SILKWORM REARING. (By G.B.Federli.) COCOOSS.

Waikato Times, Volume XX, Issue 1665, 8 March 1883, Page 3

SILKWORM REARING. (By G.B.Federli.) COCOOSS.

From the time the worm commences to spin Until their cocoons me complete will be four days, hut they should he. left for two days * longer, before removing the twigs. To ascertain w nether the cocoons are complete or not, it is only necessary 'to take one up and shake it close to the etuywhen if the spinning is finished and the worm chauged into a chrysalis, a rattling sound will be heard ; but if it is liot complete, no sound will be perceptible. The cocoons when removed from the twigs arc ready for the market, and may be disposed oil' at once, unless the producer is going to reel off his own silk. In either case it will be necessary to kill the chrysalis, to prevent it from changing to the moth .stage, and forcing its way through the silk. The cocoons have a value even after the moths have passed tlnough them, but it is much depreciated. To destroy 'the chrysalis the cocoons must be subjected to a heat ot 120 F.vh. This can be done either by placing the cocoons in nn oven, or it may be done by the agency of steam, by placing the .cocoons in basket made long ami shallow, • arid putting them in an air-tight room which has connection with a uoiler by pipes, through which the steam is introduced to the loom until the require! degree of heat has been readied. To find out when lite has been destroyed it will bo necessary to cut two or thiee cocoons open. The cocoons must be then dried carefully, after which they can be kept for any length of time. Before selling off all the cocoons or killing all the chrysalis, provision must be made for breeding, and for tins purpose the largest, most legular, and hardest cccoons mu«.t be selected, and preserved for the moths to come out and lay their eggs. It has been found that lAlhs of cocoons will produce enough moths to reproduce lOOlbs of cocoons the following season. MOTIItf. The gossamerdike silk which surrounds the cocoons must be removed, to facilitate the exit of the moths. After this has been done the coooons should be placed in trays in a room which has a temperatuie of between GOdeg. and ! 70deg. In three weeks from the time of spinning the moths will begin to make their exit from the cocoons ; this they always do early in the morning, and they should be attended to not later than between 8 and !) a.m., to see that tho males and females arc piopcrly coupled. The moths that have coupled themselves should be carefully lifted by the whips and placed on a separate tray. Those that have not so coupled must also be removed fiom about the cocoons and placed on the tiay in pair 3. The means i of distinguishing between the sexes are that the females are larger than the malc3 ami remain almost motionless, while the males are continually fluttering their wings. Should it be found that there is an excess of females over males, they must be destroyed, but if the males predominate, the surplus may be kept ui^il the followv ing day, in case of tho reverse being the ense. Ts> preserve them they must be placed in a box and kept in absolute * darkness, otherwise they will flutter , about and exhaust themselves. '" ' 'The moths should remain coupled for about six hours, after which they must be separated by taking them by the ' wings, and drawing them gently apart. The females are then placed on sheets s of cardboard, or stout paper, on a tray < resting on an inclined plane; the moths will then begin to lay their eggs in clus"te'rs. Each moth will 'lay upwards of „ 300 eggs, for which she must* be allowed about two inches square of space. The egg-laying will occupy about three days. During this time the room in which the , > moths are laying should be kept v in partial darkness, and at a temperature of v about 70deg. The eggs will adhere to the , jsardbpard naturally, and will require no ''"external aid. " After the separation from the females, • ' the 'strongest 'and. largest ' males may be placed in a dark box, •, and preserved in case of a deficiency the next day, and the rest destroyed : those selected for the morrow, should also bo destroyed if not , required, as they would be of no jis,e,. on T'thrf third day!,' The I ' , females shbukl| be destroyed after l'kymg'fdr three days. ; g,rain. t , #u iTlie'eggs, or grain', when freshly laid,. |i?£ro of'rt' straw colour,' 'and rfrust remain I' "jjtttfbc'd until dry, by which time.the iitfhas changed to slate. ' To &ss»tfthe'drying,' it 'is only neeesMgyJtp, c' the grain uncovered in the^^j^ i*thto"itfian'ge'ur "colour has^|««to 00 •rA'ifeW eggs Will. probably reflj|in ikii6d;iil^orpur j 'thV^ Are uielets, having wenJcQU»d»ted. It y.m»Uy

takes about a fortmglit for the eggs to become thoroughly th'jty after which the' cards of grain may be placed in paper, or i calico- bags, and' stored in a cool dry place. „tA s,s pring-t ime comes round again, the (temperature of the place of storage. must be, (kept below (>pdeg> During the time >af hibernation, no harm will accrue to the eggs from excessive icold,', .it is even beneficial that they should some times be subjepted to a temperature below freezing point (32deg. Fab.). , As a rule the time from the, laying of the eggs until the time of hatching in the n,ext spring has been found to, be ten months, but this can be extended by several months,, if. found necessary, by keeping the temperature below to'Odeg.' Fah. „ ' ' l"h<S grain may be either used for breeding worms by the producers^ or for snle and for export to other parts of the world. This is the case in Japan, from whence' nearly all the grain used in Italy, France, and Austria is imported, on account of disease haviug broken out in the latter countries. Should the disease spread to Japan, some other part of the world must be looked to, to supply the grain, and should the climate of JNew Zealand prove as suitable for silkworm rearing as it appears to be, there is no reason why it should not become the centre from which grain is exported to all parts of the world,

(To he Continued.)

Mr Jas. Hallcy is authorised to collect till jicc.iunts owing to Mr J. S. Milne, Hamilton. Mr & S. O'Halloraji will sell by auction on Friday, March 10th, tlio horses, harness and plant of (he Hot Springs Hotel Stabler, To Aroh.i, without reserve. Mi" J, S. Bucklnml will soil at Ohaupo on luesday next, Uth March, .1 larfjc number of I Ipngwool .uid Lincoln sheep, merino sheep, S-c, &c. Messrs' Adam Layljourn and Co., Duihani-stroet. Auckland, announce that they lia\e just received their first shipment of n<;w clover setdspor Sam Mendel from London. 'Ihe quality is tullv equal to List jear'a. S.unples will bo foru.irded to .my .ulilress. A list ot the seeds will be found in the advertisement.