The Green Forest tribune., 1911-10-13


 mature weevils and the incubators of | the immature weevils-where the cotton I fields are fenced and the number of cat | tie turned into field is sufficient to eat all the squares, bolls and foliage in a | few days. However, let it be distinctly understood that the practice of turning few head of cattle into fifteen or | twenty acre cotton or corn field accom- | plishes no particular good. We all know | from observation that two or three head of cattle per acre, even when confined to the cotton field, will eat very little of the green foliage in one week. And let us not forget that it is necessary to completely destroy the food supply of the mature weevils and the breeding i places of the immature weevils at the earliest possible moment.
 Flowing under cotton stalks is a good method of destroying the only food SUD- ply of the mature weevils and of ending the life of all the immature weevils where there are few stumps and roots, small cotton stalks, and where large blows and strong teams can be had. I have held the blow handles in the piney woods, in the prairie section and in the rich bottom lands and I know whereof l speak when l say to you that it is very difficult to completely bury average size cotton stalks. l have hitched three large mules to a twelve-inch steel beam turning blow with a log chain attach ment and failed to completely turn un- der average size cotton stalks on land clear of stumps. have failed to turn under large size cotton stalks with four large mules hitched to a thirty-inch disc blow. In fact, farmers who have attempted to blow under green cotton stalks early in the fall laugh at the advice sometimes given to blow under the stalks at all times and under all conditions as means of destroying the food supply of the weevils. However, let us use large blows and strong teams and completely bury the stalks wher- ever it can be done.
 There is an insufficient number of cat tie on many farms and plantations to thoroughly and completely denude the cotton stalks of every vestige of foliage, squares and bolls in a short time and it is impossible hence, it is absolutely necessary to burn the stalks as soon as the cotton is picked out. When the stalks are burned, the food supply Of the adult weeyil is destroyed at once, the weevils ill the immature stages in the squares and bolIs are all destroyed at once, and the large majority of the adult weevls perish in the flames, espe- cial]y when the stalks are burned after sundown. Weevils retire for the night on the cotton stalk piles at about sun down. They seldom move about at night. If the farmers are careful not to shake the stalk piles when applying the torch after sundown, practically all the wee wills on the stalk piles will be burned.
 Of course, if the stalks are allowed to remain until heavy frost has come and practically all of the mature weevils have gone into winter quarters, it is not advisable to burn the stalks. 1t is then advisable to turx the stalks under as deeply as possible.
 Practically all the weeYils that hiber- nate in the corn fields, in old sorghum and cane fields, along turn-rows, fences, hedges, ditch banks, and in the vicinity of the cotton fields can be destroyed. If the corn stalks, sorghum and cane shucks, grass and trash are thoroughly plowed under for several inches deep very few weevils will survive for spring depredations.
 ,,,,n,I of boro been found hibernating in cracks and holes in the ground and under grass, weeds, and other trash. In January, 1907, in one instance, the Bureau of En- tomology found 5,870 weevils per acre, of which TO per cent were alive. Most of the many examinations that have been made by the Bureau of Entomology have shown more than 1000 live weevils per acre in the cotton fields.
 Deep winter breaking and the turn ing under of the trash, corn stalks and so on means death to thousands of wee wills. The thousand or more weevils per acre in the cracks and hole in the ground and under the grass, weeds, and trash can practically all be killed by deep winter breaking of the land. There is enough rainfall in this section to thor oughly satrate the soil many times and for this reason it is only necessary to blow under the trash and weevils It is not all necessary to burn the corn stalks, grass, oat and pea stubble and other veg etable matter Every acre in cultivation in the weevil territory should be plowed good and deep this fall and winter.
 Many weevils will escape from the cot ton fields but all will not fly beyond the reach of the farmer. Many will be found along the fence rows, hedges, ditch banks, and iii decayed logs and dead trees. The cleaning and burning of the hedges, ditch banks, and fence rows and the burning of sap on logs, stumps, and dead trees in and around the fields will destroy many weevils that would live to do great damage.
 Farmers who destroy the squares, bolls and foliage-the sole food supply of the weevil-on or before October goth and add strength to this almost knockout blow by blowing under all the weevils in the cracks and holes in the ground and in the grass and trash on the ground by destroying practically all the weevils hibernating along turn-rows, fences, hedges, and in general in the vicinity of the fields and follow up the destruc- tion by picking the weevils off the little cotton until the squares begin to form and by picking up the punctured squares for at least one month after the squares