The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-29
The Harlequin Cabbage hug.

Southern truckers have been lainil'ai
with the harlequin cabbage bug, eaheC
back or firebug CMurgantia hisrion4ca)
as il is variously called. fol many yeaa ;
For the past twenty-five years It has con
stantly been spreading toward the East
from Texas, where it first appeared in
1866, coming there from Mexico, says Prof
Sanderson of the Maryland Agricultural
College. Recently it has been found in
Southern Pennsylvania, and is yearly be-
ing found in heretofore unmoiested locah-
ties in Maryland. New Jersey, West Vir-
ginia and neighboring states.
Its appearance is very characteristic ana
ii is not readily mistaken for any other.
1t is of an oval. 1attened shape, about
one-fourth inch long when full grown,
black with bright red and yellow mark
ings. The adults hibernate over winter
in neglected cabbage stumps, under rub
Dish, etc, and appear from the latter part
of March in the extreme South, 40 the
first of May in the latitude of Mar vland.
The eggs are then deposited upon kaie,
mustard or wild cruciferous plants. They
are placed in a double row of twelve or
thirteen and are marked with back rings
somewhat resembling small, white bar-
rels with black hoops. The eggs hatch
in three or four days, and the young in
sects become full grown in about two
weeks. The nymphs differ considerably
from the adults in the orange markings.
as shown in the figure. In the South there
are as many as seven or eight broods In
year, while only three or four occur in
Maryland The mouth parts are those
characteristic of the hemiptera, or true
bugs, forming tube with which the in
sects pierces the foliage and sucks out
the juices of the plants, causing them to
wither and dry
The most successful means of CONTROL
ing the pest yet devised, and one which is
very satisfactory when properly handled,
consists in killing the bugs while they
are feeding upon catch crop before they
have commenced to attack the cabbages.
For this catch crop, kale serves admirably,
or mustard may be planted early in the
spring and should be planted in rows
scattered through the intended cabbage
field. The bugs seem to prefer the kale
or mustard to the young cabbage, and viii
be found upon the catch crop even before
the cabbage plants are set out. While
they are still upon the mustard, they
should be killed by spraying with pure
kerosene. The catch crop should be
planted to come up at different periods, so
that after one portion has been sprayed,
d iiSSi lON VIII lHNlte those bugs remain
ing. From experiments which I made
last season with spraying the bugs with
whaleoil soap, 1 believe this will prove
eHectual in killing them after they have
commenced to attack the cabbage, if used
at strength OF ~ or 2 pounds per gal
Ion Of water In my experiments il
killed all the bugs which were hit, and
did not seem to have any deleterious effect
upon the plant. Further experiments on
larger scale will be needed, however, TO
demonstrate the practicability of this
mode Of treatment. By a proper manip-
ulation of the trap crops, this pest may
be kept pretty thoroughly in check but
to do this successfully will depend very
largely upon the good judgment of the
| grower, and his knowledge of the pest.