The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1896-11-27
THE cHINcH BUG.
Effective Work May Now BE Done to Pre-
vent Injuries Next Year.

Effective Work May Now BE Done to Pre-
vent Injuries Next Year.
Curing the past season the chinch bug
appeared in a great many localities in
the west, and while in some places it
did great deal Of damage, not a tithe Of
injury was inflicted by it that would
have been the case had it not been that
the growing season was an unusually
rainy one. The chinch bug is evidently
Of southern origin, and his name is de.
rived from chinoho, that being the Span
ish name for the bedbug, to which in
one stage Of his existence the chinch
bug bears strong resemblance. He is
an old settler in this country, having
been first found in North Carolina in
1888. His favorite food is wheat, bar
ley, corn and grasses. Not being pro-
vided with jaws for biting, he does not
eat them, but instead sucks the life out
of the plants by the means of little
tube with which he is provided.
The adult bug passes through the
winter hidden close to the roots of his
favorite grasses, preferring those that
stool freely, and appears in the spring as
soon as it becomes warm enough for life
to start freely. The eggs are very small
and whitish, and are laid in early spring
at the roots of grasses and grains. They
hatch in about two weeks and the young
bugs, which are called nymphs, are at
first yellow in color, and it is in this
stage of their existence that they re-
semble the Spanish chincho. They soon
turn to bright red, except portion of
the fore part of the body which is dark
er. They molt four times before matur-
ing their wings, then become fully de-
veloped. Five weeks are usually requir-
ed to effect the change. Eggs are then
laid for the second brood, and it is this
one that carries the species through the
winter again. The presence of the bugs
on grass or grain may often be detected
at a distance by the wilted or withered
appearance of the infested plants.
In wet seasons fungous disease de-
velops in them which kills them in
great quantities, and thus puts period
to their destructive work. A good many
attempts have been made to use this
disease for the purpose of heading off
the attacks Of the bugs, and in many
instances tho plan has been successful.
It is not always reliable, however, for
the reason that for the active develop
ment of the fungus very considerable
amount of heat and moisture are neces-
sary. so that while it is quite easy to
90
without limit in the laboratory it is not
always SO easy to do it in field work,
where the conditions in this respect are
not under control.
The reason why reference to the
chinch bug is made at this time, says
the Iowa Homestead, authority for the
foregoing, is because this is the season
done to prevent injuries by the chinch
bug next year. This is done by burning
over infected sections and by deep plow-
ing late in the fall. If burning be re-
sorted to, the localities where the insects
are alternating should be sought out
and the infested places burned over
early in the winter, and, when it is
possible, it is we'll to follow the burn
ing with deep blowing and narrowing.
Those of our readers who live in locali-
ties where the chinoh bug appeared in
destructive numbers during the past
season will do we'll to take these pre-
cautions in the late fall and early win
ter of this year, with the assurance that
it is the best known method of securing
immunity from an attack next season.