Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1895-10-17
THE ELM TREE BEETLE.
Preventive aud Destructive Measures
Are Adopted

Are Adopted
The, advance of tie elm leaf beetle
into New England has been extremely
rapid. When attention was first called
two ago, the entomologists had not
evidence that there was one in New
England, but they had probably then
begun their visttations, and about a
fortnight ago they We're reported in
full force i'm several towns In Connect
ford, Milford, Bridgeport and other
cut and western Massachusetts. STAN
towns along Long Island sound have
been ravaged, and from New Haven
they have come up the valley, and
are in Hartford as well as in this city.
The damage done in the famous elms
OF New Haven, the Elm city, Is mel
ancholy to contemplate. The trees are
as brown ans In the last fall, and no
work has as yet been done to stop the
despoilment. Last week the city
council determined to take measures
/ against the pest. Most of the mas
chief for this year had been done, and
| that will be the case almost every
/ where, though perhaps in this city, we
may have begun in time to save most
Of our trees. A few weeks ago the
state agricultural school at Mansfield,
Conn, published full directions for
the meeting Of the elm leaf beetle at
the outset. Prof G. ID. Woods said:
The easiest way to destroy the bee
ties and prevent TO a considerable ex-
tent their favages another season is
to treat the ground around the base
of the trees for distance of several
Yards with strong kerosene emulsion.
This will not help the trees this sea-
son, but ii all the pupae AT the sur
face Of the ground are destroyed, and
IL this i,s done under all the trees In
a given town, there will be no beetles
to lay eggs next season. Unless the
pupae are destroyed now the only
way to protect the elmS next year will
be by the expensive and somewhat
difficult method OF spra wing with paris
green or London purple. The kero-
sene emulsion is best prepared in this
| way: Soft soap, one quart; kerosene
/ one pint; water, six quarts. Warm
the soap until it becomes liquetiel.
Remove from near fire. add the kero-
sene. and agitate rapidly with force
pump for ) TO 10 minutes until 1t be-
| comes a homogeneous creamy mass
from which the Kerosene will not sep
arate on standing. Add the water and
thoroughly mix, when the emulsion
will have the appearance of mix
This should be applied near the tree;
at two or three different times in sntti-
cient quantity to thoroughly saturat e
the surface of the ground. a force
pump with spra wing nozzle or a water
ing-pot with rose can be used to apply
the emulsion /"
The Elm city authorities began their
tardy work by pumping the kerosene
/ emulsion into the tops Of the ellnS.
| They also used hard soap emulsion,
made in the proportions of a half
pound Of hard yellow soap dissolyei
i in Il gallon of boiling water, with two
gallons Of Kerosene the mixture being
| diluted with y gallons of water. First
| the beetle fighters try to sweep the
! trees clear Of the insects, their larvae
/ and cQcoons, and then destroy the
sweepings with fire on the ground.
! Having accomplished that end, they
/ apply the emulsion with Il broom to
| the bark Of the tree. superintendent
+ Kelly says that in some cases The Will
furnish the solution to families free
\ Of expense. T.. H. Jenkins of the
! Storrs school says. "Set a trap for
/ the beetle His trap il built IN this
/ way: Tack a strip of cotton or 10
] inches wide IA dark color is besN about
an elm d few feet above ground; then
stuff hay inside the belt an inch deep,
! PIN the ends of the band with safety
/ pins. Every day. says the professor,
the beetles will come down and SNUG
gle into the hay, lapse into the pupal
state. and turn bright golden hue.
! Then mash EN- with a mallet or
club.
In many PAGES III MASSACHUSETTS, Tue
cd protection against the canker-worm
is brought into play, the same which
was used a score or more years ago
all over Boston, every tree on the
common being then helted with tin
hands. drawn taut about the tree
trunks with their proi ecting, crumplei
edges bent downward. and a gutter
kept filed With kerosene to receive the
larvae as they crawl up. This was
also tried in Northampton, and 50 was
the ewaddling of the trunks with fan
mel or felt or belts Of tar.
La Lady Colin Campbell's Realm,
tL,ndon publication Gertrude Ather-
ion has an article in which she makes