St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1910-07-16

ments. All Of the planters who APP
piled the arsenate from bags, against
the advice of DR.. Newell, encountered
failure.
The only machine DR.. Newell has
found suited in the application Of the
lead is the dust gun. The contri-
vance is a small one, and consists of
a reservoir for holding the powder, a
fan driven by hand, and a nozzle or
outlet pipe. This dust gun may be
so directed by the operator as to
FORCE THE POISON INTO EVERY
BUD.
The candle of the machine must be
turnSd at a fair rate of speed, so
that!a very strong current Of air will
issu4 from the nozzle, carrying with
it tf powdered ~arsenate Of lead to
the Very center Of the bud.
Some planters are also inquiring as
to The condition the seed must be in.
whan the lead is used. NJ. Tremou-
lets in answering this question, finds
the answer in the report of DR.. New
ellie DR.. Newell holds that it is not
impossible that in the earliest matur-
ing varieties there are some with
which the powdered lead ~arsenate
viii prove more profitable than with
others. In the experiments DR.. New
ell conducted at Lakeland there was
a marked difference in the increased
production obtained by the powder on
the several varieties. On one variety
q profit Of but 27c an acre was shown
from che use of the arsenate, while
another variety showed a profit of
S23.54 per acre.
The presence of soluble arsenic in
Paris green caused this poison to be
such a failure in its use against the
Weevil, and as the powdered arsenate
of lead does not contain soluble ar
senIc, it is most desirable as an in
secticide, the absence Of soluble ar
senic rendering it altogether harm
less to the cotton plant itself.
AS to the best time for the appli-
cation of the lead, DR.. Newell says
that the greatest number of weeyils
may be killed by the poison when the
cotton plants are in the budding
stage, just before squaring. He
thinks that the sensible thing to do
is to let the weevils have their way
in the small cotton, and then make a
determined attack upon them at the
time when the majority Of the plants
are in the budding stage. AS never
more than go per cent of the plants
in a field are in the budding stage at
one time, the planter will find it the
best rule to follow to make his first
application on the very day that he
can find the first square of cotton on
his land. From that tins on, until
the plants have passed the building
stage and have put on squares oc-
ours the boil weeviIs critical time
and the farmers opportune time.
Speaking from experience, Or.
Newell holds that the best results
will follow from about FIVE applica-
tions of the powdered ~arsenate of
lead, made from five to seven days
apart, the first application being
made, as was before stated, when the
first square appears in the cotton
field.
Owe wintered weevils continue to
come from their alternating quarters
and infest the fields for a consider
able time after the appearance of the
first square. These late weevils can
not be destroyed as a whole by the
~arsenate, but the infestation which
they produce can be greatly retarded
when the lead is applied properly.
The third, fourth and fifth applica-
tions are made with this end in view,
after the greatest possible number Of
weeyils have been killed on the buds.
MIR. Tremoulet, who has made FREE
quent trips through the cotton sec
lions Of the state, has found that
weevil infestation is greatest in dis
tricts that are close to thick woods
and where weeds are allowed to
grow in the fields. He is very posi-
tive in the assertion that all the
WEEDS SHOULD BE CLEARED
from the fields and other precautions
Of a like nature be taken.
Mr.. Tremoulet summed up the
whole situation in a few words. The
cotton planters must learn that they
can't produce cotton in the old way
he remarked, and just as the fruit
growers realized that they would
have to resort to insecticides, they
must awaken to the fact that it is
absolutely necessary for them to
adopt the new and safe method