their suckers, and are thus injurious; but their numbers are not sufficient to render them of much consequence.
=Palæothrips mali=, (_Fitch_), is the name of an insect described by Dr. Fitch[39] as infesting apple trees in the month of August, where they were attacking the fruit. They excavated a little hollow near the blossom end of the apple about the size of a pea, which was occupied by small insects. Until the habits of the insect are more thoroughly understood, it will be difficult to advise any remedies.
There is quite a number of insects in this class that affect the grape vine, some of which may become troublesome, and we should watch their habits. The following accounts are condensed from Dr. Fitch's Report:
=Raphigaster sarpinus=, or the large Green Tree-bug, is grassy-green, edged with yellow, and a black point at every joint of the abdomen; found in September.
=Pentatoma ligata=, or the Bound Tree-bug, is also grassy-green, but more widely bordered all round, except the head, with pale red, and has a pale red spot on the middle of its back and on the apex of its scutel; antennæ green.
=Arma modesta=, or the Modest Tree-bug, is tawny, yellowish-gray, thickly dotted with brown punctures; the wing-covers are red at the apex of their leathery portion, and have a brown spot at the tip of the hyaline portion; the under side is whitish, with a row of black dots along the middle, and another on each side.
=Thelia univittata=, (_Harris_), or the Single-striped Treehopper, is chestnut-brown, shaped like a beech-nut, with a perpendicular protuberance on the fore part of its back, higher than wide. It is tawny white in front, a white stripe along the back to the tip; length 0.37 inch; July and August.
=Ceresa bubalus=, or Buffalo Treehopper, is of a light grass-green, freckled with whitish dots; with a sharp short point on each side, projecting like horns.
=Ceresa taurina=, is like the preceding, but the space between the horns is concave.
=Acutalis dorsalis=, is a small, triangular, shining Treehopper, with a smooth round back; it is greenish-white, with a large black spot, from the anterior corners of which a line runs off to each eye. Plentiful about the last of July, a few remaining until October.
=Erythroneura vitis=, (_Harris_), or the Vine-leaf hopper, is pale yellow, with two broad blood-red bands, and a third dusky one on the apex. Swarms of these small insects occur in August, and often bleed the foliage so as to injure it seriously.
=Erythroneura tricincta=, or the Three-banded Leaf-hopper, is like the preceding species, but the bands are narrower.
=Erythroneura vitifex=, or the Vine-destroying Leaf-hopper, is yellowish-white; the wing-covers have oblique confluent, blood-red bands, and a short, oblique, black line on the middle of their outer margin. The thorax commonly has three red stripes, the middle one forked anteriorly and confluent, with two red stripes on the crown of the head. When the wing-covers are closed, they look red, with a cream-colored spot, shaped like a heart placed anteriorly, and on the middle, a large diamond-shaped spot, with a small red spot in its centre.
These insects are sometimes seen in such numbers upon the grape vines in September, that, when the leaves are disturbed, they fly out and resemble a shower of snowflakes. The young resemble their parents, but are destitute of wings.
A REMEDY is much needed.
=Erythroneura vulnerata=, (_Fitch_), or the Wounded Treehopper, is tawny yellowish, sometimes tinged with red; the wing-covers have white spots and veins, and on the middle of the outer margin an oblique black streak, between two creamy white spots; the hind one smaller, and an oblique blood-red line at its end; tips smoky-blackish; length 0.12 inch; September.
=Otiocerus Coquebertii=, is a slim fly of yellowish-white color, with a bright carmine-red stripe along each side of the body and wings, which are widely forked behind. Length 0.42 inch; July until autumn, on the wild grape vine.
There are a great many insects of this order, which are familiar to most country residents on account of their unpleasant smell. These are the true bugs, and belong to the sub-division called _Heteropterous Hemiptera_. The Squash-bug is a familiar illustration of these insects; it is called the _Coreus tristis_, from its sad dull color; they are quite destructive to all plants of the Squash family.
=Reduvius trinotatus=, is one of this order, which is a valuable aid to the horticulturists, because its sucker is armed with sharp instruments, that enable it to pierce and consume other insects, many of which are destroyed by it. This insect has been introduced into the West for the sake of its valuable services.
ORDER LEPIDOPTERA.
The insects of this order are very numerous, and in their larval or caterpillar state they are often very destructive. In the perfect form of butterflies and moths, they commit little or no depredations, because their jaws have been transformed into a sucking apparatus. They consume, in their perfect state, little else than honey.
The order has been divided into three great sections: Butterflies, _Papiliones_; Hawk-moths, _Sphinges_; and Moths, or _Nocturnes_. Of these, the _Ægeridæ_ constitute a very distinct family, resembling bees and wasps rather than butterflies; their caterpillars also differ, being borers, and nearly naked. Butterflies are produced from caterpillars that are not generally very injurious to our crops. Hawk-moths are large insects, and have great power of flight; their caterpillars are large and voracious. It is the moths proper, a very numerous family, which do us the most harm, and which will demand the largest share of our attention. They vary much in size and appearance. Some of the females are destitute of wings.
The _Arctians_ or Woolly Bears, are a very numerous division of the tribe of _Bombyces_ or Spinners, so called from the name of the Silk-worm; some of these will be mentioned.
=Orgyia leucostigma=, or the Vaporer Moth, is a very beautiful caterpillar, frequently seen upon our fruit trees, though not confined to them. They feed separately, and therefore we can best destroy them in the egg. Fortunately, these may easily be found during the winter, for the female, being wingless, never quits her cocoon, but deposits the eggs in a mass upon the outside of it. The whole contrivance is one of the many illustrations of the wonderful instinct of insects. When about to spin, the worm secures two or more leaves, by entwining her silk about their stems, and also around the woody twig upon which they grow; she then attaches them together by bands of silk, and spins her cocoon between them. She thus secures a winter resting place for her eggs, and her progeny, when they hatch the next summer, are upon the tree that furnishes them their appropriate food. These dead leaves will attract our attention during the winter, and should be gathered and burned. Many of the caterpillars are destroyed by a little Ichneumon-fly.
=Orgyia antiqua=, or the Rusty Vaporer Moth, of Europe, has been introduced into this country, and has been quite destructive to thorn-hedges in Rhode Island. They may become troublesome to our orchards.
Several of these _Arctians_, or Tiger-moths, may be seen about our houses on a summer evening, as they are chiefly nocturnal. One of the most common is
=Arctia phalerata=, or the Harnessed Moth, so called from the markings on its wings. Another distinctly marked one is _Callimorpha militaris_, now called _C. Lecontei_. Beautiful illustrations of these are given in Dr. Harris' Report.
=Spilosoma Virginica=, is the beautiful White Moth, or "Miller," that we see in May; it is the imago or perfect insect of a large hairy caterpillar, of a yellowish color, frequently seen in our gardens, and quite destructive to vegetation.
=Hyphantria textor=, or the Fall Web-worm, is very troublesome upon shrubs and trees during the summer and fall. They are called the Web-worms from their habit of feeding gregariously in large numbers, and spinning a web that envelopes the leaves and the whole branch, as they devour the foliage.
This insect commits sad ravages upon our cultivated trees of various kinds, for it is not a choice feeder, consuming but one species, like many other insects. Their most common pasture is the mulberry, and the related Osage Orange is frequently attacked. The Elder bushes appear very attractive to them, and are often covered with their unsightly webs. Elms suffer very much; our favorite fruit trees are attacked; apples, pears, cherries, quinces, and, occasionally, even the peach trees are eaten by them. Even the repulsive Ailantus, which has often been recommended as a wormless tree, is greedily devoured by these caterpillars, notwithstanding its disagreeable odor.
The eggs, from two to three hundred in number, are deposited on the under side of a leaf, near the end of a twig. These soon hatch, and the larvæ commence feeding on the upper surface, spinning their threads from side to side, and then, attaching two or three leaves together, they soon make a web. They continue feeding and spinning along the twig, as they consume the tender portion of the leaf, leaving the mere skeleton.
The caterpillars are small, of a pale yellow color, with a broad blackish stripe on the back, and another beneath. They are thickly clothed with whitish hair; the head and feet are black. Worms of the same nest vary in size and colors. When about an inch long, they disperse, and spin their cocoons. The moth is milk white, without any markings on its wings, and is 1.25 to 1.35 inch in width. (Vide Harris, p. 358).
Though called the Fall Web-worm, these caterpillars appear about Cincinnati in the end of May quite abundantly, and from that time until October, they are more or less frequent; most so in August. In the North, they may be later; I have seen large tracts of forest defoliated on the lake shore, in August, 1865.
REMEDIES.--For the destruction of these pests we must resort to hand-picking, when they are in the caterpillar state. The twig or branch should be taken off, and the worms crushed or burned. It is fortunate for us that they are gregarious and that they spin a web, for we can detect them while they are yet young, and when confined to one or two leaves, so that the whole brood may be destroyed with very little effort. Birds, and some insects, aid us in keeping them in check.
=Clisiocampa decipiens=, (_Walker_), or _C. Americana_, (_Harris_), is commonly known as the Tent-caterpillar, or Nest-caterpillar. The larvæ are not indiscriminate feeders, but prefer the foliage of certain members of the _Rosaceous_ family of plants. Their natural food appears to be the common wild cherry, but they attack the apple so vigorously, that they are often called the apple tree worm. Mr. Fitch thinks they do not feed upon the peach; but I have frequently found them upon this tree since 1855. The moth appears to be endowed with wonderful instinct in depositing her eggs; selecting a terminal shoot that has completed its growth, they are placed to the number of 200 or 300 around it in a broad ring or sheath, and covered with a sort of varnish that protects them.
Very early in the spring, when the buds of the apple have just begun to swell, the eggs hatch, and the little worms traverse the twig, spinning a slender thread; when they reach another branch, they halt in the bifurcation, and, moving about, soon create a slight web with the silken threads, and from this they emerge in search of food, spinning a thread along their route, and when they return, they travel about, and thus enlarge their web.
REMEDIES.--These insects may be attacked in the egg or in the larval state. The former are so arranged as to be conspicuous on the naked spray at any time during the winter--whenever seen, they should be broken or cut off, and carried to the fire. In the early spring, we must watch for the little tents in the bifurcations of the limbs, and remove the nests with all the worms; this may be done when they are small, by using the thumb and finger; if larger, it is a disagreeable task, but no orchardist should hesitate when he recollects that six hundred leaves is a day's ration for one colony. They can easily be gathered in their web, thrown upon the ground, and crushed with the foot. Mr. Needham, of Massachusetts, has invented, what he calls, a caterpillar scourge; it is a little cone of wood, clothed with a piece of wool-card. This is attached to a pole: when thrust into the web, the whole nest is gathered by the card-teeth and brought down. An old dry mullein stalk has often been used for the same purpose, and some recommend burning the nest, or shooting it; but I have more faith in thumb and finger work, believing it to be more thorough.
Among the natural enemies of these caterpillars are the Tiger-beetles, which a successful orchardist of Illinois uses systematically for their destruction. He catches a beetle, and puts it upon a tree containing a nest of the Tent-caterpillar, after which he finds the worms soon disappear.
=Gastrophaca Americana=, (_Harris_).--The Lappet-caterpillars are found on apple trees. The worms are flat, and when at rest on a limb, they often escape observation from their gray color resembling the bark. A fringe of hairs, along their sides, gives them this flat appearance. They feed only at night. Dr. Harris found some in September that measured two and one-half inches in length, and above half an inch in breadth.
SATURNIANS, CERATOCAMPIANS, ZEUZERIANS.
=Platysamia (Attacus) cecropia=, (_Linn._), the Cecropia Emperor Moth, is found as a large cylindrical, pale green worm, three or four inches long, and as thick as one's thumb, and having two rows of pale blue, projecting points along each side, and two rows of pale yellow ones upon the back, with four larger, bright orange, or red ones anteriorly, all ending in little black prickles. The moth is large; its wings dark gray; each has a large white, crescent like spot in the centre, margined with red, and a red band crossing both wings. Appears in June; width five to seven inches.
There are others of this family of noble moths whose names have been indicated above, but they are not very destructive to the orchard.
Then come, in Dr. Harris' classification, the _Zeuzerians_, a group of moths which, like _Ægerians_ among the Sphinges, pierce the roots and stems of trees. Among these is _Xyleutes (Cossus) robiniæ_, or the Locust-tree Boring-moth.
The Saturnians are a group of large, naked caterpillars, which are generally short, thick, clumsy, and cylindrical; they are leaf eaters, and some of them, when young, keep together in families, but separate as they become older, when they spin large silky cocoons sometimes among leaves, which they secure by silk to the twigs, sometimes attaching them to the stems and limbs, and at others at, or beneath, the surface of the ground. This group contains some of the largest and most beautiful moths, with large woolly bodies, and widely extended, highly colored and ornamented wings. They lay a great many eggs; some females deposit several hundreds. Still they are seldom so numerous as to commit serious devastations.
"Among these are the _Telea Polyphemus_, _Tropæ aluna_, _Callosamia Promethea_, _Platysamia cecropia_, (formerly known under the genus _Attacus_, which is now restricted to the immense _A. Atlas_, and another species of China), and the _Euchronia Maia_, and _Hyperchiria varia_, (formerly known under the genus _Saturnia_, which is now retained for several European species). The latter species, (_H. varia_), has been generally known among us under the name of _Saturnia Io_, but according to Dr. Packard, (who published 'a Synopsis of the Bombycidæ of the United States,' in the Third Volume of the Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Philadelphia), our species has been confounded by authors with Cramer's species '_Io_,' from South America, and which belongs to a different genus."--[E.T. Cresson, Mss.]
These moths may yet become valuable for the production of a kind of silk, as they are enclosed in large cocoons, the fibres of which surpass those of the Silk-worm in strength, and might be employed in the formation of fabrics, similar to those manufactured in India from the Tusseh and Arrindy Silk-worms, the strength and durability of which are proverbial. Mr. Pullein, who experimented with the cocoons of the _Cecropia_ found that twenty threads of this silk, twisted together, would sustain nearly an ounce more in weight than the same number of common silk.--(Vide Harris, pp. 295-303.)
_Psychidæ_ are curious caterpillars, which, being naked, cover themselves during the larva state with a case that protects their bodies, though open at both ends, and which they carry about with them; these cases are made up of fragments of leaves, generally the stems and veins, which they connect together by threads of silk. The Germans call them Sack-bearers. Huebner called them _Canæphoræ_, or Basket-carriers, because the cases, often made of little sticks, resemble a basket. One genus is called _Oeceticus_, or House-insect; and the common species, which, in some parts of the country, commits great devastation upon the leaves of trees, is called the Drop-worm, or the Basket-worm, in many places.
We have several genera and species belonging to this sub-family, the most common of which are the _Thyridopteryx ephemeraformis_, and _Oeceticus coniferarum_. The best means for the destruction of this pest consist in persevering efforts for their individual destruction; each case should be cut or torn off in the winter, when they show very plainly upon deciduous trees; they may be crushed, but had better be committed to the flames.
The Notodontians are so called from a hump or horn, which rises from the top of the fourth ring of the caterpillar; the tail is always raised when the insect is at rest. One of these is called, from its horn, _Coelodasys (Notodonta) unicornis_. Some species consume the foliage of our fruit trees, particularly the apple and quince; one of these, the _Datana ministra_, (the _Eumetopona ministra_ of Fitch, or the _Pygæra ministra_ of Harris), will be noticed below.
=Eudryas grata=, and =E. unio.=--The Beautiful Wood-nymph, and the Pearl Wood-nymph.--The worms are very much alike, and resemble the Spotted Forrester. The moths come forth in July; the fore-wings are milk white, bordered behind and on the outer side, from the base to the middle, with rusty brown, edged on the inner side with greenish olive; hind-wings nankeen yellow, with a blackish-brown border. These worms are best removed by hand-picking.
=Datana ministra=, or the Hand-maid Moth.--The moths are troublesome visitors to the evening student in June; they are brown, hairy, thick-bodied, and measure rather more than an inch across the wings. This creature is destined to give us a great deal of trouble by her progeny, for she deposits her numerous eggs on the under side of the leaf on a twig of quince, apple, and cherry trees, where they hatch into worms, that, during their existence of about four weeks, consume immense quantities of foliage, often stripping the trees bare.
The worms feed gregariously, lying side by side in solid phalanx. They are of a dark brown in their younger state, but become lighter and more clearly marked at each successive moulting, so that they are distinctly striped with black and yellow. The peculiar character of this worm is, that when at rest, the head and tail are carried up in the air, or recurved over the body, which is supported by the six prop legs placed near the middle. When disturbed, these caterpillars often throw their heads from side to side, as though in anger. They are sparingly furnished with hairs, and they spin but little; though when young, the worms will sometimes drop from the leaves when disturbed, and hang suspended by a fine strand of silk. At full size, these creatures are an inch and three-quarters to two inches long, and as thick as a goose quill, so that we can readily imagine the amount of destruction which may be committed by one of these armies or family groups of one to two hundred worms.
TREATMENT.--Constant vigilance is required on the part of the orchardist, and unremitting efforts while the insect is in the larval condition. Fortunately for us, their habits are such as to aid us in a remarkable way. They may be looked for in July, but they become numerous only about the end of August, and in September. Some late broods may be seen on the access of early frosts, but by the end of September, the worms generally perfect their growth, and descend into the earth to undergo their changes for the next season, when the moths will again appear.
When we may be inspecting our orchards, in the summer and autumn, we should observe any defective foliage, as this is often an indication of the inroads of insects. If our trees have been neglected, we may be alarmed by observing some of the thriftiest shoots and branches quite stripped of their leaves; and, lying along the stems, or crowded together, we shall see these unpleasant worms, unless they be foraging upon an adjoining, or sometimes upon quite a distant branch; for, in changing their pasture, they descend one twig and pass out upon another, which may diverge considerably from the first.
In the early stages of their existence, however, the little worms consume only the upper surface of the leaves, and it is at this period that we may most advantageously attack them. The leaves that have thus had their substance eroded become dry and whitish, and attract our attention. They are generally found upon a single twig or spray, usually a lateral, and it should at once be examined, as we may now easily destroy the whole brood by rolling a single leaf between the thumb and finger.
NOCTUÆ, OR OWLET-MOTHS, CUT-WORMS.
The perfect insects are thick-bodied, and of dull colors; they fly at night. The caterpillars are naked, live in the soil, and feed above ground at night, when they do considerable damage. The common Cut-worm, _Agrotis_, is an illustration. There are several sorts, which have received different names, but the worms all have very similar habits.
The moths are supposed to lay their eggs in July, when they soon hatch and feed during the season; they attain considerable size and hybernate in the soil.
REMEDIES.--Fall and winter plowing has been recommended, as it exposes the worms to the birds, and to the weather, but especially because it destroys the vegetation upon which they might subsist in the early spring. The only safe way, is to watch their traces among our plants, and dig down beside them, find the worm, and destroy it. Though this does not restore the plant already killed, we prevent further damage, and may hope to thus diminish the pest in future years, which is no small matter. A knowledge of their nocturnal habits has induced some gardeners to go among their young plants with a lamp or candle at night, when they may find the caterpillars feeding. A few choice plants may be protected by wrapping their stems with a strip of paper, or a stout leaf, (hickory), at the time of transplanting into infested grounds; this will save them. Tobacco water has been found very effective, applied to the plants, which it does not injure.
=Mamestra arctica=, (_Hadena amica_, of Harris, and _H. amputatrix_, of Fitch), is a Cut-worm of a brownish color, about one and a half inch long. It is sometimes quite destructive in the nursery and garden, ascending woody plants, and cutting them off where succulent, in the month of May. It can only be checked by seeking for it, in the soil, near the base of the plants affected.
All these Cut-worms are eaten by birds, among which the crow is a valuable aid to the farmer, and should be cherished for his services instead of being condemned as a bird of ill-omen. Predacious insects also consume numbers of them; one of these is the larva of a beetle, _Harpalus calaginosus_. A large Ichneumon-fly has been found hunting after the worms, and is considered their natural enemy.
GEOMETERS, SPAN-WORMS, CANKER-WORMS.
The measuring worms take their name from their peculiar method of locomotion; having their legs at each end of their long bodies, they walk by progressive leaps, arching up their backs by bringing their hind-legs forward, and then thrusting their heads out to their full length. Many of them drop from the trees, and hang suspended by a thread of silk, when disturbed, or when seeking the earth to undergo their transformations. Some of them are naked, or have few hairs; most are smooth, often striped, or of an uniform color, like the bark of the trees on which they feed.
The moths are slender-bodied; the wings large; of some the females have no wings. These are the _Hybernians_, including the Canker-worm, _Anisopterix vernata_. These caterpillars are very numerous and destructive; they do not feed gregariously, and are difficult to combat in that form. The pupæ are under ground, and, as the female moths are wingless, and must ascend the trees to deposit their eggs, we can destroy them in the perfect form by meeting them on the highway they have to pass. Ingenious devices have been invented for this purpose; among the most effective of these are vessels of oil, fastened closely around the bole of the tree. The moths emerge from the ground in early spring, but many come out during pleasant mild days in the winter, and some even in the autumn; so the remedies must be applied early to be of any use.
Harris describes a smaller species as the _Anisopterix pometaria_.
=Hybernia tiliaria=, or the Span-worm of the Linden, is abundant in June, growing to the length of an inch and a half. A belt of tar, applied to the trees, has been found effective in preventing the ascent of the wingless females; this needs renewing daily, until the season of their rising has passed.
=Ellopia ribearia=, or the Currant-moth, was figured and described by Fitch as the _Abraxas? ribearia_, in New York Reports for 1856. The worm is light yellow, with black dots. It eats the leaves of currants and gooseberries, in June. The moth ascends from the ground in July; it is nankeen-yellow; quite a common insect in some parts of the country. It must have some natural enemies, for, where very abundant one year, it sometimes disappears altogether the next. Hand-picking is the only remedy known, and this is quite a tedious process.
TORTRICES, DELTA MOTHS, OR LEAF-ROLLERS.
The Leaf-rollers are a numerous tribe, and some of them are troublesome upon our cultivated trees and vines. They curl up the edge of the leaf upon which they feed, and fasten it with little bands of silk, and thus shelter themselves from the weather and from their enemies. They are naked worms, and generally light colored, and exceedingly active. Some live in the unfolding leaves and flower-buds, fastening them together so they cannot expand, while they devour the tender tissues. Some enter the young fruit, which they cause to ripen and fall prematurely. The moths are generally small, often prettily marked, and fly only in the evening.
=Loxotænia rosaceana=, (_Harris_), is found soon after the buds of the apple begin to expand. They curl up and fasten them together, and do considerable damage.
=Penthina oculana=, (_Harris_), has similar habits, and preys upon the apple; both must be killed by hand.
=Brachytoenia melania=, or the Many-dotted Apple Leaf-worm, is mentioned by Fitch[40] as eating holes in the leaves, in June and September. It is rather thick, light green, an inch and a quarter long, with five white lines and numerous white dots; the worms spin their cocoons in a leaf. There are two crops.
=Loxotænia cerasivorana=, (_Fitch_), or the Cherry Tortrix, is a deep yellow worm, with black head and feet. Found in July, fastening the leaves together and living in families, forming a large nest.[41]
=Desmia maculalis=, or the Spotted-winged Sable, or Grape Leaf-folder, is a slender, active green worm, that feeds upon and disfigures the leaves of our grape vines, rolling them with great regularity, and fastening them with strong bands of beautiful white silk. The pupa is formed within the rolled leaf. These worms begin in June, but continue to fold the leaves during the season of growth.
They can be destroyed by hand-picking, but it requires quickness and dexterity, as the worm escapes from either end of the open pipe when disturbed. The warblers are very fond of them, and destroy a great many.
=Carpocapsa pomonella=, or the Codling-moth, is one of these Tortrices, which gives great trouble. It has been introduced from Europe, but is steadily increasing as our orchards grow older, until we now have few perfect fruit. The moth appears early in the summer to lay the eggs of the first crop of worms. This insect is figured and described by different authors, among whom Dr. Trimble, of New Jersey, has paid it especial attention in his recent work.
The eggs are dropped singly upon the blossom end of the apple, that affords an entrance to the young worm, which passes to the core, about which it consumes the pulp and the seeds. The worm is whitish, becoming flesh-colored. In warm weather it attains its growth in three or four weeks, and makes its exit by gnawing through the side of the fruit. It instinctively seeks the stem of the tree to secrete itself under the scales of bark, and this affords us an opportunity to destroy it in the pupa state, for it will creep under any shelter that may be put in its way.
The REMEDIES will depend upon the habits of the insect. The moth, being nocturnal, may be destroyed by burning lamps or fires in the orchard during June, when they are first at work; cheap coal-oil may be used for the purpose. The pupæ can be entrapped in large numbers, by putting a piece of old rag in the crotch of the tree, beneath which the worms will crawl to spin their cocoons, when they may easily be destroyed. Dr. Trimble has used a trap, made by twisting a hay rope and fastening it about the trunk of the tree; under the rope immense numbers will be found. This trap should be examined fortnightly, as the moths hatch out during hot weather in a shorter time than later in the season, when some remain over winter in the pupal state.
All wormy fruit should be gathered as soon as it falls from the trees, and either be boiled, or at once fed to swine. Hogs and sheep, kept in the orchard, will generally consume the fruit as fast as they fall to the ground; and this is the simplest and cheapest method of destroying the worms.
=Chætochilus pometellus=, (_Harris_), is commonly called the Palmer-worm. It feeds upon the leaves of our orchard and forest trees in June. Sometimes it appears in immense numbers, and, coming after the period for the production of new leaves, great damage is done to the trees; old trees, and limbs of younger ones, are sometimes killed. There have been two celebrated invasions of this insect in the Eastern States, those of 1791 and of 1853.[42]
GRAPE VINE FEEDERS.
Grape vines are subject to the attacks of many lepidopterous insects. Dr. Harris gives the history of seven American larvæ, mostly of large moths, which feed upon grape leaves.
=Pterophorus periscelidactylus=, or the Gartered Grape vine Plume, is a pale green worm, half an inch long, which hides itself in a hollow ball of leaves, fastened together with silken threads. It is described at length by Dr. Fitch, in the New York Agricultural Transactions.
=Ohis myron=, (_Chærocampa pampinatrix_, of _Harris_), called also the Vine Dresser, is somewhat troublesome in the vineyards, as it eats the leaves, and cuts off the bunches of grapes when half grown. This worm is thick, cylindrical, tapering anteriorly, pale green, freckled with pale yellow dots, and, when mature, a pale dusky olive; 2.25 inches long. The pupa is found under leaves on the ground; the moth emerges in June.
=Philampelus satellita=, and =P. Achemon=, the Satellite and Achemon Sphinges, are large green worms that feed upon the vine. They bury themselves in the ground when going into the pupa state, and remain until the next July. The worms are seen in August and September.
=Procris Americana=, or the American Forrester, is found feeding upon the grape leaves at mid-summer, (June 22). The worms feed gregariously on the surface of a leaf, some twenty side by side, leaving only a skeleton behind them when small, and consuming the leaf when older. They are small, 0.60 inch long; yellowish. The moth is blue-black, with a bright orange neck.
=Alypia 8-maculata=, or the Eight-spotted Forrester, is a light blue worm, 1.25 inches in length. They leave the vines in July, and spin a web on the ground; the moth appears in May; it is black, with orange shanks; each of the fore-wings has two large, light yellow spots; the hind-wings have two white ones. Width 1, to 1.50 inch.
ÆGERIANS.
=Ægeria exitiosa=, (_Say_), or _Trochilium exitiosum_, is well known in its larval state as the Peach tree Borer, and is often so destructive as to kill the trees. The habits of the worm as a borer, and its situation at the base of the tree, are somewhat similar to those of the apple tree borer; but while that is the footless grub of a beetle, this is a true caterpillar, the larva of a butterfly or moth, with feet. The females deposit their eggs from June to October, placing them upon the bark at the surface of the ground, sometimes in the forks of the large limbs. The larva enters, and works downward; first consuming the bark, but afterwards eroding the wood also. Gum exudes from the wound, mixed with their castings, and indicates their presence. When ready to enter the pupa form, the worms come to the surface, excavate a hollow in the wood, and prepare a tough leathery follicle or pod, three-fourths of an inch long, in which they repose as pupæ.
This, or an analagous insect, attacks the plum tree, and behaves in a similar manner. The double-flowering Almond of our shrubberies is also attacked by the borer.
The perfect insect looks more like a wasp than a butterfly, for the wings of all this group are partially clear of feathers, and transparent. It varies in size from a half to three-quarters of an inch in length, and from eight-tenths to one and three-tenths of an inch across. The female varies more than the male, and her wings are larger in proportion to the body, which is heavier. The male is of a deep steel-blue color, with sulphur-yellow marks, and glossy luster. The wings are transparent and glossy; the veins margined and fringed steel-blue.
REMEDIES will depend upon the habits of the insect, and must be directed to the pupa and larva, though valuable preventives are applicable to the perfect insect. The worms may be sought out by scraping away the gum and cutting the dead bark until we find them, often along the main roots; the follicles with the pupæ should also be sought. This work can be done in the autumn and spring; if at the former season, the removed earth should be left away from the stem, when coal tar may be applied to destroy any worms left in the tree and to act as a preventive against future attacks, but this substance should be used with great caution. If applied, the earth should be thrown back to the tree. Boiling soap-suds has been used with good effects.
PREVENTIVES are sometimes better than cures, and in this case they have been very successfully used. They all consist in means to keep the moth from depositing her eggs in the part of the tree where, alone, the borers can be harmful. Some raise a little mound of earth about the tree in the spring, and allow it to remain there all summer. The first application of this principle consisted in placing a chimney crock about the base of the young tree when planted; into this coal ashes, cinders, or even gravel was placed, which protected the base of the tree. In the autumn the crock was lifted, and the materials scattered. An open box, made of four bits of board, tacked together, answered the same purpose. A cone of coarse brown paper, tied about the tree with grocers' string, or pasted upon the tree itself, when applied, will answer a very good purpose in keeping off the fly.
A small portion of sulphur thrown about the tree is said to have the desired effect, but the statement has not been confirmed by trial. It has been recommended to plant Tansy with every peach tree, but doubt attaches itself to this suggestion also.
In the _American Agriculturist_, for February, 1865, is a notice of a peach tree protector made of sheet-iron, like a stove-pipe; and in the April number, Mr. Bouthorpe, of Massachusetts, says, he had used a similar apparatus made of zinc, eight inches long, and twice the size of the tree, which was of easy application; the contained space next the tree was to be filled with loose dirt. They were found to be a perfect protection.
=Ægeria tipuliformis=, (Linn.), or the Currant Borer, has been imported from Europe. The eggs are laid near a bud; when hatched, the worms penetrate the pith of young shoots, killing them.
=Ægeria pyri= is mentioned by Dr. Harris[43] as having done a good deal of damage to pear trees, by boring under the bark. The perfect insect resembles that of the Currant Borer, and makes its appearance near the end of summer, leaving its chrysalis skin projecting from the hole in the bark, whence it had escaped.
=Ægeria polistæformis=, or Grape Vine Borer, is mentioned by Mr. Glover in the Patent Office Report for 1854, p. 80. He had received it from North Carolina, where it was very destructive to all vines, except the Scuppernong. This insect has become rather common in the vineyards about Cincinnati, and its depredations, in consequence of the large size of the caterpillar, are very serious. The eggs are laid near the roots of the vine, and the larvæ bore into the bark and wood during the summer, consuming them so completely, that the vine sickens and dies, and often breaks off at the ground, or just below the surface. When fully grown, they measure from an inch to an inch and three-quarters in length, are thick and whitish, and they form a pod-like chrysalis, similar to that of the Peach Tree Borer, but within or beside the injured roots.
The moths are of a dark brown color, tinged with tawny-orange, and banded with bright yellow on the edge of the second ring of the body; the fore-wings are dusky, and the hind ones transparent.
REMEDIES.--No effectual methods of prevention are known; but it is well to inspect the vines, and when the presence of the insects is suspected, examine the roots, to find and destroy the worms.
NEUROPTERA, HYMENOPTERA, AND DIPTERA.
These several orders will be introduced together for convenience, as they may be disposed of in a briefer mention than some of their predecessors; because they do not contain so many species that are noxious by preying upon our cultivated plants. Some are even of advantage to us by their carnivorous propensities.
Among the =Neuroptera= are several which are aquatic in their larval condition, but when winged, they devour many insects; among these are the Dragon-flies, commonly called Devil's-needles by the children, who dread them, but they are harmless creatures. The Ant-lions were referred to under the head of Aphids, in the consideration of the order _Hemiptera_, as most voracious destroyers of Plant-lice. Reference was also made to the Lace-winged Flies, _Hemerobius_, which, in the larval state, consume immense numbers of the same pests. A few of these insects are injurious; among them are the White-ants, Wood-lice, and the Wood-ticks, which are annoying, though they do not affect our crops.
Of the =Hymenoptera= there are many which, in a perfect state, consume the juices of our choice fruits, as well as the pollen and honey of flowers. Their services among these last, as aids in fertilizing the germs, is often of great importance to the fruit-grower. But, while acknowledging our gratitude to many for this service, and to the industrious bee for gathering abundant stores of the nectared sweets, we have a serious charge to bring against the family for their depredations. The wasps especially are often troublesome, particularly in the vineyard, and their stings are annoying. Some ants are quite injurious.
The larvæ of some species are destructive as wood borers and as leaf-eaters, and others cause an excrescence or warty growth upon the twigs and leaves where the eggs have been deposited; these are called _Gall-flies_. The great benefits rendered by a very large class of insects in this order, however, may compensate for all the evil done by the others. I refer to the tribe of _Ichneumon-flies_ of several genera. Some of these are very small, and deposit their eggs within other insects, where they hatch and destroy them by feeding upon their juices.
Many of the wasps are predaceous, and destroy numerous insects to feed their larvæ. Some of these exercise a wonderful instinct in preparing and securing this food for their young, which is stored up in safe caskets with the egg, and are ready to serve as food to the young larvæ.
The _Diptera_, or two-winged insects, form an extensive order, containing many species, and these are composed of very numerous individuals. Flies and mosquitos are exceedingly annoying to man and animals, and many species, in the larval state, consume vegetable matters; but even here they are often of use in consuming decayed vegetation, and like many others of the order may be considered scavengers, consuming, as they do, immense quantities of filth and carrion, that would otherwise continue to taint the air and produce disease.
Some of the most destructive insects of this order are the _Gall-gnats_, among which are the Wheat-fly and the Hessian-fly, which often sadly interfere with the farmer's prospects.
A few insects will now be noticed more in detail.
=Selandria cerasi=, or _Blennocampa cerasi_, is the common Slug of the cherry and pear trees, and quite a troublesome hymenopterous insect. In some parts of the United States these little creatures are so numerous as to strip the substance from the foliage of pears and cherries.
Our Slug resembles the _Selandria oethiops_ of Europe, but is declared to be different. The larvæ are at first white, but the slimy substance that oozes from their bodies covers them with an olive coating. They have twenty very short legs; when fully grown, the largest are about nineteen-twentieths of an inch long. The head is concealed under the fore part of the body, which is largest before, and tapers behind. They attain their growth in twenty days, casting their skins five times, eating them until the last time, after which they remain free from viscidity, and are of a clear yellow color. They leave the tree and enter the ground to the depth of one or three inches, to form their chrysalids. In three days they come up as flies, in July and August, to lay eggs for a second brood, the pupæ of which remain in the ground during the winter.
Another insect of this genus is very destructive to our rose bushes; it is called _Selandria rosæ_.
=Selandria vitis=, is a species that appears upon our grape vines, and is quite troublesome in some vineyards in July. They feed in companies of a dozen or more.
REMEDIES.--Shaking them off the leaves has been recommended, but does not promise to be effectual. When few, they should be sought for and crushed, to prevent their increase. Though troublesome, this may be effectually done, and their ravages leave traces that will direct us to the leaves which contain them.
When more numerous, the foliage may be syringed with common soapsuds, or with the whale oil soap, two pounds to fifteen gallons of water.
Air-slaked lime has been dusted upon them with good effect; ashes, and even dry dust from the road, will destroy them, by adhering to the slimy surface. These applications are best made when the foliage is wet after a shower, or with the dew. The great difficulty consists in their habit of going under the leaves, and thus being protected.
Mr. Parkman, the noted rose fancier, has found a mixture of soap and petroleum of great service, as it kills the slugs without injuring the buds and foliage. To a gallon of soft soap he adds two-thirds of a pint of petroleum, mixes them thoroughly, and dissolves in half a barrel of water; to be applied with a syringe.
=Diptera.=--Dr. Fitch describes as a new species _Malobrus mali_. He found them in a fruit that had been perforated by the Codling-moth. The larvæ are transparent; the flies resemble the Hessian-fly, that destroys the wheat plant.[44]
=Cecidomyia grossulariæ=, or Gooseberry Midge, attacks the fruit, giving it the appearance of ripening prematurely. Considerable fruit is lost in this way.[45]
In closing this chapter, the author feels obliged to express his regrets that no more space could have been appropriated to this important subject. He could only indicate some of the most troublesome insects of our orchards and vineyards, and he hopes that the reader will be induced to pursue the investigation for himself. He knows, by experience, that the study will bring its own reward in the information that is received, and which is absolutely necessary to enable us to combat these troublesome pests successfully.
FOOTNOTES:
[23] _Practical Entomologist_, 518 South 13th street, Philadelphia, fifty cents a year, in advance.
[24] Vide _Prairie Farmer_, _American Agriculturist_, _Country Gentleman_, etc.
[25] See Practical Entomologist, Vol. II, p. 32.
[26] See Practical Entomologist, Vol. II, p. 31.
[27] Harris, p. 205.
[28] Harris' Report, p. 310.
[29] For further details of these insects, the reader is referred to Fitch's Report, pp. 82 to 98.
[30] Rept. cit., p. 100.
[31] Rept. cit., p. 122.
[32] Rept. cit., p. 125.
[33] Rept. cit., p. 134.
[34] Trans. N.Y. Ag'l Soc., 1856, p. 359.
[35] Lib. cit. p. 435.
[36] Harris' Rept. p. 211.
[37] For further particulars respecting these insects, consult Dr. Fitch's Rept., p. 5, and Harris's Rept., p. 241.
[38] Vide Harris' Rept., p. 232.
[39] Rept., p. 403.
[40] Rept., p. 241.
[41] Vide Fitch, in N.Y. Trans. 1856, p. 382.
[42] For interesting details vide Fitch's Rept., p. 221.
[43] Rept., p. 256.
[44] See Fitch's Report, p. 176.
[45] See Fitch's Report, p. 252.