Cabbages and Cauliflowers: How to Grow Them | Page 9

which preys upon it in myriads; when this is the case the
leaves lose their bright green, turn of a bluish cast, the leaf stocks lose
somewhat of their supporting powers, the leaves curl up into irregular
shapes, and the lower layer turns black and drops off, while the ground
under the plant appears covered with the casts or bodies of the insects

as with a white powder. When in this condition the plants are in a very
bad way.
Considering the circumstances under which this insect appears, usually
in a very dry season, I hold that it is rather the product than the cause of
disease, as with the bark louse on our apple-trees; as a remedy I
advocate sprinkling the plants with air-slaked lime, watering, if
possible, and a frequent and thorough stirring of the soil with the
cultivator and hoe. The better the opportunities the cabbage have to
develop themselves through high manuring, sufficient moisture, good
drainage, and thorough cultivation, the less liable they are to be
"lousy." As the season advances there will sometimes be found patches
eaten out of the leaves, leaving nothing but the skeleton of leaf veins;
an examination will show a band of caterpillars of a light green color at
work, who feed in a compact mass, oftentimes a square, with as much
regularity as though under the best of military discipline. The readiest
way to dispose of them is to break off the leaf and crush them under
foot. The common large red caterpillar occasionally preys on the plants,
eating large holes in the leaves, especially about the head. When the
cabbage plot is bordered by grass land, in seasons when grasshoppers
are plenty, they will frequently destroy the outer rows, puncturing the
leaves with small holes, and feeding on them until little besides their
skeletons remain. In isolated locations rabbits and other vegetable
feeders sometimes commit depredations. The snare and the shot-gun
are the remedy for these.
Other insects that prey upon the cabbage tribe, in their caterpillar state,
are the cabbage moth, white-line, brown-eyed moth, large white garden
butterfly, white and green veined butterfly. All of these produce
caterpillars, which can be destroyed either by application of air-slaked
lime, or by removing the leaves infested and crushing the intruders
under foot. The cabbage-fly, father-long-legs, the millipedes, the blue
cabbage-fly, brassy cabbage-flea, and two or three other insect enemies
are mentioned by McIntosh as infesting the cabbage fields of England;
also three species of fungi known as white rust, mildew, and
cylindrosporium concentricum; these last are destroyed by the
sprinkling of air-slaked lime on the leaves. In this country, along the

sea coast of the northern section, in open-ground cultivation, there is
comparatively but little injury done by these marauders, which are the
cause of so much annoyance and loss to our English cousins.

THE GREEN WORM.
A new and troublesome enemy to the cabbage tribe which has made its
appearance within a few years, and spread rapidly over a large section
of the country, is a green worm, Anthomia brassicæ. This pest infests
the cabbage tribe at all stages of its growth; it is believed to have been
introduced into this country from Europe, by the way of Canada, where
it was probably brought in a lot of cabbage. It is the caterpillar of a
white butterfly with black spots on its wings. In Europe, this butterfly is
preyed on by two or more parasites, which keep it somewhat in check;
but its remarkably rapid increase in this country, causing a wail of
lamentation to rise in a single season from the cabbage growers over
areas of tens of thousands of square miles, proved that when it first
appeared it had reached this country without its attendant parasites.
Besides this green worm, there are found in Europe four varieties of
caterpillar variously marked, the caterpillars from all of which make
great havoc among the cabbage tribe.
The most effective destroyer of this, and about every other insect pest,
is what is known as the "Kerosene Emulsion." This is made by
churning common kerosene with milk or soap until it is diffused
through the liquid.
Take one quart of kerosene oil and pour it into a pint of hot water in
which an ounce of common soap has been dissolved; churn this briskly
while hot (a force pump is excellent for this), and, when well mixed,
which will be in a few minutes, it will be of a creamy consistency; mix
one quart to ten or twelve of cold water, and spray or sprinkle it over
the plants with a force-pump syringe or a whisk broom.
Another remedy is pyrethrum. Use that which is fresh; either blowing it

on in a dry state with a bellows, wherever the worm appears, or using