Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1912-08-01
THE MELON CATERPILLAR
Press Circular From Mississippi Rxr<
cultural Experiment Staten. L r
Lloyd. Director
By R W. HARSEn


July IS. igfa
At the present time this insect i Do
atroying eantaloupes IN all parts of Mi~
sissiPpi. There : another insect Known
az the pickle or cucumber worm that
resembles it very much. Both u thes.
insects destroy squash and other eacur-
bits "a well as melons and cucumhers.
and both Of these are found in All parts
Of Mississippi. A they resemble eaea
other xery much in appearance A. we'll
as in habits what is said Of one will ap-
ply 10 the other also.
Appearance and Hahi,s.-The aduls
moths are white with black markings.
They usually appear in June and begin
laying thsir eggs on the fawers bs,ds
and tender terminals Of the plant. The
young worms that hatch eat into the
food nearest At hand. Those that are
on the tender terminals bore into the
stems and leaves and later often tunnel
into the vines like the squash-vine borer.
Those that hatch from eggs layed on the
blossoms feed in the blossoms. As the
worms grow older they move from ono
plant to another. often boring into sew
erL melons, cucumbers or squa.hes. Tn
III half grown the worms are marked
with rows Of black spots. When full
grown the worms are nearly An iEch
long, with greenish colored bodies and
brown heads. The worms 0r larvae re-
quire about two weeks in which to ma
ture. A leaf is then folded and the worm
turns to a pupa within the fold Ths
pupa Is brown and one-half inch long.
About one week IS spent in this stage
when the adult moth appears. There are
at least three generations Of these in
sects each year. About four weeks .
required TO complete the life history.
The winter is spent in the pupa stage
in leaves and trash IN the fields.
Control.-Although these pests are
very difficult to control there are GER
tain practices that will help greatly in
checking them.
Destruction Of Old Plants.-As soon
as the crop is gathered all vines. foliage
and trash in the fields should be plowed
as deeply under the ground a possible.
This viii prevent the moths from emerg-
ing.
Early PIanting.-As these worms are
more serious late in the summer early
paintings and early-maturing varieties
are less likely to be seriously injured.
Squash as a Trap Crop.-Squash hss
successfully been used as trap crop
-.
crop. The moths prefer to lay their
eggs upon squashes rather than the
other plants Rows of summer squashes
should be planted in the cucumber and
melon fields as early as possible, the
rows being planted every two weeks. 80
there will be flowers throughout the
summer. The squash blooms containing
the worms must be collected and de-
stroyed every few days. Ii this Is not
done the worms will migrate 70 the mel.
ons and cucumbers. This metlsDd has
been tried and where the work Is care.
fully done It is very successful.
Poisons.-The use Of the arsenicaI POI.
cons such as arsenate Of lead and paris
green, ought 10 BE- Of some benefit Il
they are thoroughly applied One pound
of arsenate of lead TO twenty-five gak
Ions of water IS recommended. II paris
green Is used it must b. applied eau
tiously so that the vines will not be IN
Iured. One pound Of paris green iva
pounds OF lime and one hundred aud
nifty gallons of water i the rate a
which il should BE- applied to these
plants. The lime must never b. left
rut. The poisons should be used as soon
as the buds begin to appear and again
about two weeks Afterwards. The Hum-
Der OF applications viii depend upon
whether the rains wash the poison off
and upon how numerous the worHs are.
Rotation of Crops.-It Is poor prac-
tice 20 plant melons, eueumbers and
squash upon the same land during two
successive years. Ii will be best q
plant these crops on land as far away as
possible from where they were planted
the previous year.
Hand Picking. - In small gardens
where the melons can be looked over
every few days it Is something's practi-
cal to pick the worms by hand. This
can be done by carefully lifting eaeh
melon and looking over it. Where a hole
is discovered the worm j. cut and killei
This will leave scar but viii not mate
rally affect the melon, a. the s-ar All
soon heal over. The worms are also
often found on the foliage where they
may be gathered and destroyed.
Usually a combinatios Of some or all
of these methods OF control can BE- used
10 good advantage. The EHtomo.1gist.
Agricultural College, Mississippi . anx-
.Dus TO hear the results Of any Who
have tried or are trying these or other
remedies against these pests