The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1902-04-29
Horticulture.
THE STRAWBERRY WKRVIL.

What 1t is and How to Avoid It's OnslaughtR.
Correspondence of The Progressive Farmer.
The first complaint of injury by
the strawberry weevil (AntbOg9OnaGs
sig0GtWs) has just been received. The
letter, which comes from Duplin
County, says: 81 send you some bugs
which find in my strawberries,
and some blooms which they have
killed. They are completely killing
my berries as they go. Please give
me the name of the bug, it's origin,
and speedy remedy, Write me by
mail and also publish in The Pro
GREssIvE FARMER
It is commonly thought by many
that the entomologists, or others
occupying official positions, create
more stir and excitement over their
work than the case really justifes,
but the above letter speaks for itself
as to the great damage which our in.
scot foes may infliot, and it may also
be said that strawberries are not
subject to 80 many insect enemies as
other crops Right here let Us make
the point which we have tried to i'm
press in almost every article which
we have written for publication,
namely, that in fighting insects the
greatest point is to be ready, and
begin the fight early, before the crop
is ruined. We are 80 prone to look
only at the problem of the one day
in which we live and pay no atten-
tion to what lies ahead.
The most effective means of escap-
ing injury by the strawberry weevil
is in the selection of varieties, and
thus it must really be taken into con-
sideration before the plants are or
dered from the original grower.
Remedies applied after the weevil
appear have never proved very effeo-
tive, though doubtless better than
nothing.
The weevil is very small brown
ish beetle of rather hard oonsistence,
and the head is furnished with a
stout beak with tiny jaws at the end.
With this it punotures the bud or
freshly opened flower, and in. the
hole thus made, the egg is deposited.
The beetle then gnaws the stem of
the flower so that it willis and can
make no further growth. The egg
matches into a small whitish grub
which feeds on the pollen in the bud.
The fact that it lives on the pollen
and not the bud itself is most i'm
portant. In this situation the grub
remains till grown, and about mid J..
summer it transforms to the beetle.
The fact that the grub lives on the
pollen of the flower indicates that
only those varieties will be attacked
which produce pollen, and this is the
case. By the selection of pistiLL0te
varieties, therefore, we get plants
that are not subject to attack, or at
least the attacks will not be serious.
The catalogues of dealers in straw
berry plants usually indicate whether
a variety is staminate or pistillate by
letters or p, as the case may be.
Those marked s, are the staminate
(pollen-bearing) varieties, and hence
subject to injury by weevil.
AS it is necessary to have some
staminate plants in order to fertilize
the others, every fourth or fifth row
may be staminate.
Without exercising this precaution
in the selection of plants, one is
taking his own risk of injury by the
weevil Probably the Sharpless is
the worst affected of all varieties,
and in some localities in Maryland
and Delaware, growers have entirely
given up the culture of this variety,
on this very account
But what concerns our Duplin
County grower at the present mo-
ment Is the protection of this year g
crop. For this, we know of nothing
better than to give liberal sprink-
ling of dry tobacco dust until the
young berries are past injury, or
till the vii has run it's course.
FRANKLIN SHERMAN, JR.
Entomologist Dept of Agriculture,
Raleigh, N. G.
Farmers are right much behind.
Nearly all are busy planting corn.