Oxford Democrat., 1920-10-26
Wire Worms. White 0rubs.

Experiment Station has numerous letters
each with q tale OF woe as to the dam.
age wrought by wireworms or by white
grubs. These pests live two or three
years in the ground before they emerge
as mature insects. During these years
they feed on the roots OF growing plants
and on seeds that may be planted. Dur.
ing this underground stage of their ex-
istence 1t is we'll nigh impossible, and lie
entirely impracticable, to rid the land
from them by poisons of any kind or any
form.
Turning swine into land infested with
the white grubs is an easy way of de.
stroying thousands of these pests. A
three year seeded piece, owned by the
writer, is now being. worked by swine
who are breaking through the sod and
stirring the soil to depth of three to
five inches In their search for white
grubs, cutworms, and numerous other
insects; for not only these insects which
spend their life feeding underground are
taken, but also those which, having
spent their larval stages feeding above
ground, have entered the soil to pupate.
In freshly plowed lands the natural en-
emies OF insect life are busy with these
pests. Late fall blowing is even better
than summer plowing for insect control.
Az the cold weather comes on the larv@
of insects, as we'll AZ the mature insects
themselves become sluggish and crawl
into the ground or into rubbish to biber.
nate. When they are turned up by the
plow after they have become too slug.
gish to again work into the ground they
are the easy prey to their natural enc.
mics. The tiny moles and shrews which
are sometimes troublesome 10 lawns are
real friends in the field. For1hey com.
pensate for the underground burrows by
the large number of wireworms, which
constitute very important part of their
dietary, that they destroy. Poultry run.
ming over the plowed fields will pick up
large numbers of insects and make prof.
liable return from otherwise destructive
occupants of the land. The skunk, while
not q pleasant house neighbor, is great
hunter for insects. The large number
of insects eaten by crows and grackles
affords plea for their lives, although In
the spring they are such nuisances to
sown crops and terminating corn. Other
birds will also assist In destroying the
exposed insects by eating them. And in
this connection 1t Is to be remembered
that the cat is perhaps the greatest en-.
emy the birds have. With cats about the
place birds will not nest, or II they do
the cats will catch and kill their young.
And with decrease In the number of
birds there Ia direct increase of insect
enemies and troubles. The more cats
the less birds and the more insects. The
less cats the more birds and the less In
sects. Which do you prefer? Cats and
insects? Or birdsP
Fall blowing always helps our animal
friends By breaking the sod, and also
has an added value in destroying the
wirsworm adults. Wireworms "chapge
over" into click beetles. These con-
struct little earthen cells In which the
changing takes place and the soft beetle
remains In this cell all winter. II the
cell is broken by plowing, the beetle Is
killed and will lay no eggs the coming
spring In adjoining moving land. Be-
sides the many ground iubabiting insects
destroyed by late fall blowing their egg
masses are frequently broken and turned
up to the weather, and great numbers
such as grasshopper egg packets are en-
tirely prevented from hstching.
To keep injurious insects at mini
mum protect toads, birds, moles, shrews,
and let hens and swine run on idle land.
Grass lands afford the places OF shelter
for wireworms, white grubs and other
Insects OF similar habits. Complete Grad
ication of wireworms Is impossible. But
their numbers will be reduced to mini.
mum by proper crop rotation. In case
of sod land known to be infested, late
fall plowing and growing for the first
two years from sod the more resistant
crops, rs legumes and small grains, will
materially reduce the losses from wire.
worms.-Chss. D. Woods, Director.