The Daily state journal. [volume] (Alexandria, Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-11-28
evening State Solirnal.
TUESDAY EVENING, NOV: %, 1871.
PARKER EARLE ON PEACH ROT AND
THE CURCULtO.


in six or seven hours, and that the entire
expense for the season will not exceed eight
cents per tree. This is something more
than .jarring with good wheel machine will
cost, in an orchard of high-headed trees,
where the ground is level enough for easy
running it but the trapping can be done on
all kinds OF slopes, and under all shapes of
trees, and the labor of children be made
available. Some of our people believe the
trapping system to be much the most eff
fective. The gentleman just referred to has
heavy crop of fruit almost entirely free
from worms, and with very small loss from
rot. The Hale's Early is known among us
and throughout the country as one of the
most treacherous peaches to handle, but so
entirely sound was his crop of that variety
that he has shipped them over GOO miles by
rail to market throughout the season with
entire success. | have to-day visited
another large orchard OF Hale's Early,
which has been thoroughly cultivated and
faithfully plugged" the common one
wheel catcher having been run daily
in preference to trapping, though that was
tried also early in the season. The trees
were all bowed under their crimson bur-
den, but | could scarcely find rot
ting peach. or wormy one. In both these
orchards there have been great number of
curculios caught, and many peaches were
stung, and some rotted ; but all the injured
ones have been frequently removed, and
the result is heavy crops OF very beautiful
and very perfect peaches. The same kind
of work has been done with varying degrees
OF faithfulness in one or two dozen other
orchards, with the same general results.
Some have used the traps mostly, and
Others the catcher, the results and expense
not differing greatly perhaps. Trapping
may be commenced earlier in the season,
and should begin with the blossoming of
the trees, and each process should continue
as long as any curculios can be found and
if intermitted for lack of bugs, should
never be long neglected while the fruit is
on the trees. 1t must not be supposed that
the successes | have named are mainly due
to fortunate locations, or a peculiarly favor
able season, for while we have fewer curcu-
lios than in some former years, yet they
have been sufficient for the destruction
are, perhaps, hundred orchards
about here where few or no
bugs have been caught, and there the
peaches are wormy and the rot quite gene
raj. The Hale's Early from these or
ehards were picked week before maturity
to escape rot, and our markets glutted with
this green and worthless fruit. Our expe-
iience here this year has given us some
new light regarding the habits Of our indus
trous little Mohammedan enemy, many of
whose hidden ways have been a perpetual
enigma to to the entomologist. For in
stance, it has been supposed that'these in
sects were most active in the day time, and
especially in warm days, flying freely
when the mercury was 10 and over. But
we always find them in the trees at the
earliest morning call, and it looks as ifthey
had been busy there during the night and
on jarring them down we find them after
an hour or two under the traps, where they
seem to be quietly reposing. 1t looks as if
the little villains had Systematically turned
night into day and day into night, like 9TH
er unchristian depredators. When not
Jared down, they prolong their work well
through the morning hours, and then retire
to some secluded cover for their daily sizes
la; and finding the chips or pcices of bark
at the base of the tree and clean ground be-
yond, they seek this congenial shelter. So
we believe that in an important sense the
curculio is anoc{uDdl insect. Again, our uni
form experience for years has been that most
of the "catcho has been from the outside
rows of the orchard, and with preference
for that side nearest the forest or some neg
lected thicket, which indicates that they
have passed through their transformations.
which they must do III the earth beneath
their native trees, during the previous sea-
son, md reached their winged form before
winter and escaped to more inviting quar-
tiers for Information. But there is one inn
portant question about the curculio which
our experience this year fails to shed light
upon, but rather makes it a more perplex-
ing mystery. Where did they come from
this particular year Last year we had
no peaches or plums, and, excepting a very
few cherries, no stone fruits at all within
40 or 80 miles Of us. And there were no
wild fruits, and very few nuts or acorns.
Now, in what, in our region, did the cur
culio propagate ? Or did he live over an
extra year waiting for an opportunity to
perpetuate his race +? Or is he possibly an
''old settler" like the rest Of us, who grows
more active and wise with years ? Or did
he migrate to our pleasant hills from the
prairie country rs miles to the north of us,
where they had large peach crop last
year and have none at all tn S year? How
ever the feat was accomplished, our hardy
and vigilant enemy is with us in strong
iOASS, 6iSatiy W tuS tioaPpVhitiiiShe VI oui
hopes.
Your correspondent expresses surprise
that when his friend had planted an orchard
200 miles away, and distant from any cul-
tivated fruits, he should at once have been
attacked by the rot. But doubtless the
curculios were around him i'll abundances
as there can be little doubt but that his
particular section, as well as most other
parts of Georgia and of the whole South,
as well as the whole West, is well stocked
with them. They have been brought up on
wild fruits and forest nuts, perhaps but
they will show lively Partially for the
choicer fruitage of the cultivated orchard.
There may be sections in the pine woods of
the South where peach grower would be
exempt from attack for few years, as the
early planters were in Illinois when the
prairie fires annually swept over our great
plains and through the adjacent thickets
and forests, destroying a vast amount of
insect life. But let no man delude himself
with the hope of escaping the jurisdiction
of the curculio in any cultivated district Of
our country east of the Rocky Mountains
and, having the curculio ''always with us,n
we can rely upon the annual devastation of
rot in our stone-fruits to just that degree in
which we neglect "bug-killing" and the
atba,. ea,,ifaru ., on c,,rac ahnva ct1ueracfaJ