The Palatka news and advertiser., 1917-10-12
MORE ABOUT SWEET
POTATO ROOT WEEV|L
A New Pest Which Florida
is Called Upon to
Combat.

The sweet potato root WeevH, re-
garding which mention las been made
in our columns from time to time, Is
such serious pest that every farmer
in the State should know what the
weevil looks like and how it works.
The following description of the pest
and it's habits has been furnished US
by the Plant Commissioner, WilmOn
| Newell, of Gainesville, Florida:
The adult insect is weevil, OF
"snout- beetle" elongated in shape,
smooth and glossy. The head is
black, the thorax (middle section Of
the body and the legs are bright
brick red and the abdomen (posterlor
half of the body is beautiful dark
stcel-blue. The adult is about one
quarter of an inch long and at first
appearance is often mistaken for a
large ant. The adults rarely if ever
fly, but are able to walk and run
about. Ordinarily they do LOT move
so fast but what one can catch them
in the fingers without difficulty.
The eggs are very small, yellow
ish white in color, and from lao to
1-5Oth of an inch in diameter. They
are laid in cavities made by the moth
er insect, either in the vines or in
the tubers. When in the vines they
are usually laid in the lower portion
Of the stem.
From the egg there matches a min
ute, white, footless grub, having a
pale brown head. If in the plant
when hatchcd these grubg begin to
tunnel through the vine to the tuber
which they eventually reach. If the
eggs have been laid on the tubcr it.
self, then the grubs tunnel directly
into the tuber and within a short time
riddle it with numerous tunnels and
galleries which soon become filled with
excrement and decayed material.
The full-grown grub is from one-hfth
to one-half inch in length.
The grub changes into the pupa or
"transform3tion stage (Which CORE
spends to the cocoon stage Of but
terfy.) In this stage, in which the
insect is not active and does not feed,
the indications Of the legs, antcnnae
and wings make their appearance.
The pupa in turn transforms into tie
adult beetle.
Under normal summer temperature
less than five weeks time is required
for the complete development Of the
insect from the time the egg is laid
until maturity is reached. This
means that there are at least six to
eight generations Of the pest a sea-
son under climatic conditions in F.ori-
da and accounts for the RAPID increase
and great destructiveness of the pest.
The insect does not stop breeding
when the potatoes are harvested. for
if infested potatoes are placed in to-
rage, either in outdoor banks or in
warehouses, the pest keeps right or
feeding in the tuberS and genera
ton after generation is produced in
the stored potatoes. One can readily
understand, therefore, how infested
potatoes, stored in the fall, may be
completely destroyed before spring,
Entomologists who have studied the
insect recommend some measures of
control, such as destroying all morn
ing glory vines (on which the Wee
vii also lives,) fumigating all tubcrs
when they are harvested, having hogs
clean up the remnants of each crop
and planting only non-infested plants
in isolated fields where potatoes have
not previously been grown.
1t is of the utmost importance for
the future of the sweet potato crop
Of Florida that further spread of this
pest be stOpped and to this end the