Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1908-05-07
CAN OUTDO THE BOIL WEEVIL
Government Experts Demon
strate Cotton Can Be Grown
in Infested Sections.

Strate Cotton Can be Grown
in Infested Sections.
Through the farmers cooperative
demonstration work, conducted by the
bureau of plant industry of the United
States Department of Agriculture, 1T
has been proved that good crop OF
cotton can be raised in the worst in
| tested boil weevil districts of the
south despite the ravages of the pest
This is of untold benefit to the plant
>ters of the south, for by the rapid
spread of the dreaded boil weevil dis
aster was brought to every interest and
| financial conditions We're so completely
demoralized as to produce in some sec
| lions a panic.
| To fully understand the situation it
must be known that the cotton crop
has been generally produced upon
credit system by securing advances
from merchants and bankers. Upon the
advent of the boil weevil confidence in
securing a cotton crop was impaired
and in some sections almost totally
destroyed. In response to an appeal
for relief congress in January, 1904,
made an emergency appropriation, and
the demonstration work was inaugu-
rated, with Dr. S. A. Knapp in charge,
assisted by corps of field agents.
The plan of the work is to get farm
ers to agree to use their farms for
demonstration work, in which i'm
proved methods of culture are inaug-
urated. An agent visits each farm
once month to see that instructions
are carried out and to give any further
advice necessary. About $4,000 dem
onstration farms have been estab-
lished and 10000 farmers have agreed
to cooperate. BY actual count it is
found that from 80 to 100 farmers visit
each demonstration farm, thus the en-
tire community in which they are To-
Gated is benefited.
In a recent bulletin on the work DR..
Knapp says the salient features Of the
work on these farms is: Better drain
age of soils; a deeper and more thor
oughly pulverized seed bed; deep fall
blowing with implements that will not
bring the subsoil to the surface; the
use of seed of the best variety, intelli-
gently selected and carefully stored;
in cultivated crops giving the rows
and the plants in the rows a space
suited to the plant soil and the eli
mate: intensive tillage during the grow
ing period of the crops; the impor-
lance of high content of humus ir
the soil; the use of legumes, barnyart
manure, farm refuse and commercial
fertilizers; the value of crop rotation
and a winter cover crop on southern
farms; the accomplishing Of more worl
| in a day on the farm by using more
horse power and better implements
the Importance of increasing the farm
stock to the extent OF utilizing all thu
waste products and idle lands of thu
farm; the production of all food re-
uuired for men and animals on the
farm; the keeping of an account will
each farm product in order TO know
from which the gain or loss arises.
Farmers are influenced to adopt bet
ter methods by the holding of public
meetings.; teachers in public school:
render assistance, as well as mer-
chants, bankers and lawyers in town!
and smaller cities; agricultural col
lege and experiment stations co-oerate
by sending bulletins to county newspa-
pers.
The secret of growing cotton under
boil weevil conditions is based on three
principles. 1t was found % that the
numbers of the weevils could be linn
tied so that they would not become
totally destructive to the crop until
the first and middle crops are out of
danger; GU that the cotton plant can
be bred and selected SO as TO throw
nearly its whole life forces into the
lower and middle crops, and (3) that
the plant can be so fastened to ma
turity by the application of cultural
methods that most of the bolls will be
developed to the safety of the plant
before the weevils are too numerous
Guided by these principles a cooper
ative plan of producing cotton under
boil weevil conditions has been worked
out, which is known through the south
as the cotton cultural system" This
| is the only safe method to pursue now
until some better one is worked out
DR.. Knapp says: "The boil weevil
has now covered a large portion of
| Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma
and several counties in Mississippi. 1t
is annually invading new territory, with
a column 600 miles long and in num-
bers sufficient to cover every stalk of
cotton to width of thirty miles A
cotton crop can be produced despite
the boil weevil, and the sooner the
American farmers face the situation
the better it will be for all concerned
To demonstrate the truth of this theory
is one object of the farmers co-opera-
| tive demonstration work"
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