Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1876-06-23

Doryphora, or Colorado beetle, is fat,
hemispherical, aldermanic looking in
sect, with ten black stripes on its back,
and fully half an inch in length.
Its original habitat is the elevated
plateau at the foot of the Rocky Noun
tains. About Denver, while attached
last summer to Hayden's United States
Geological Survey of the Territories, |
first saw this beetle. with its young and
eggs feeding on the wild potato-like plant
(Solan'tm rostrdtam). This is a prickly
plant, with yellow flowers somewhat like
those of the tomato. The beetle is found
in abundance on this common weed, and
does not injure the potato so much as in
the Eastern States. At Lawrence, Kan
sas. where the Solanum rostratnm is
very abundant weed, / was told by Pro-
fessor Snow of the University of Kan
sas, that it does not injure the potato
much, being almost entirely restricted to
the wild Solanum, so that, as remarked
to me by Professor Snow, the broad
patches of the wild Solanum attract
most of the Colarado peetles, and draw
off their attacks from the potato fields.
Having carefully studied the beetle
and its grub and watched its habits, or
obtained his information at second hand,
poor way to obtain knowledge, how
shall the farmer deal with it? First. he
should rely ON those aids in economic
chronology, the hens and turkeys. They
will devour thousands, but should not be
devoured in turn by the owners, as the
Colarado beetle is said to be poisonous.
Rotation of crops is important. Next
the eggs should be looked for, and the
leaves bearing them picked off and
burnt. Then hand-picking should be
resorted to, and here the women and
children can aid in the work. Cooper
alton with the owners of adjoining farms
is the condition of success, and it is not
improbable that law will be enacted
some day, we hope not distant, compel
ling agriculturists to combine and pro-
tect their crops. Why should we not
have scientific laws as well as game and
fishing laws? There is much larger
amount of money involved in the losses
we annually sustain from the attacks of
insects, which could easily be prevented
by foresight and cooperation, than by
trespasses on our fish and game pre-
serves. If the granger movement would
only extend to practical agriculture,
enough money would be saved to make
our farmers independent and well.to-do.
The artificial remedy, as opposed to
the use of natural ones, is the use of
Paris green, poison used in mixing
green paint, concerning the use of which
there is much difference of opinion.
Used with caution, it has proved, in the
Western States, the most sufficient arti-
fetal remedy yet devised. 1t is mixed
with flour, twenty-five or thirty times the
weight of the Paris green, and sprink-
led on the young plants by means of
gauze net, or old flour dredge attached
to stick. The quantity sufficient to
kill the insects will not injure the plants,
and do not kill the beatle, only the grub.
Any one, as suggested by Professor Ri
ley, who uses Paris green should keep
its antidote. the hydrated sesquioxide of
iron, by him. A few spoonfuls taken
soon after, even bad case of poisoning
with Paris green or arsenic is perfect
remedy" Paris green is greatly adul-
terated. 1t should be carefully pur-
chased of responsible dealers, and we
reiterate, be used with extreme caution.
Scientific Farmer.