The Bourbon news. [volume] (Paris, Ky.) 1895-19??, 1914-07-14
AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION.
The Elm Trees About Kentucky In
Danger From the Imported
Leaf Beetle.


Inquiries are frequently coming to |!
the Experiment Station with refer !!
ence to the injuries OF the elm leaf
beetle on shade trees about Lexing-
ton and elsewhere in the State. The
insect doing the mischief is Euro
pean species, imported good many
years ago to the eastern United
States, and appearing in Kentucky
about 1898, when it was noted as es-
pecially destructive at Bardstown, in
Nelson County. 1t attacks by prefer
ence the European elm, but when hun
CRY and European elm trees are not
available sometimes spreads to the
American elms and snay then do them
a good deal of mischief.
The adult of the insect is a small
obscurely striped beetle belonging to
the same family of insects as the COM
mon striped cucumber beetle. 1t
passes the winter about buildings, hid
| ing away in the fall in crevices next
foundations, sometimes coming
through doors and Gindows and hid;
| ing in dwellings. AS soon as the
| leaves of the elm are developed the
following spring, th.se beetles resort
to the leaves, place their eggs there
and then die The young soon appear
on the leaves, which they begin to
feed upon, and if abundant will render
the tree unsightly if they die not act
| ually destroy all of the LEAKAGE before
they become grown. They are most
| frequently noticed when they have
completed their growth as worms or
larvae and come down the trunk to
undergo their changes on the ground
beneath the trees.
They are at our mercy when they
come to the ground in this fashion,
and large numbers of them may be de-
stroyed with scalding hot water or
with coal oil. Traps are sometimes
made of sticky fly paper so as to col
| lect quantities of them and render
/ their destruction more easy. If these
insects at the foot of the tree are al
lowed to complete their changes they
become beetles in short time and go
back to produce another brood of
worms. This continues throughout
the summer, several broods being de-
veloped before fall.
1t will be seen from this account
that the insect is capable of destroy
ing all of the leaves of tree, and
if this is permitted during the whole
of one season, trees are very greatly
weakened and begin to show signs of
decline. They are sometimes killed
outright by the insects when nothing
is done to prevent.
While good deal can be done by
the treatment suggested, namely,
destroying the insect when it comes
down the trunk from the leaves, the
most effective treatment is spraying
the leaves Ss soon as the beetles be.
gin to appear in the spring, with arse
} nate of lead, using three pounds OF
arsenate of lead paste in fifty gallons
or about a barrel of water. A single
) spraying at this time will in ordinary
cases serve to keep the trees from
severe injury for the rest of the sum
) mer This preparation must be ap
piled by means of force pump and
) spray nozzle. Pumps of sufficient
strength and capacity to spray large
elm trees may be bought from about
; twenty to thirty dollars. The hose
! necessary must be strong and of such
. length fifty feet at least that. the
; one using the nozzle can climb up into
. the trees and to reach the tOpmOSt
branches. Outfits of the sort needed
; for such spraying can be bought OF
. the Deming Co., Salem, o.; or of the
; GOulds Manufacturing Co., Seneca
.. Falls, n. Y; or of number of other
. similar manufacturing establish
: ments. Any one with good muscles
can operate these pumps. A barrel OF
. two of the mixture ought to spray al
; most any of our elm trees. A single
. tree is worth several times the cost
. of spraying outfit: The cost OF
treatment after this purchase is made
. is but slight.
; Arsenate of lead may be bought OF
the Grasselli Chemical Company, o.
. Cincinnati, o. Local druggists otter
I keep it, or can order it.
In conclusion it may be suggested
. that some one in each community in
the State can make for himself a use
full occupation by getting gOo(
! spraying outfit and treating the shade
and fruit trees of his neighbors
Owners of few trees, and otter
owners of an orchard, will gladly pay
for the services of some one equipped
and competent to do this work fol
them. II. CARAVAN,