ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS

Evening Star, Issue 19788, 11 February 1928, Page 19

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS

“ Curious.’ —In reply to your question as to the name of the little dark, slimy slug that is attacking your cherry and pear trees, the following may explain:—The pear leech, or cherry 'lug, prefers cherry loaves, but is also bad on the foliage of .pears, and in lesser degree on quinces and plums. Hawthorn hedges are also sometimes attacked. The mature insect is a small, shiny black fly, which lays its eggs on the "leaves in early summer. These eggs soon hatch, and the little slimy, evil-smelling slug or leech feeds on tho green matter in the leaf till full grown, which is generally about half an inch long. When the slug has eaten its fill it casts its black skin and appears with a clear, yellowish one, then descends to the earth and changes into a fly again about fifteen days or so. This pest is often neglected by orchardists until the trees are nearly stripped of foliage, with the idea that it does not matter very much, but, though l’ie wood ‘remains untouched by tho slugs, the harmful effect is there all the same. A tree stripped of its foliage cannot fulfil its proper functions, and the buds for future crops do not mature. The pest is easily disposed of by a spraying with’ arsenate of lead paste—llb to twenty-five gallons of water, or in powder form at 11b to fifty gallons of water, as soon ns the insects appear, and spray again a few later. It is often bad on cherry trees just about tho time the fruit is ready to pick. A this stage use 11b of white hellebore powder to fifteen gallons of water, and spray well. This will not affect the fruit, which can bo picked a few days later if desired, as this mixture does not mark the fruit.