ust a little gentle washing with non-caustic substances, and
just a lot of finger-and-thumb work." This is tedious, and often
disgusting; but it is the only way.

These loathsome pests are the larvae of certain flies and many kinds of
moths.

=Sawflies=, the little black and shiny flies which infest the roses in
May and June, are a terrible pest, as the eggs they lay on the leaves
turn quickly into small, green larvae. There are several kinds of
sawflies, and their destructive methods vary. The Leaf-rolling Sawfly,
whose larvae roll the rose-leaves like paper spills, has become a serious
pest among garden roses of late years, and if these rolls are carefully
unfolded the little green maggot will be found in one of them. It must
be caught with care, as it is very lively, and if allowed to fall to the
ground will remain there, and produce a fresh brood in the next year.

The =Rose Slugworm= is much more common, and most destructive, eating
the upper surface of the leaves and leaving the lower to shrivel up. It
has two broods in the year.

The =Rose Emphytus= is another of the sawflies, and one of the worst.
Its larva eats the whole leaf away, beginning at the mid rib, and also
works its way into a cell in the branches till the next spring, thus
killing the tender growths above. This is the green caterpillar which we
find coiled up on the under-side of the rose-leaves, or in early morning
and late evening curled round the base of a rose-bud, working its way
through the calyx into the heart of the flower. It is far easier to
catch, as it is somewhat sluggish in movement, clean and hard in
substance--and therefore less disgusting to touch than others that
squash in one's fingers. The best remedies for these pests are: first,
prevention, by spraying with hellebore wash, which I have found most
useful. Second, by careful hand-picking when the larvae appear. And
third, by removing the surface soil in which the cocoons are buried, and
all dead wood, during the winter.

Hellebore wash is made in the following proportion--

1 oz. fresh-ground hellebore powder.
2 oz. flour.
3 gallons of water.

Mix the hellebore and flour with a little water till dissolved; then
stir into the rest of the water and apply with a fine Abol Syringe.

=Caterpillars= of many moths are among the most deadly foes of the rose.
Some eat the foliage--such as the Buff Tip and Vapourer Moths; others
tunnel into the leaves