A second referendum calling for a mandatory spray program to help eradicate the boll weevil in the Mesilla Valley failed this spring. Now cotton growers are wondering what to do next. The tiny, menacing insect spread from Mexico into the United States 100 years ago.
Adults cause some damage, but larvae that feed on cotton bolls are more destructive.
The boll weevil became a nuisance in southern New Mexico about four years ago, but the numbers dramatically increased last year, said Mike English, entomologist with New Mexico State University's Cooperative Extension Service . This is the state's worst infestation, he added. Growers may consider a third referendum, but the first two didn't pass. You just can't keep going back trying to get that vote. Ninety-two percent of cotton growers who voted on the last referendum in May were in favor of the eradication program.