Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1895-10-29
NEW SWEET poraTo rSru,


. IL
How IL Can be Ex,crmInat,d.
LIVERPOOL Tcxns.-l mail 10 ,rn,, ~,
uress SINAI! sweet potato infestei VIII,
Mrvrlhs. Gan You suggest a nrcven,i,, :
ncse worms are getting ali oycr ii.
ceast country nnd II is only n nnes,;an
= snort fine unit sweet potato rroyv'
tns mere WIN be thing Of tho INST mr..
,hs iny year | nave been trying to study
,he hnbits of these worms INF va ~
nave learned but little. / can snv H.,
changing the seed does no good w.
Drought q lot of seed here ilat enri,,,,
ilrr,pih washington cDdnty clear az ,sa,,n5S
= nese arc now as badly infested os anv
hiVc. Last spring one year ngo / rot
o nvu1u rom prlmes county clear OF worms
niiu tiie same thing occurred. Tho worms
turn to small black bug resembiins
we ordinary corn weevil. These burs
nre evidently migratory and nttnck tbe
pV,ato IN the ground. Thousands Of
uollars damage will be done by this in.
sect IN TINS section this year; and no.
e ses INFESTED by these worms are re-
fused by all kinds Of stock. NOT eyen n
hog will eat them If you notice Tho - mo.
tnd9 mas a peculiar smell. !. ii. g.
me insect you refer TO is what Is known
as sweet Potato Root Borer" and its
scientific name is "cylas formicnrius." "a
lar as can learn the insect appeared On
inc coast of the State at Matngorda Ia.
,unI some ten years ago. and has been
worklng its way further up in the State
each year. Last year found a few In
our experimental work here. IL has
been sent TO me several times during the
past two years, and l regard IL very
threatening enemy to sweet potato cult
urc IN all the coast country. II romans
70 DC seen how far mp in the State II will
CO. Inc insect ia supposed 20 have come
from Cuba. II was found I'm Floridn In
iSiS and IN Louisiana in 1890. The In.
sect is rather oblong. and in shane re-.
minds one Of the common corn wecyiI
Nearly all Of the insect Is blush black
except the central portion Of the thornv,
winch y reddish brown. Tho female de-
posts her eggs on tho vines near The
ground. They soon hatch ont into small !
wliilish larvae (wormsl which born down !
INTO the sweet potato. producing that no
cullnr odOr mentioned. In abOnt thirty |
five days from the time the eggs arc |
laid the full grown beetles come out. |
The eggs are also deposited In the cut |
places of the tubers after digging. A |
figure showing all stages OF the insect |
viii appear in bulletin now in press.
The insect is hard TO destroy, MS II |
lives most Of its life inside tho potato.
Some have put the infested potatoes In |
barrels and after pouring in n few spoon,
fuls Of carbon b-sulphdc Into the bar
rcls they are covered up All infested
potatoes should he burned instead of he
ing left ON the ground to decay. No po-
tatocs that are infested should be planted,
1 is best TO plant tho crtp on new piece
Of ground each year. II the insect IL
not checked in its onward movements In
the State by these precautions il would
be bcst To suspend the growing Of sweet
potatoes in tho infested localities for
year or two and destroy oil plants that
come up voluntarily over the fields I'm
less tlIr growers Of potatoes themselves
lake hold Of this matter sweet potato
growing In infested localities will be
greatly injured. X. ii. Price.
Texas Experiment Station.