The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-06-05
PROTECT PLANTS
 FROM INSECTS
THREE SIMPLE RULES.
By F. F. ROCKWELL.
(Author of Around the year in the Garden" and Making a Garden of Small Fruits," etc.)

How often have you seen a perfect blossom, for which you have per- haps been watehfully waiting for weeks, come to maturity only to be disfgured, if not destroyed, by some pernicious visitor to your garden. Or you have carefully set out and tended some day that the leaves are showing favorite flower, through to the early stages of growth, only to discover come day that the leaves are showing fine white spots and curling up, and to find on close inspection after the damage is done, that thousands of little green plant lice whose presence you had never suspected was the cause of it.
 The lover of flowers is often discouraged by the number of new bugs, worms and beetles which turn up. There seems to be something to attack every plant that grows. and as one has got the better of one trouble another one appears.
 Success in the war against worms and bugs, however, as in everything else, Is largely a matter of Knowing how" The great majority of the insects attacking your flowers, or towering shrubs. or fruits, can be controlled by two simple remedies. That may sound ESQ easy" as to seem suspiciously like a patent medicine advertisement-but 1t is a fact. No gardener can. however, hope to be successful in fighting the garden pest until two definite things have been learned.
 Ffrst-To become familiar enough with the various insects first as to be able to tell what class or type they belong to. so that the proper material can be used against them.
 Second-To watch constantly and carefully to detect the first sign of immediately.
 Ninety per cent of the insects at tacking your flowers belong to one of the two general classes of eating in- sects or chewing insects. When some new pests appear in your garden, the first thing you want to determine is HOW HE TAKES HIS MEALS! If he eats holes in the leaves, petals or flower buds of the plants, then it will be possible to kill him with an inter nal poison. The most effective of the internal poisons. and the most con ventent to use under any general conditions, is arsenate of lead. This
 
 powder form.I It is mixed with cold water. according to directions. to make a poison spray that is effective against eating or chewing insects. Calcium arsenate, light white powder, is also mixed with water to make an effective arsenate poison spray. Either of these materials will leave a slightly noticeable white de- posit on the foliage, which some par ticular gardeners object to. Paris Green, which is another arsenate poi son, does not leave any deposit; but 1t is not as effective, washes off much more quickly. and is not so safe to use as the foliage may be burned if the spray mixture is mixed too strong. Either of these poisons must be applied Co the plants to be pro tected when the bugs or worms to be fought first appear; that is, the poi son must be applied IN ADVANCE to what ever they are expected to feed on.
 As the sucking insects, which in clude the various forms of plant lice or aphids, ARE NOT AFFECTED by arsenate of lead, Paris Green or any other internal poison spray. If gardeners would only learn this simple thing it would save many
 
 many dollars each season.
 The sucking insects get their nour- ishment from inside of the leaves of stems of the plants. Although they may appear at first to be Aoing little damage, they are really much more injurious than most of chewing in sects Unless immediate stepS to fight them are taken, they are likely to ruin the entire plant or bed in short time. While many things have been recommended for the control of plant lice. scales and sucking insects, the one which has proved the most convenient and the most efficient under ordinary conditions is nicotine sulphate, forty per cent. strong.
 This is put out under various trade names such as 'rBlack Leaf Forty" Nicotine Extract, containing as little as twelve per cent. nicotine, with other Ingredients, are effective but the brands containing forty per cent. being stronger requires less to make a good quality of spray material and are really cheaper, although they may cost more per ounce or per pint
 To use they need merely to be mixed with cold water. On some plants. especially those with smooth shiny foliage. it may be necessary to add a small amount of soap to the spray to make it spread and stick better. One teaspoonfu1 of forty per cent. nicotine su1phate to the gallon of water will make a strong enough spray to control aphids, scales, etc.
 Nicotine is called a Contact Poi son." In other words to be effective 1t must be applied DIRECTLY TO THE INSECTS to be controlled. There is no use putting it on the sur face of the plant in advance, as is done with arsenate of lead and other internal" poisons. AS the plant ap- hids and other sucking insects gen. orally work on the UNDER surface of the leaves, in applying nicotine spray 1t is desirable to use a spray with considerable force, and also with an angle or side outlet nozzle, so that the under surface of the foliage can easily be reached. If the
 
 rush suggestion. and I told him it would De better to wait for a little while longer in case he changed his mind.