Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1874-11-20
Cheating Up for Winter.

work to the farmer, for there is no
leisure hour to the man who truly
seeks for something to do. After a
farmer has worked all summer, and
at last secured his crop. it may be
adding the last straw to his already
tired back to suggest that a little
clearing up of his grounds would not
be amiss. Straw, hay, cornstalks,
and other debris of gathered crops,
besides falling leaves, dead and de-
caying weeds in fence corners, and
uncultivated fields, are sure to be
conspicuous objects during the Indian
summer, now fairly begun. We are
not going to urge the clearing up of
these places on the score of looks,
although with many it would be a
weighty argument in its favor; but
there is another of far greater impor-
lance, and that is the necessity of de-
stroying noxious insects. In many
localities in our Western States the
chinch bug is a serious pest to the
farmer, destroying annually hundreds
and thousands of acres of wheat and
corn. This insects hibernates and
lives through the winter in or under
any old rubbish, such as leaves, weeds
and cornstalks. Hence the import
ance of burning such materials in the
fall for the purpose of destroying the
bugs which have taken refuge there
in. There are also many other insects
alternating in similar places, the
common squash bug (coreus cristis),
and the little spotted hippodamia, so
injurious to melon vines, which hides
away among rubbish, remaining Sc
cure until the time for commencing
its depredations in spring. The
moths Of various species of caterpil-
lars also hibernate in winter, and
during thaws of several days dura-
ton may frequently be seen flying
about, even in January or February.
A close examination Of a heap of
leaves or other rubbish will reveal
their hiding places. The well-known
and destructive cotton worm of the
Southern States also hibernates as a
moth; but we have never heard of
the planters in those regions cleaning
up their cotton or corn fields for the
purpose Of destroying this insect, al
though it mi ght be done with great
profit to themselves.
TO those who never have made
this subject of insect life special
study it may seem preposterous to as
sert that a small, delicate moth or
butterfly could withstand the severe
cold of one of our Northern winters:
but we can assure them that there
are many species which do so, and
come forth in the spring unharmed.
The large and beautiful Antiopa but
terfy, which may be seen flying
about all through the autumn months,
hides away in barns and other out
buildings, remaining in semi-torpid
state during the winter.
From these few hints we think our
farmers may readily understand the
Importance of clearing up the rubbish
scattered about their farms if they
would keep down the insect host
which prey upon vegetation. Itmay,
it is true, be urged that in burning
up our insect enemies we at the same
time destroy our friends, belonging
to the same race, and this is true to
some extent; but in such cases it is
difficult to discriminate, and it is bet
ter that all should go if we can gain
something by wholesale slaughter.
Let every farmer clean up the waste
places and burn the rubbish, and we
will venture the assertion that the ro-
suits will be benefcial.-N Y. Sun.