Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-06-10

partment of agriculture tells FARMERS
who want to get rid OF the corn root
aphis to get rid-of the ant. The same
advice applies in the case OF certain
other forms Of root-aphids.
This is how the subterrancan Gairy
works:
In the fall the ants carry the eggs OF
the aphis to their nests and care TOT
them as they do for their own young.
In the spring, when the eggs hatch, the
ants tunnel along weed roots and place
tho helpless aphids on the roots. Soon
the aphids begin to give off honey
dew" made from the juice Of the
plants on which the aphids are resting
The ants dearly love "honeydew," and
they tenderly watch over and care for
their COWS" The aphids are wholly
dependent throughout their life on the
ants.
The first two or three generations
of the aphids live entirely on the roots
of weeds, but as soon as the newly
planted corn sprouts the ants transfer
the aphids to the more succulent corn
roots. After two or three successive
generations, many Of the aphids may
be winged, and some escape from the
ground through the ant tunnels and
fly away to a new field. If they chance
to alight near an anthill they are seized
Immediately by the watchful ants, car
ried into their burrows, placed on
roots, and honeydew production starts
again.
When cold weather is approaching
and the ant carries the aphids' eggs
and the young ants deeper into the
soil, the ant goes at least eight
inches under the soil, and eight inches
is deeper than the ordinary plow fur
row.
The particular aphis that attacks
corn is called the corn root aphis be-
cause of it's preference for that plant
In gardens it is very common on as
ters and related plants. There are
many other varieties Of aphids, how
ever, and for many of them ants have
a tender feeling. For instance, there
are the aphids that attack orange
trees in California. The ants sur
round these aphids, attack other in
sects that attempt to reach them, and
induce the aphids to excrete honeydew
by stroking their bodies with their an
Ir,fn ~f.tY1 a fnl W
the orange aphids, however, they are
attacked by winged parasites which
sting and lay eggs in them, and
these parasites are so small and active
that the ants cannot successfully de-
fend their charges.
The corn root-aphids in fields are
controlled by rotating with crops upon
which the aphids can not live by plow-
ing and disking, breaking up the ant
and aphis colonies, and by the use of
certain pungent substances, mixed
with a chemical fertilizer and distri-
buted by means Of fertilizer attach
ment to the corn planter. These sub
stances tend to drive away the ants
and prevent them from placing aphids
on the corn roots.
To home gardeners whose plants are
attacked by aphids, such as the melon
aphid, spinach aphid, potato aphid,
and the turnip and cabbage aphids,
which live above ground, the special
lists in agriculture recommend spray
ing with 40 per cent nicotine sulphate
at the rate of one teaspoonful of the
sulphate to one gallon Of water, in
which has been dissolved a one-inch
cube of laundry soap.
Killing the ants, of course, by des-
troying their colonies, will help in the
control Of the corn root -aphid in gar
dens. and this is about the only way
it can be controlled, since. living un-
it can not be reached by
sprays. The simplest attack on the
ants is to scald their hills with boiling
water. Another method is to pour a
little carbon disulphid into the en-
trance with earth in order to keep the
poisonous fumes in the burrow
Spraying with nicotine sulphate,
however, is the standard remedy for
most garden aphids and should not
be postponed or neglected when they
are found to be present, as they in
crease very rapidly and unless checked
soon kill the plants.