Editor of Horticulturist, - I am surprised to discover in yours, and other Horticultural papers, that they can not prevent the destruction of their plums by the Curculio. I should not be surprised, if I knew no better remedy than those they state. Some shake the trees. I believe this would be a safe remedy, if they would begin at daylight, and shake the trees till night, not even leaving the trees to eat their meals. The "various washes and fumigations of horrible odors," would be a certain preventive, if continued till the fruit is ripe. But I should not wish to live in the house, or make the family a minute's visit, who owned the place. Their "offensive manures under the trees," that do not meet the approval of the Curculio, would not meet mine, much as I admire the fruit. To my surprise, nothing is said of surrounding the trees with a brick pavement. My garden contains near six acres. In it, in different places, I had, twenty-five years since, many plum trees; five years in six, all destroyed by the Curculio. All attempts to destroy the Curculio failing, I moved sixteen trees, and planted them round the house, surrounded- by a brick pavement.

A small circular space round each tree, to let rain in, and occasionally throw some water in; over this, I threw some article to notify the Curculio that if their children fell there, they would not be permitted to make an entrance. In twenty-five years I have not had a plum stung. A full crop yearly. When I began this remedy, I covered a small cluster of plums in the garden, with a fine, compact gauze: all the others were stung. When the plums began to ripen, I removed the gauze to discover if the Curculio was still about. On examining them about a week after I found every one stung.

After I published this, I saw statements in the papers, from persons east, that they had a plum-tree, half the branches over a stream of* water, the other half over the ground. The branches over the water always bore a full crop; those over the ground, always stung by the Curculio. Providence, in many things, gives to insects and other races a full knowledge of many things, of which we know nothing.

In Kentucky, some farmers preserve their plums by consulting common sense. They raise a large stock of poultry; their poultry yard is large and surrounded by a fence. In this inclosure they plant plum-trees. The Curculio never troubles them, as the yard is always filled with different kinds of poultry, and do not wish the poultry to destroy them. All parents have this feeling.

[The above, from an old and well-known horticulturist, was crowded out last month. His suggestions are worthy of attention. In regard to planting trees over water, we have no faith in it whatever. We have often examined such, and found them as badly infested as others. We think it is about fifty years since the experiment was first tried, and failed. The experience of every close observer of insect life must have taught him, that in this case at least a little too much has been claimed for instinct. There is no more devout admirer of the wonders of insect life than we are; but we do not care, in the practical things of life, to have our admiration run too far into the domain of the imagination. Every man can settle this point for himself, whether he has a plum tree or not; if he can not spare the time, let him appeal to any intelligent friend who is in the habit of whipping a trout stream. The same instinct which would teach an insect not to deposit its eggs on a tree overhanging water, ought to teach it not to deposit them on trees in our public parks, where thousands are daily walking; or in a paved yard, or where there are poultry or hogs; but instinct does not do this.

Paved yards, poultry, hogs, etc., have their value, not in preventing the Curculio, in the first instance, from stinging the plum, but in destroying the stung fruit, and so from year to year lessening the evil. Concerted action in this way would rid a large district of them in a great measure; for their flight is very short. There is probably no better method than that pursued for many years by Ellwanger and Barry, as recommended by Dr. Trimble last month. We have faith in the remedy of Mr. Cumings of the Observer, and we have faith, also, in the Gishurst Compound, when used as directed, and as preventives. There is no cure for the sting of the Curculio; and when that is distinctly understood, one step in the right direction will have been taken for lessening the evil. The Curculio has been our companion during the winter; some of them are now as fat and plump as beach birds. Those kept in a warm room feed daily; those kept in a cold room, on being exposed to the warm sun, immediately become active. These were, all hatched from larvae taken from the plum. Our friend, C. Marie, Esq., began, at our request, a similar series of observations at the same time, making almost daily notes.

We shall continue these observations through another season, then compare notes, and furnish another chapter to Curculio literature. - Ed].

The Curculio #1

There being few or no plums this year for the Curculio to operate on, it has betaken itself, in multitudes, to the Pear, the Apple, and the "black knot." Apples and Pears are falling freely from the trees, almost every fallen specimen having been stung three or four times, and in not a few cases we have counted upwards of a dozen punctures on the same fruit. In two or three instances we have taken from fifteen to twenty larvae of the Curculio from the same "knot." We allude to the subject now, not for the purpose of making any extended remarks, but to request our readers to examine their fruits, and report such facts as they may observe in connection with this subject. The Apple will be found to be suffering especially from this cause. It will be interesting to learn how far the plum protects us from the loss of the apple crop.