The Marietta journal. (Marietta, Ga.) 1918-1944, 1919-07-18
Boil WeeUil at
Lost Mountain
By E. o. McMahan

Boil weevils have been found on
the farm of L. Millsaps near Lost
Mountain. In some places 3 to a
squares to the stalk have already
been punctured. This means that
unless proper measures are taken I'M
mediately considerable damage will
be done to cotton in Cobb county
this year.
Where weevils are found at work
the cotton should be given frequent
shallow cultivation. This destroys
weeds, increases plant food, and con-
serves moisture, consequently has
tening maturity. Under boll-weevll
conditions cotton should be cultiva-
ted every week. 1t is good plan
to agitate the stalks while cultivating
by means of brush attached to the
handles of the cultivator or plow.
This will shake off the punctured
squares so they can be picked up.
All squares that fall should be
picked up and burned. If two or
three generations of the weevils can
be destroyed in this way, it will
greatly reduce the rapidity with which
they multiply and will be great
aid in saving the crop.
Care should be taken not to carry
any punctured squares to a field or
farm that has no weevils, for the
eggs in these squares will soon hatch
out and become mature weevils that
will puncture other squares and thus
give the weevils new field to work
in.
Farmers who are not familiar with
this insect should report all suspected
infestations to their county agent,
who can give proper instructions for
growing cotton under boil weevil con-
ditions.
Cotton Wilt Now in Cobb
Cotton wilt has been found on the
farms of A. H. McCleskey and James
Dawson on the Canton road near the
Cherokee county line. 1t covers only
a limited area on each of these farms,
but it is doing considerable damage
where it is found. Farmers should
be on the lookout for this disease
and where it is found that fact should
be reported to the county agent, who
can give instructions for growing cot
ton on wilt infested soil.
Wilt is sometimes found attack
ing single stalks here and there in
the field. 1t usually occurs in patches
though as rule the stalks all die in
these diseased spots. Where cotton
is planted year after year on the same
land, wilt will be found on the same
spots each year, and the diseased
areas will increase in size every year
until the entire field is diseased.
The first signs of the disease is the
willing of the tips of the leaves. In
very severe cases this whiting is very
rapid and all of the leaves die in
few days. In other cases the leaves
turn yellow around the margin and
along the veins and die very gradual
ly. These dead leaves remain on the
stalk for some time after they dry up
but finally drop off and nothing but
the bare stalk and branches remain.
The most definite symptom of wilt
though is the blackening of the wood
of the root and stem of the plant.
The roots are also blackened by the
disease and this gives rise to BLACK
root" one of the common names of
the disease.
Wilt is usually carried from the dis
eased areas to other parts of the field
or from one field to another in the
soil. The fungus that causes the
disease remains alive in the soil and
anything that carries soil from the
diseased areas to other parts Of the
field will spread the disease. This
is frequently done by plows and 9th
err implements and by drainage wa
ter.
Wilt will also attack cowpeas and
watermelons. With wateremlons the
leaves usually wilt suddenly without
any previous indication of disease,
while with cowpeas the leaves usually
turn slightly yellow, then unjoint and
fall off, leaving the green stem bare.
The most practical means of con-
trolling wilt is by growing resistant
varieties. The wilt resistant varie-
ties of short staple cotton are Wan
namaker Cleveland Improved and
Lewis SO. Dixie Fiji is a resistant
variety of long staple cotton. Brab-
ham and Iron are resistant varieties
of cowpeas.