Imperial Valley press., 1918-02-23
ENEMIES Of YOUR
GARDEN OUTLINED
Alhambra Mans Gives Methods for
Fighting the Little Allies of the
Kaiser. the Cutworm and Aphis and
All Their Cousins, Aunts and I'm.
cles--Begin TO Spade Now.

~ENNff
cles-Begin To Spade Now.
BY F. II. Chittenden of AlhamBra.
From the time the seeds of the
garden crops are put into tn ground
unit the thine the crops are harvest
ed succession Of insect enemies may
appear, each of whicn must be fought
by the methods that experience has
shown TO work best in the particular
case.
True insects are small creatures
which in the adult stage have rather
hard bodies divided into three por-
Itions-head, thorax (ehest) and alb
domen belly. They have a single
pair Of antennae or "feelers," nor
mally three pairs of legs, and usual
.ly one or two pairs Of wings. Among
injurious forms Of true insects are
Ibeetles, butterflies, moths, sawflies,
ants. flies, grasshoppers, plant bugs,
.thrips and plant lice.
Insects are classified into Q)
chewing or biting forms, which de-
YOUR leaves and other portions of
plants; and (2) sucking forms, which
Iinjure and destroy plants by drain
ing their vital life juices. For the
first class. arsenieals are the best
remedies; for the second class, con-
tact poisons are used.
Gardeners should learn to know
the insects which are useful in de-
stroying in furious insects. Promi-
nent among those is the convergent
lladybird. 1t destroys not only all
forms of garden plant lice, but the
eggs of various insects. Other bene-
ficial insects are wasps, ichneumon
and chalcis flies minute wasplike
insectsl, ground beetles, soldier bugs,
syrphus flies, tachina flies and lace
wing flies. Were it not for the nat
ural enemies of cabbage worms, ar
my worms and similar pests, all
vegetable crops probably would be
a failure.
The gardener who starts with a
clean soil may do much to keep in.
seets out, and thus save the trouble
and cost of applying sprays. Proven.
tion is better than cure. especially
in the home garden. which usually
! must be planted on the same GROUND
ear after year. Some of the worst
= garden troubles are brought in on
he roots of plants and remain IL
-. the soil TO attack the next crop. 6,
in buying plants Of any kind one
= should be sure that they are free
. from insects. The roots should b,
:. clean and fibrous, not swollen oi
: knotted.
In harvesting fruits and vegetables
= that are to be stored. handle with the
greatest care TO avoid buising. Ger.
tain insects such as the potato tu.
ber month gain access at points
whore the natural protective cover
ing is broken.
Neatness, cleanliness and order in
the garden hlep in the fight against
insects. AS a general rule, the res
idue of the garden, such as corn
stalks, potato tops, etc, are TO be
turned under to improve the soil. Do
this promptly. so that insects may
notbe harbored by the rubbish. Weeds
in the garden and around IL harbor
insects, particularly il the weeds are
related 10 the cultivated plants. Plant
lice. red spiders and other insects in
wade the garden from neighboring
weed borders. Cabbage pests live on
wild mustard, shepherd's-purse and
related weeds. Just as soon as any
crop is gathered, spade up the
ground. bury the old remains deeply
and plant something else Except
in the extreme north. rye or oats can
be sown to give winter cover.