Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1915-10-05

prepared by the United States Depart
ment of Agriculture)
Field mice, under certain conditions,
and, as they are injurious to most
crops, methods for controlling them
are of Importance Unfortunately
most of their natural enemies are be-
ing destroyed or driven away from the
farms, so that these mice are becom-
ing more and more of a serious pest.
Altogether there are some fifty spe-
cies of field mice known to exist in
the United States, but for the farmer
who is concerned only with getting
rid of them there are only two classes
meadow mice and pine mice. The
runs of meadow mice are mainly on
the surface of the ground, under grass
or some sheltering litter. These runs
lead to shallow burrows which serve
as winter homes. In summer the mice
use surface nests of dead grass. The
young may be brought forth in either.
Meadow mice destroy grass, cut
down grain, clover and alfalfa, eat
grain left standing in shocks, injure
flowers and vegetables-in short, do
harm in a hundred ways. In the lower
Humboldt valley in Nevada in 1907
1908 they totally ruined $4,000 acres of
alfalfa. Trees and shrubbery are also
attacked and large nurseries Of young
apple trees have been known to have
been almost wholly destroyed by the
mice cutting through the bark at or be-
,ow the surface of the ground.
When the mice completely girdle a
shrub or young tree and eat through
the inner layer of the bark, the action
of the sun and wind soon complete the
destruction of the tree or shrub. If
the injury is not too extensive, prompt
covering of the wounds will usually
save the tree. In any case of girdling,
heaping up fresh soil about the trunk
so as to cover the wounds and prevent
evaporation is recommended as the
simplest remedy. To save large, valu-
able trees, however, bridge grating is
often resorted to.
Pine mice ordir arily live in the
woods and are not, therefore, found on
the open plains, though they like land
that is not frequently cultivated. They
tunnel their way from fence rows,
hedges and woods into gardens and cul-
tivated fields, where they live on
seeds, roots and leaves. Like meadow
mice, they also destroy fruit trees,
particularly in upland orchards. They
attack the trees below the surface, so
that their work is frequently not re-
vealed until the tree is dead.
Means of determination.
When the mice, both meadow and
pine, are in small numbers, trapping
is probably the easiest method of get
ting rid of them. From II to 20 traps
to an acre may often be set with ad-
vantage in the mouse runs. Where
the mice are abundant or the areas
large, poisoning is a quicker means of
determination The following formulas
are recommended in Farmers Bulletin
$40 of the United States department of
agriculture:
Dry Grain Formula.
Mix thoroughly one ounce powdered
strychnine (alkaioid), one ounce pow
dered bicarbonate of soda and one
eighth ounce Tor less) of saccharine.
Put the mixture in a tin pepper box
and sift it gradually over so pounds of
crushed wheat or 40 pounds of crushed
oats in metal tub, mixing the grain
constantly so that the poison will be
evenly distributed.
Dry mixing, as above described, has
the advantage that the grain may be
kept any length of time without fer
mentation. If it is desired to moisten
the grain to facilitate thorough mixing,
it would be well to use a thin starch
paste las described below, but with
out strychnine) before applying the
poison The starch soon hardens and
fermentation is not likely to follow.
If crushed oats or wheat cannot be
obtained, whole oats may be used, but
they should be Of good quality. AS
mice hull the oats before eating them,
it is desirable to have the poison pene-
trate the kernels. A very thin starch
paste is recommended as medium for
applying poison 70 the grain. Prepare
as follows:
Wet Grain Formula.
Dissolve one ounce of strychnia
sulphate in two quarts of boiling wa
ter. Dissolve two tablespoonfuls Of
laundry starch in one-half pint of cold
water. add the starch to the strych-