New Britain herald., 1915-07-08
HOW ID CONTROL
 THE APPLE BORI ER
Heavy Application of Some Paint
 Will Not lnjure Trees

Washington, D. c. July $. ."worm- ing'' and painting the trunks of the trees are recommended to owners of apple orchards as efficient methods of dealing with the roundheaded ap- ple-tree borer in a new Farmers bulletin, No. 675, of the United States department of agriculture. A heavy application of some paint that will not injure the trees but will remain in an unbroker coat on the bark for two or three months. is effective in preventing the female from laying her eggs in the tree and greatly re- duces the amount of worming, or the removal of the insects with a knife and wire, that must be done.
 The roundheaded apple-tree borer the most destructive of number of similar pests, lays it's eggs in or un- der the bark of apple trees After matching the larvae feed upon the in- ner bark and wood to such an extent that the tree is seriously weakened or killed. The pest is found over the whole of the eastern portion of the United States and as far west as Ne braska, Kansas and New Mexico. Tn addition to fruit trees it feeds on service, wild crab and mountain ash . trees, which makes it advisable for orchardists to remove these varieties for distance of at least 9 hundred yards from their orchard.
 Eggs Laid in Bark.
 The female lays her eggs, one at time, in an incision she has made
 in the bark. usually just above the surface of the ground. About 15 or 20 days later the eggs hatch and the larvae appear. When full grown these are nearly an inch and half in
 length. They first attack the inner bark, eating out broad, more or less circular. galleries and thrusting out
 through small holes in the bark castings which form little heaps of reddish wood fragments around the base of the tree. During the winter the borers are quiscent but early in the following spring they N elk the solid wood, while some of them work their way up the trunk These last spend one more winter in the
 tree and then, having passed through the pupal stage, dig their way out and emerge as adult beetles. Three years are required for the insect to complete its development from egg to adult
 Ordinarily, the beetle lives about forty or fifty days. It is about three fourths of an inch in length light
 brown in color above, with two broad white bands, joined in front, extending the full length of the back; the undeparts and front of the mead are white. The females rarely fly any considerable distance, so that if the immediate vicinity of an orchard can be kept free from them, there is little danger of a, se- rious infestation .n.
 Wound Will Heal.
 The most common method of rid ding the orchard of these pests is to cut away the bark sufficiently to trace the burrows made by the borer A hooked wire is then inserted into the burrow and the insect pulled out If made with care, the wound in the
 tree caused by this process will heal readily. The castings at the base of the tree serve as an indication of the presence of the borers Where the
 burrows are curved or obstructed in some way so that the wire can not be inserted, cotton batting dipped in car bon bisulphide should be inserted and the hole then plugged with moist earth. The gas from the carbon bi- sulph1de will penetrate all parts of the burrow and kill the borer.
 In addition to worming as this process is called, paint is often used to prevent the beetles laying their eggs. Pure white lead and raw lin- seed oil, mixed rather thick will not injure the trees. and when applied to young, smooth bark, will form a protective coat during the egg lay l ing season It is probable that this is more effective method than ] wrapping the trees with building ] paper, cotton batting, cloth or other 1 materials sometimes used for this 1 purpose Before painting, however, I the earth should be removed from ] from three to four inches. The sur ] face of the trunk thus exposed should ! be first scraped and painted and the
 earth then replaced. This is neces-
 sary, for the beetle occasionally lays l her eggs under instead of above the 1 ground.
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