Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-05-17
0INAGE REACHES
MANY THOUSANDS
...,o WeeviI Sweeping Hay
Fields Clean in Big District
Near Salt Lake.
rus COUNTY LOSS $4,000
Methods Of Fighting the Pest
surecsted-Matter at Best More
or Less Experimental

..p.. FAR The most serious thing
80, ever threatened the farmers
r-,sb Is the plague Of the alfalfa
.-eeyI which is now making havoc
A. che fields Of Salt Lake, Davis, Utah
"a summit counties said Edward c..
Titus. professor Of entomology Of the
Agricultural college, Logan. and head
Of the Utah department for coping
with farm insects IN general, who was
At the Kenyon Monday afternoon II
consider the situation so serious that
feel it time 10 give the matter due
publicity. with the hope that with the
eo-operation Of the farmers Of the
state the spread Of the destructive lit
lie weevil may be checked as far as
possible.
CROP GONE FROM 5000 ACRES.
In salt Lake county. for instance,
al least one-third of the first crop
N alfalfa has been destroyed. Last
season there were $1,000 acres Of
ucern In the county. Some has been
pl0wed up. but i'm other places new
fields have been sown, so probably the
crop Of near 5000 acres. averaging
two tons 70 the acre. has been last"
(At SO a ton the $4,000 tons would
be worth {1S0.000.)
The federal government thinks so
much OF the seriousness OF tho situa-
ton that last week Il had r. NJ webs
ter OF Washington, d. c., chief OF its
entomology department, come out and
canvass the infected part OF the state
IN connection with Professor Titus
They visited Salt Lake and Davis
counties, and Sunday Professor Titus
accompanied Professor Webster as far
as Green river. Emery county. OBJ
serving tho lucern fields enroute.
Professor Webster has delegated one
Of his special field officers. G. n.
AinsHe, 10 remain in Utah, and
he Is now working with Pro-
lessor Titus with the hope Of ulti-
mately eradicating the pest. or at least
checking its spread throughout the
state.
SPREAD OF THE PEST.
The most badly infested district is
around MIL Greek, Taylorsville and
Ritter Here many fields are almost
ruined. and considerable alfalfa
ground has been plowed up and
planted 70 other crops The strip OF
country from Woods Cross on the
north to Lehi on the south has been
Inspected lately. and so far no fields
found entirely free from the weevil
That takes II into three counties, and
last week Professor Titus traced II
over into Summit county. as far up
the Weber as Chalk creek. Wanship,
c0aluue Upton, all are infested, and
ide hay fields ultimately threatened,
with destruction unless staying meas
ures are found and adopted
The methods now being used against
the weevil are spraying. with the
hopes Of finding a solution which will
MI the insect without injury to the
plant or its use for food afterwards.
disc cultivation before the first crop
has begun 70 sprout. or Immediately
after cutting Of a crop. in this way
burytng and smothering myriads OF
the Insects and their eggs: pasturing.
by turning sheep and cows into the
fields 70 eat up and trample into the
dust and destroy the pest in its
various forms: and lastly by burning
straw or hay over the fields
HATCH OF 90 PER CENT.
This has been an unusual season"
sad Professor Titus. ''The early
spring. the mildness, and the steady
winter weather had a tendency to
cause all insect life to thrive Won
derfuliy Where ordinarily there is a
en- IN nor can't oarar haf.H