These cages work well for studying insect populations on isolated plants.

Materials Needed:

• a clean gallon milk jug

• organza, silkscreen or other fine meshed fabric (1-2 yds.    Depending on width of fabric)

• wire screening, chicken wire, or hardware cloth (2-3 feet)

• ribbon or wire twist tie

• tin snips or wire cutter

• Exacto knife and/or scissors

Instructions:

1) Cut a one-gallon milk jug approximately 13 cm up from the bottom.

2) Cut four evenly spaced drainage holes in the bottom. Each hole should be approximately 1.5 cm in diameter.

3) Cut a 30 cm by 65 cm rectangle of metal screen, chicken wire, or hardware cloth.  Form the wire rectangle into a cylinder that will fit neatly inside the pot.  Thread a piece of wire through the overlapping edges to maintain the cylinder’s shape. This will be the support for the netting used to isolate each plant.

4) Sew a 50 cm by 80 cm pillowcase out of organza, silkscreen, or other fine meshed fabric.

5) Once the soil has been added to the pot, and the peas planted, place the wire screen cylinder into the pot and push the cylinder down into the soil slightly to hold it in place.  Place the entire pot and wire cylinder into the fabric bag and tie the opening shut with a ribbon or wire twist tie.

6) When accessing the plant to count insects, carefully  remove the fabric bag and wire cylinder.  Try not to disturb the plant since this may cause some insects to drop off the plant.