The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1907-06-06
THE BOIL WEEVlL
AND THE BOIL WORM

should utilize every possible means for
the protection of what crop they may be
able to make.
| Under the present conditions. already
discouraging, the boil weevil is not the
only enemy of which the farmer stands
in dread, for the mild winter has made
conditions favorable for a great abun-
dance of boil worms as we'll as of boil
weevils The boil worm, allow us to
point out, is very different insent from
the boil weevil, but as an enemy to the
cotton crop it is close second to the
latter pest.
Through the kind cooperation of the
newspapers of the State we are able to
place the following information before
the cotton planters, which will enable
them to forestall the boil worm and pre-
vent large part of the injury which it
will do this summer and autumn is not
'check-mated' in advance.
THE BOIL WORM.
4
tention to the boil worm in the past or
become familiar with its work in the
cotton fields, and as a consequence the
| large part of the damage which has been
charged to the boil weevil has in reality
been done by the boil worm Of the loss
thus far ascribed to the boil weevil in
Louisiana, probably 80 to 40 per cent
has been due TO the boil worm.
To understand the remedial measures
recommended below, it is necessary that
one understand something of the life
history of the boil worm This worm
is the larval or worm stage of an olive
brown moth, about the same size as the
leaf-worm moth.
The winter is passed by the boil worm
pupa or .chrysalis in the ground, and
from these pupae the moths issue in
spring and deposit their eggs on the
corn, then from inches to 2 feet high.
The larvae Matching from these eggs
feed in the bud of the corn and when
mature enter the ground and pass
through the pupal stage. The next, or
second, brood of moths appears when
the field corn is in tassel and silk and
the eggs of this brood are laid on the
silks of the young ears. The larvae
Matching therefrom bore into the ear
and feed on the tender kernels The
corn ear worm and the boil worm are
identical, being one and the same in
| sect These worms mature and enter
the ground, as did those of the earlier
generation, and the moths from them
appear, in normal seasons, about August
| /; but by this time the corn in the field
has become too hard to attract them
| md the moths accordingly go to the
cotton, which is their second choice"
as food plant, and deposit their eggs
on it. These eggs produce the very de-
structiye August and September boil
worms, which work havoc with the
crop, destroying both squares and bolls
| by eating into them.
lCORN PREFERRED FOR DEPOS-
| ING EGGS.
Now it happens that corn in silk is
always the preferred place for deposit
| ing eggs, and therefore if the corn be
planted in or about the cotton field at
such a time that it will come into silk
when the early August brood of moths
appears, these latter will deposit their
eggs in large numbers on the corn in
stead Of on the cotton. Such corn
often has thousands of boil worm moth
eggs on single ear. When these eggs
hatch, the little larvae fight among
themselves until but one or two out OF
the many hundreds hatched on the ear
remain, for they are cannibals and will
not tolerate each others company. By
thus colonizing them upon this late corn
they can be made TO destroy each other.
| We therefore advise the farmers to
plant a few rows of corn across the cot
ton fields, every 200 or 900 feet, making
this planting between June S and IS.
Considering the lateness of the season
this will bring the corn into silking al
about the time the moths of the third
generation appear. Mexican June corn
Iif it can be obtained, is better for this
purpose than the ordinary field corn
and the Mexican June corn could be
planted as late as June IS to I8 and
have silks at the proper time to catch
the eggs and worms of the August
brood
| The important feature to remember is
/ that this corn must be brought into tas-
Isei and silk soon after August i.
ICORN PLANTED WITH COTTON
/ There is a Creole belief in some por-
Itions of Louisiana to the effect that early
Icorn planted in the cotton will reduce
boil worm injury The theory is correct
but the practice, as applied at present
lis just wrong-end-to, for the earl,
planted corn merely breeds boil worm.