Fig Caprif ication or The Setting of the Fruit B.M.Lelong UC-NRLF SB 71 '/SJ/H/E/& .- FIG CAPRIFICATION OR The Setting of the Fruit BY B. M. LELONG, Secretary of the State Board of Horticulture, and ex-officio Chief Horticultural Officer. (1) One of the fruits of the fig. (2) One of the pistillate flowers. (3) One of the staminate flowers. (4) Seed with embryo ; all enlarged. A paper read before the Fifteenth State Fruit Growers dm vent ion, convened at Marysville, Cal., \ #< :fa>"l*ow the stand I have taken on the question ; and jr^y con elusions *aie not theories, but are based upon the reports '/-.* 'Suffd'invfefitigatte'n's of modern scientific writers, viz.: " In the fig the organs of fructification are hidden from view: therefore we cannot tell exactly when fertilization is effected ; but it is supposed that it takes place when the eye assumes a pinkish hue and expands and admits a little air into the interior, where the flowers are. " In many parts of Italy and the south of Europe, in olden times, cultivators paid much attention to setting the figs by the method of caprification. This practice was much believed in, but is condemned by most modern scientific writers as absurd. "Caprification, according to the experience of practical growers, is altogether a delusion; and many of the largest planta- tions of the old world have continued to bear fruit without the aid of the Capri fig. " Professor Gasparinrii, a learned botanist, carried on very extended experiments, covering a period of six years, and in an essay written for the Royal Academy of Sciences of Naples detailed the number of experiments which he had made and repeated in different years. Their results lead to the conclusion that caprification is useless for the setting and ripening of the fruit, and that instead of making the figs remain on the tree it either causes or facilitates their fall, especially when the insect had penetrated into the inside and produced decay by its own death. When the insect ever entered a fig, the maturity of it was hastened as apples and pears are when attacked by a grub. Professor Gasparinni recommended the abolishment of the prac- tice, as it only entails expense and deteriorates the flavor of the " In the islands of the Archipelago the practice has been abandoned, according to the French naturalist Oliver, but in which islands excellent figs are produced. " The process, stripped of all its mystification, is a simple one, which, as stated before, has proved a delusion, and is only alluded to here as such. In the first place, there is a wild spe- cies of fig, called Capri fig, on which it is said a certain insect exists, which enters the fruit when in a youg state, at the eye, thereby facilitating the entrance of light and air, or some fer- tilizing vapor whereby the flowers are enabled to set and ripen. In fig plantations numbers of this wild species are planted for the sole purpose of bearing these insects ; and at the proper sea- son the fruits with the insects are carried and deposited on the fruit or shoots of the domestic species. " Without all this maneuvering it is faithfully believed that very scanty crops of figs would be secured; but, according to the investigations of modern science, it is proved to be not only unnecessary but positively injurious." I am by no means a disbeliever of the process ; but for the time being, and until the merits of the Blastophaga are proven beyond a doubt, I shall weigh with much consideration the con- clusions of the authorities I have quoted, and further, because I have but recently made a very important discovery which gives me new grounds for such a belief, which I will explain further, on. BLASTOPHAGA (PSENES) GROSSORUM, GRAY. (Cynips psenes, Linn.) Male Magnified. DESCRIPTION. Female. Average length .08 of an inch. Wing expanse about .11 of an inch. Color light brown. Antennae clavate, ten- jointed, covered with fine hairs. Head sub-globose. Eyes very large and prominent, of a dark color. Thorax long. Abdomen elongate acute, terminating in a long, .hairy ovipositor, three times the length of the body, two-thirds of the terminal por- tion of which is divided into three parts. On the under side of the abdomen is a process. Wings transparent, pubescent, with long marginal hairs. The stigma of the anterior wing at right angle from marginal costa. The legs are of the same color as body and covered with stout hairs. The tibia of the front legs is stouter than that of the second pair. The posterior legs are much stouter and longer than the others. Male. Length about .07 of an inch. Wing expanse about .11 of an inch. Color black. Antenna? clavate, eleven-jointed, hairy. The scape is much larger than that of the female. Head same as female. Eyes dark and prominent. Thorax about as long as abdomen. Abdomen obtuse with a short curved stylus. Wings and legs same as those of female. ITS INTRODUCTION. The credit of the introduction of this insect into the State belongs solely -to Mr. James Shinn, of Niles. The fig-growers of this State were and had been anxious to have the insect intro- duced so that its merits pro and con might be established. To this end the entomologist of the Deparment of Agriculture was asked to procure the insect from Smyrna, as the facilities of Government officials in such matters are well known. In the June number of Insect Life he says that efforts would be made to introduce the insect into our State ; but as to what efforts were made nothing has been heard. I should not be surprised in the least if in a coming number of some publication he broaches the claim that the credit of introduction belongs to him, as scarcely a bug has been introduced or discovered to which he has not claimed first credit ; and, as one of our Con- gressmen expressed it to the members of our Board, "He not only wanted to make me believe that he discovered the bug, but had also produced it." " What egotism ! how selfish, oh man!" As to the history of the introduction of the Blastophaga and how it came about, I cannot do better than give Mr. Shinn's own statement, viz. : Mr. Shinn: "We wrote to some friends that were known to us in Smyrna ; or rather some missionaries were stopping at my house, and seeing that my figs did not bear and that I was get- ting uneasy about it, one of the ladies, my wife's sister, said she knew a lady from Syracuse, N. Y., who was then in Smyrna, and if she would write to her she would fix up a few of the fig cuttings and send them. The lady sent for them, and instead of sending a half dozen cuttings sent a whole box of cuttings, on which I paid about $100. After I received this box here comes another little box and a letter saying, ' The figs must be capri- fied, if not you will get no figs. I sent you a little box of figs that are full of the Blastophaga, and hope you can do well with them.' The moment we got them my son went out to the Capri fig tree, opened the box and set it out there. Some of the in- sects were dead and some were alive. I saw Mr. Eisen the next day and told him about the Blastophaga and the figs. He and Mr. Masliii came to my place the Sunday following, July 26th. We examined and found some live insects, but most of them were dead. The Smyrna figs that were caprified, that is, that had the pollen put in artificially, came to perfection, but no others did. Two crops have all gone to the ground and are now on the ground, except about ten figs. The pollen that was in- jected into the figs was from the Capri figs grown on my place at Niles. There are two varieties of the Smyrna fig. One has a three-lobed leaf, and the figs small and elongated. The other is a five-lobed leaf, and the figs are flat and roundish." ARTIFICIALLY CAPRIFIED FIGS. Mr. Shinn then exhibited three figs which were caprified by means of a quill toothpick,* two roundish and one elongated. In answer to a question as to the opening of the figs at the time they were fertilized, Mr. Shinn could not remember, but said : li The insect knows how to get in if it must ; that is a provision of nature. Only the figs that were caprified have come to per- fection : the others all dropped off." Question : Were those figs caprified by the insect or arti- ficially ? Mr. Shinn: Artificially. Question : Then there is 110 fig that has come to maturity known to have been caprified by the insect ? Mr. Shinn : None at all. * This operation was first conceived of by Geo. C. Roeding, of Fresno, and tlm* matured Smyrna figs in 1890, and also in 1891. Mr. Maslin, who was present, was requested to state his views and observations, which he did as follows : Mr. Maslin : On the 26th of July I went over with Mr. Eisen, at his invitation, to examine the Blastophaga. We met Mr. Shinn's son, who pointed out to us a fig tree which he said was a Capri fig, and one of the importation made by the S. F. Bulletin Company. The others in the rows belonged to the edible fig. We found in the boughs of that Capri fig tree the box containing the Capri figs imported by Mr. Shinn, with quite a large number of dead Blastophaga. Mr. Eisen cut open the Figs grown and exhibited by Mr. Shinn. (1) The large Smyrna, flesh amber color. ('2) The small Smyrna, flesh dark red. dried Capri figs and found them literally black with the insects, which began to move, but very sluggishly. The size of the in- sect is about one line, one-twelfth of an inch. We then took some of those insects and scattered them at the so-called blos- som end of some of the Capri figs and some of the figs known as the Bulletin's importation. Mr. Eisen then proceeded to fertil- ize some of the figs. We found that the fallen Capri figs from the growing tree on the ground were full of pollen ; cutting them open Mr. Eisen dusted the pollen about the open end of various figs. I suggested to him that we should insert the pollen by means of a toothpick. I picked up a .fig and dusted the a .a 'S jsf a s .S I o> o 5 or .a *:V-3J c .a a I '