Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-05-10
SAVE YOUR PEACHES.

SAVE YOUR PEACHES.
External vigilance IS the price OF
peaches" This, made up from what a
great man once said with reference TO lib
erty, was an aphorism {. the late Capt.
Isaac Donovan of Alabama, who in his time
was the most extensive and successful
peach grower in the lower South. II cor
rectly represents the true state of the case
even in section where the orchardist has
fewer peach troubles, Gas yellows, etc. to
contend against. than are characteristic of
the Northern peach regions.
While it may be said that the Texas
peach grower has but two remediable ad-
verses to circumvent, these. if left without
due attention, are entirely sufficient TO
rather efectually blast his prospects for
success. One of these is found in the peach
tree borer--the IFgeria exitosa of entomol-
ogists-and the other in the plum Tor peach)
curcuho, known TO science as COntracheluS
nenuphar. The former bores into the body
of the tree. usually about the earth line.
and seriously damages it-often Kills it
while the latter bores into the fruit caus-
ing il to fall prematurely, OF to be what we
call ''wormy peaches" at the stage OF ripe
ness. The tree borer can be easily knocked
out by correct application of the arsanical
remedy already described in these columns,
but to effectually get the better of the cur
culio is q thing by no means so easy of &C.
complishment.
The parent Of the plum curculio, or worm
found in the peach or plum. is a brownish-
black beetle measuring only about one
fifth of an inch in length. 1t is capable of
flying and hence passes from tree TO tree,
usually moving at night When the young
plums or peaches are the size of acranberry
ii begins ''stinging them, as we say, that
Is. it cuts through the outer skin and in the
opening so made deposits IN egg. From
this egg is soon Matched a minute grub or
worm which At once cuts It's way into the
fruit. Finally when the grub has attained
to full size the fruit falls and the grub
quits it and goes into the ground, where it
mdergoes its transformations and in due
time comes forth perfect beetle ready TO
begin the work of q new generation in max
IIiS NOIILS III hllt VI tph-
tinues until the fruit remaining on the trees
has attained to the age Of ripeness, and we
then have wormy product as the result.
Several remedies for this pest have been
proposed and carried into practice by the
Northern peach growers. One of these is
known as Earring the trees" Late OF an
evening or early OF 4 morning, a sheet is
spread upon the ground under the tree. A
sharp blow with a mallet is given to the
trunk of the tree. When the beetle up
among the branches feels the jar it pos
sums after the manner of some larger
beetles, and falls TO the sheet, where it can
be found and destroyed. This remedy is
pretty efectual though, of course. it in
wolves close attention and q good deal of
trouble
Another popular remedy lies i'll having
hogs running in the orchard 10 devour the
curculio-infested fruit so soon as it falls,
and before the insects have had time TO
come out and so into the ground to trans
form and get ready for the next generation
of worms. If one can get his hogs to eat
the young and green fruit, this will do a
great deal OF good, but for our own part we
have never yet been able 10 find strain OF
hogs that would much take to this charac-
ter Of fruit. \ hog must be rather hungry.
we take it, to eat green peaches the size of
a nutmeg. or smaller-the size when their
services are most needed.
The best and simplest thing to do that we
L of ycbarN hog
paratively small number of trees to look
after, is TO visit them night and morning
with n basket, pick up all fallen fruit by
hand, and burn it. Merely crushing it will
do no good, neither will removing it TO some
other locality. 1t must be burned to de-
person with only few trees, or only
small orchard of either plums or peaches,
should never neglect. 1t does not take
much of either time or trouble, and one
plum or peach left upon the ground twenty
four hours may lead 10 the ruin of fifty
specimens later.
Recently good deal has been said in
favor of spraying the foliage of peach or
plum trees with Paris green or London
purple as remedy for curculio. There is
much difference of opinion expressed with
reference to the effectiveness of this
method. If the parent beetle fed upon the
fruit the remedy would be all right. of
course, but since it does not, but merely
punctures it and deposits an egg beneath
the reach Of the poison, many conclude that
the spraying could do no kind of good We
are. ourself, rather inclined to that opinion.
Some persons put bands Of talred paper
around the trunks of their trees 10 prevent
the beetles from climbing up from the !
ground. This is all folly, as the beetles fly,