hessian fly

3 definitions found

hessian fly - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Hessian \Hes"sian\, a.
     Of or relating to Hesse, in Germany, or to the Hessians.
     [1913 Webster]
  
     Hessian boots, or Hessians, boot of a kind worn in
        England, in the early part of the nineteenth century,
        tasseled in front. --Thackeray.
  
     Hessian cloth, or Hessians, a coarse hempen cloth for
        sacking.
  
     Hessian crucible. See under Crucible.
  
     Hessian fly (Zool.), a small dipterous fly or midge
        (Cecidomyia destructor). Its larv[ae] live between the
        base of the lower leaves and the stalk of wheat, and are
        very destructive to young wheat; -- so called from the
        erroneous idea that it was brought into America by the
        Hessian troops, during the Revolution.
        [1913 Webster]

  Cecidomyia \Cec`i*do*my"i*a\
     (s[e^]s`[i^]*d[-o]*m[imac]"[i^]*[.a]), prop. n. [Nl., fr. Gr.
     khki`s, khki^dos, a gall nut + myi^a a fly.] (Zool.)
     A genus of small dipterous files, including several very
     injurious species, as the Hessian fly. See Hessian fly.
     [1913 Webster]

hessian fly - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  Hessian fly
      n 1: small fly whose larvae damage wheat and other grains [syn:
           Hessian fly, Mayetiola destructor]