The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-07-21
TO STOP ADVANCE OF ARMY WORM
P1owed burrows and Poison for New
Outbreak of Pest.

Letters. telephone messages, and indi'
vidual callers have been soliciting aid
from the z. S. department of agricul.
tlue to stop the advance of the hordes
of army worms that threaten their
fields of wheat, corn, oats, timothy, blue
grass, and other grasses. There seems
to be general outbreak of this pest
throughout the North east OF the Rocky
mountains, These worms are emerging
from eggs laid by moths that appar-
emily swarmed up from the Southwest.
Great numbers of these moths have
been noticed in the vicinity Of Wash
ington during the past month, hundreds
| of their broken wings having been seen
near the Union station. Lawns in the
capital are being oyerrun by this pest.
The army worm is a smooth, striped
caterpillar about an inch and quarter
long, and quarter of an inch in diam
eter. 1t is rather dark in appearance.
While normally il feeds by night and
hides by day, not being generally no.
ticed, as soon as it has increased 10
such number that its food supply falls
short, it starts TO travel and becoming
holder, feeds both night and day. The
moth from which this worm matches is
brown with white spot on the center
of each fore wing 1t measures about
an inch and one-half from wing to wing
How Worms May Be Destroyed
If the worms have not yet attacked |
field, the most practical way to keep
them out is to pillow burrows in front of
them, throwing the furrow in the direc
tion toward which they are travelling. |
The worms will fall into the furrow,
and when this is full they may be killed |
either by dragging log back and forth |
in the furrow or by destroying the /
worms in holes previously dug at inter
walls of 20. feet in the bottom of the
furrow. Kerosene poured on them in the
holes will destroy them.
If the worms are already in the field,
the following mixture, which will at
tract the worms and destroy them,
should be spread about;
One pound of paris green (poisonousl
80 pounds of wheat bran; juice of one
half dozen oranges.
Bring this mixture to stiff dough
by the use of dilute molasses and scatter
il amongst the worms. Care should be
taken TO keep this dough from the chill
iren or domestic animals.
Prompt action to prevent the worms
from infesting a field is much better
than later efforts TO attempt to kill
hem in the grain. Once the caterpillars i,
nave infested field, the measures nee
'ssary TO destroy them may seriously ,
lurt or even destroy the crop.
The worms at first are almost always
ocalized in some definite breeding place
n the field and immediate efforts should !
,e taken TO eradicate them in these !
mall areas before they have had time
o spread. The normal breeding place !
{ the army worm is in rank grass, such :
5 is usually found along the edges of "
or in spots of pasture land that
ave been over-fertilized. They are prac-
ically never found in swamps. because
he worm needs a reasonably dry place =
d which to breed.
Clean cultivation, rotation Of crops.
leaning up of fence corners, close pas :
Iirage, and the burning over of waste
rass land in the spring or fall, arr
God measures TO prevent a recurrence
the army worm.
What to Do for Lawns.
For small areas like lawns and nri.
ate grounds, the poison bait mentioned
boye may be used. Equally efiiciant is
he application Of a spray Of one pound
rsenate Of lead. dissolved in 25 gallons
water. II the powdered arsenate Of
ad is more easily obtainable, one pound
this may BE- mixed with eight pounds
-four and busted on the grass where
le worms are feeding. Il must be r.
embered that arsenate Of lead Is !
'adly poison 20 men and animals, as
Ell as to army worms.