The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1912-06-15
zitNORMs |NJUR|HG CORN,
Fall Army or Grass Worms Devasta-
ding Crops in Many Sections OF
Satellite History and Habits
OF Pest, and Methods of Con-
troI-Poison Best Remedy.

At the present time the fall army
worm, Or grass worm, is very abund-
mt and is seriously injuring the corn
crop. We are receiving many letters
lsking for information about this
| pest; therefore, the life history and
habits will be briefly stated and
methods of control given.
The worms pass the winter in the
ground about half an inch to an inch
below the surface, and the moths
emerge in the spring at the approach
of warm weather, when the females
lay their eggs on the different grass
IS. The eggs hatch in about a week,
and the worms then feed on the
grass until full grown, which lis
usually two to three weeks, and then
go under the ground, where they re-
main for a period Of one to two
weeks before emerging as adult in
sects..s From this it can be seen that
we may expect about four broods in
this latitude.
The natural food plant of this in
sect in this section is grass, crab
grass preferred; but when conditions
are favorable and the worms become
very abundant, as they are at pres
mt, they will attack practically all
Of our cultivated crops. Corn, cot
ton, sugar cane and most Of the sta
pie crops grown in Louisiana suffer
more or less from the attacks of this
pest, but corn is the favorite among
our Louisiana products, and it is
This crop that is being most serious
ly damaged at present.
Usually insect pests of this nature
occur at infrequent intervals, and not
often do we have them two years in
succession. The reason for this is
chat the natural enemies, which all
insect pests have, get control and
prevent rapid multiplication. When
we have some unnatural or abnormal
condition which destroys the natural
enemies, but does not seriously In
serfere with these pests, we may
then expect serious damage. We
have ground beetles, ants, small
wasp like parasites and certain spe-
cles of flies which prey on these
army worms and usual Iy hold So
LIN check but ne past ter lEfsas
been very sewers on these natural
enemies and has so reduced them
that this pest has been given the
opportunity to rapidly multiply with
out any natural check. 1t is possi-
Die that the natural enemies may be-
come abundant enough to control the
hrnnI
matches out, but we are unable to
tell whether or not this will happen;
SO, therefore, our farmers should be
prepared to combat them.
AS the, natural food plant of these
worms is grass, all grass fields should
be ploWed under or closely grazed
with cattle, horses, sheep and hogs
in order to prevent these insects
from breeding and developing in
large numbers. Especial precautions
should be taken to prevent the
growth of crab grass, as it is the
| favorite food Of the pest in this To-
cality. Where grass lands in waste
or idle places are found infested,
many of the worms may be destroyed
| by running over these areas with a
heavy roller of some kind III some
Instances it may be practicable to
NOW grass lands in order to destroy
| the food of these worms.
They may be destroyed on corn,
cotton or any crop which they at
tack by dusting the foliage with Paris
green or powdered a1senate of lead
We have found that a mixture of Pa
| lis green and Stacked lime, one part
Of Paris green to fifteen to tWent.
parts by measure Of lime, has given
satisfactory results. Paris green will
burn the leaves of most plants if
applied without mixing with lime,
flour Or dust, but the arsenate of lead
may be applied alone without injury
Paris green is cheaper, however, than
the arsenate of lead, and is more
commonly found throughout the coun-
try; therefore, the majority of farm
ers will be able to procure the for
1ner poison more readily than the lat.
ter.
The poison may be applied with one
CT The common dust guns manufac-
tured for this purpose, or bags
made Of osnaburg, Or cloth Of that
nature, may be used and the poison
sifted from them On to the plants.
These bags are usually made about
fen to twelve inches long by four
10 six inches in width, opon the whole
length on one side with both ends
closed. A strong beard about two
by two inches and four to five feet
long is used with a bag tackled to
each end. About five inches from
zach end OF the board a one inch
hole is bored and stopped with a
geg or cork The peg is removed
and the poison put into the bag
lhrough these holes. By jarring the
BOARD, the poison is sifted from the
bags on to the foliage of the plants.
Il is best to make the applications
Of poison in the early morning be-
fore the wind rises, but in case it
should be necessary to make appli-
cations when the wind is blowing,
i is advisable to attach pieces Of
duck, or cloth OF a. similar nature, to
each end of the board in such d way
4ho+ they will act as curtains and