The courier-index., 1919-08-29

UU U1LLLU nxAlsRA
 l WORM AT WORK
 COTTON PEST MAKES APPEAR
 ANcE IN SEVERAL SECTIONS COUNTY AGENT TELLS HOW
 TO APPLY POISON.
 Last week the Courier-Index had
 a brief story on the excellent crop outlook for Lee county, and the splendid condition of the cotton
 crop came in for special emphasis. Hardly had the paper been printed
 when reports began to come in to the effect that the army worm was
 playing havoc with the crop. How
 ever, it since developed that the scare is more dangerous than the work of the pest. County Agent Whitaker says the pest is the cot ton caterpillar and not the real army worm. The worm or cater
 pllar has made his appearance too late to become a menace to the crop. Some of the planters think
 the worm will actually help the cotton in that it will strip off the leaves in rank crops and per-
 init the opening of many bolls
 that would otherwise rot. At any
 rate, whether the pest is really a pest or blessing his activi- ties will not be long-lived and it Is uot expected he will have any appreciatable effect on the cotton
 production of the county. Dis
 cusing the cotton caterpillar and army worm, County Agent Whita- ker says:
 There seems to be quite an in- festation of cotton caterpillars in
 Lee county at this time. This is the cotton caterpillar, and not the army worm, as it is commonly call ed. The cotton caterpillar which we have, feeds on practically noth- ing but cotton and goes through the pupa stage in a web on the cotton plant, while the army worm proper feeds on almost any green plant and goes into the ground to pupate. The eggs of the live army worm are laid in clusters at night by the moth, while the cotton cater pillar moth lays it's eggs singly and flies around in the day. The cotton caterpillar moth is brown, while the live army worm has two brown wings and two white ones. This worm can be poisoned either with Paris Green or arsenate of lead. Arsenate of lead is consid- cred by many to be the best, as it is less likely to burn the plant. If Paris Green is used it should be we'll mixed in the proportion of one pound of Paris Green, one pound cheap flour and one pound air slacked lime. Three pounds of this mixture or three pounds of arsen- ic of lead should be used per acre. The poison should be dusted on the cotton just as soon as the little worms are found on the leaves. This injury is first noticed in the tops of the plants and only in spots in the fields. These places should be thoroughly dusted at once. It is not necessary to dust the entire field at once, unless the. worms are scattered all over it. It should be remembered it is easier to poison these worms while they are small than wait until they are nearly ready to 90 into the pupa state. A worm the size of pin has stronger appetite and eats lots more than a large worm, size con- sidered, therefore it is easier for him to get enough poison.
 sThe system that is universally used throughout the cotton belt to apply the poison is as follows: A pole five feet, eight inches long and two inches in diameter is selected and three-quarter inch hole is bored six inches from each end. Over each end cloth sack is tackled in such manner that the poison can be put into the sack through the hole by using a funnel. The bags are filled with the poison and the apparatus isl carried on a horse or mule down cotton row, dusting two or four rows at once The shaking induc- ed by the mule going in a walk or trot is sufficient to dust the plants, or the pole can be jared on the saddle to make it sift out. The applications should be made in early morning or late evening so the due will help make it stick"