The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-07-16

1 the eggs laid by seven different fe- l male ticks. and they averaged 2,2ss eggs apiece. It takes the tick from seven days to three weeks to lay her eggs. In hot weather she will lay all her eggs in week. In cool weather she may consume three weeks in egg laying. As she lays her eggs, her body gradually shrinks and shrivels. until at the end of the egg-laying period 1t Is simply a mass of dried skin from which all life has departed. There fore, every female tick dies as soon as she has finished laying her eggs. Any body can satisfy himself of this fact by taking full grown female tick from a COW and putting her in a bot tie and watching her lay her eggs
 In warm weather the eggs will hatch in few days into what we know as seed ticks" which are simply young cattle ticks. These seed ticks climb up the stalk of a weed, brush or grass where they lie in wait to catch on to COW as she brushes the plant. After once getting good hold of It's host, the tick remains there. sucking blood and growing. until 1t becomes mature which takes from twenty to forty days. After reaching maturity the i tick drops off. lays her egg and dies thus completing the life history.
 From this brief, general discussion, 1t will be seen that the life history of the cattle tick may be divided into two parts, is 1t were. One part, com posed of the eggs and seed ticks. is spent upon the ground; while the sec- ond part, the growing stage. is spent as a parasite on horses, mules, or cat tle It is evident, therefore, that if either of these parts be suppressed. the ticks will be exterminated. For ex- ample. if the seed ticks can be pre- vented from reaching a COW, horse. or mule. they cannot develop into full grown ticks; but will eventually die of starvation. thus becoming exterminat- ed. Exactly this has been done in many cases, even over ten whole coun- ties in western North Carolina.
 Careful experiments have shown that egg-laying and matching take about one month in hot weather and that the resultant seed ticks can live about two months without food. There fore, if pasture be full of female ticks on the first day of June, and every COW. horse. and mule be taken out of the pasture on that day, then. by the first of October. at the latest. every tick in that field will be dead and the pasture will be absolutely free from these pests.
 It seems to me that this is a plain proposition. It has been established conclusively by several observers, that
 
 ly in any lot in four months in sum- mer if all cattle, horses, and mules are removed from said lot. It follows al- so from this. that every cotton patch. corn field, grain lot, or meadow is free from all ticks by October, unless by chance. very remote one. tick has dropped from a mule or horse used in cultivation.
 Now as to exterminating the ticks on any farm or on any given area: The first step to be taken is to divide the pastures of the farm into two parts separated from each other at least forty feet That is. if the pasture area of a farm is all in one. 1t should be divided into two parts by two fences forty feet apart; and into this lane or neutral zone no cattle. horses, or mules should be allowed to go Then remove Ali stock from part No. 1 on June 1. and keep them in part No. 3. By Oc- tober 1, all ticks in pasture No. 1. will have been starved out. and the pasture will be free from ticks.
 The next step is to clean the cattle ticks. To do this. turn all the cattle into the corn and cotton fields by the middle of November and keep them there until February, by which time all the ticks will have dropped off and the animals will be free from these pests. provided they have not at any bGCh tuIneu Ddck lnLO the DaS-l ture in which they were kept during the summer. If this should be done, they would probably become infested with seed ticks
 By February. then. we have a tick free pasture and tick free cattle. Im- mediately turn these cattle into the tick free pasture and keep them there through the following summer. during which the second pasture will be freed from ticks. thus completely extermin- ating the ticks over the whole farm It is evident that alter a farm is once free from ticks the owner must not buy cattle infested with ticks and turn them in among his tick free cattle. If this is done. the owner will certainly lose many of his animals and be ob- Hged to do the work all over again,
 There is one other method of rid ding ones farm of ticks known as the "feed-lot' method A field having shade and water and known to be tick free. should be selected, that is near field which can be plowed and sownl to sorghum, corn, millet, or any other good forage plant Divide the shaded field into two equal lots separated by Place all the cattle on the farm in one of these lots and keep them there for twenty days. Then remove to the other lot for twenty days longer. In the meantime feed them upon the forage sown in the field nearby.
 At the end of forty days every tick will have dropped from the cattle and they should then be turned into some tick free field until November In this way. farm may be cleaned of ticks in three or four months in the summer As soon as the cattle are removed from the two lots. the fences should be talk en down and the ground should be plowed, sown, and cultivated to ktAI whatever ticks may be there.
 It is almost useless for me to point out the great benefits derived from having farm free from cow ticks. We have all had experience with these parasites and their effect on cattle We know how they prevent a steer from fattening, how they run down" a milch COW, and how, above all, we are handicapped when we wish to ship ani- mals to the Northern markets or bring blooded stock for breeding pur- poses from the North here. With ourI farm free from ticks, we can buy an expensive Jersey, Aberdeen Angus, Hereford, or Red Polled bull, if we de- sire one to head our herd. and not be afraid that he will die In a few days of Texas fever. Again. if ourI farm is free of ticks, we can ship our cattle to st Louis markets without the embargo of 1-2 or 8-4 of a cent per ponnd now paid us.