The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-06-08
MEASURING WORMS
DESTROYING LEAVES
OF TREES IN COUNTY

Destruction of the leaves of forest
trees in many parts of Wayne county
has been reported, and has occasioned
considerable alarm in some quarters
The damage is caused by a small
brownish caterpillar, from an inch to
an inch and half long, with three
pairs of legs in front and two pairs
at the rear end of the body The
caterpillar travels by looping the body
to bring the rear end up to the front
end, and for this reason, from the
habit of apparently measuring off the
twig along which it may be crawling,
IS, called a measuring worm.
so numerous have the worms be-
come in some places that they have
stripped whole trees and groups of
trees, of every leaf, and where woods
border the road closely. the worms,
swinging from the trees on their silk
webs, are a serious annoyance to
travellers. Between Mt Summit and
Mooreland. such a place is found,
where 1t is almost impossible for an
open car to pass without gathering a
large collection of the worms. On
roads east and south of Dalton also,
woods show many bare trees. and the
roadsides are lined with the worms.
Forest trees south of Centerville es-
pecially on the Caleb - ckson farm,
operated by Albert Higgins, and in
New Garden township, also have been
defoliated.
The caterpillar really is the canker-
worm, and feeds principally upon
leaves of trees. The fall canker-worm
usually damages shade trees, and the
spring eanker-worm works upon or
chard trees. This spring, however. the
worms seem most numerous upon for
est instead of orchard trees, being
found only in those orchards near
woods, from which they may have
come.
Controls Fail
The canker worms become as. numer
GUS and as damaging as they are this
year only when the many natural con-
trolls fail. A climbing ground beetle
feeds upon them, and several species
of small parasitic wasps and flies Law
eggs upon them, or in the eggs of the
moth, the grubs destroying large num-
bers of the worms. Only when these
controls fail, as apparently is the case
this spring, do the worms become seri-
ously injurious.
Many who are unfamiliar with the
worm fear damage to orchards or field
crops from them. This is improbable.
as the worms, when mature. will de-
scend to the ground by silken threads
and pupate a few inches beneath the
surface. Many of the worms are 60
ing into the pupae now. The moth will
emerge from these in the fall and lay
eggs then or in early winter
The canker worm does not possess
tn marching habit of the army worm.
and so far as can be found, does not
even work upon grasses or any feed
except tree leaves, so that corn crops
are safe from damage by them. Orch
ards also, even if threatened, can cas-
lily be protected by the regular arsen-
ate lead spray. used TO poison other
leaf chewing insects
Shade and fruit trees also NAV be
protected from infestation next fall by
the use of bands. The female moths
are wingless and crawl up the stems
Of trees and bushes TO lay their eggs
after they emerge from the ground.
Placing bands of some sticky sub
stance around the stem of the tree.
therefore, will prevent the tree from
being infested