Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1920-01-09
AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION
~ DR.. ANDREW nj. SOULE

Of weather the woovil might be in
jured TO a mo23areable degree and
the extent OF it's dcpredations great
ly checked or lcg&cned another year.
This would Apply to some extent
throughout the state, but would APP
| ply with special force to the terri
tory included in what is denominQted
| rs north Georgia.
1t is possible that next summer
we nj ght have a dry season. If we
could secure 2 sufficient amount OF
moisture to get tho cotton out OF
the soil to a Good stand and then a
| few showers sufficient to develop it
we could undoubtedly grow a pretty
fair crop of cotton In the northern
half of the state. Such seasonal con-
ditions would not be favorable to the
wccyil. and would tend to minimize
! the damage he would affect to a
| rather marked degree. On the other
hand, suppose we have a very late.
wet and cold spring, delaying the
planting OF cotton two weeks or
more, beyond the normal. Such CON
ditions Would rebound materially to
F! the spread of the wccvil, and tho
] damage he would do unde.. ouch cir
| cumstsnce3 would likely be much
/ greater than where early planting
and the Favorable development of
| the crop 1during May and June oc-
| cured. ..
| There are several ways in which
we may influence the damage the
weevil will perform. The first calls
! for general alertness and for q
better appreciation and understand
ing of the menacing character of
this pest The preparation of the
and should be pushed forward with
the utmost yigor. The soil should
be as carefully prepared as this
work can be do7o. Give il q chance
TO settle before planting. Lay off
the rows as early in the season as
possible. Plant the cotton early, but
on the other hand, Go not plant it
when the ground is cold, Is the seed
will only decay and you will have
lost time rather than have saved
time. When we speak of early plai1t-
ing we mean to put the seed in tho
ground when the temperature is IA
vo"able to immediate termination.
That time will not happen until the
ground has reached and maintains
uniform temperature of between
10 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
The next IMPORTANT and essential
thing to do is to plant an early
maturing variety of cotton There
are number of standard strains
which can be used for this purpose
to advantage. and there are consid-
cradle quantities of seed aYaHable
Just to plant any cotton, or the kind
you had last year will be mistake.
1t is worth while remembering that
the Sea Island crop was virtually de
stroyed last season. The college
took the position some years ago
that this would happen. The point
made by us was seriously contro vert
ed, but time has shown that we were
right. On the other hand, we have
oeen able, through the cooperation
OF the Y. s. department agriculture,
to develop strain of cotton which
1T is believed can be cultivated with
large measure of success in the
Sea Island belt 1t is known as
Meade cotton, This is an upland
type of long staple. 1t is the best
of the long staples and the earlier
with which we are acquainted. It
has been raised successfully in the
Sea Island section, and that, too in
the face of heavy weeyil infestation.
OF course, to grow this cotton Sue
cessfully in the territory mentioned
Will call for new methods of prac-
tice and an alertness and skill on
the part of the farmer which he has
not been called on to exercise in
the past. These facts are cited to
show how important variety be-
comes in fighting the weevi., and
the man who keeps this thought
carefully in mind and >acts accord
ingIy will undoubtedly set consid-
erably more cotton next fall than
the individual who is Indifferent to
this advice.
Next we must stimulate the MAJ
turity of the crop land for this pur-
pose acid phosphate is the most
helpful element we can apply to the
land. Of course - good complete
fertilizer is essential and more of. it
should probably be used than ever
before. We think this is particularly
true of nitrogen. though I potash
would undoubtedly prove servieeable
on many of our soils, Feeding the
plants literally and forcing them
forward rapidly. and to early matur-
ity constitutes the end to beFachiev-
ed in cotton production under boil
weevil conditions, w
Then there must be a rapid, clean
cultivation of the crop. Stir the
land once a week without fail. You
can conserved moisture by this means,
and that is an important matter
especially if the season happens to
be somewhat dry.
Finally, use calcium arsenate as
spray when the cotton shows a 80
per cent infestation of weevils. This
will be a period of maximum dam
age. The individual will have to de-
termine this period for himself. The
season when it occurs Will vary con-
siderably. 1T may happen thirty
days earlier in some parts of south
Georgia than in north Georgia, It
may vary two weeks, according to
seasonal conditions, Do not use cal
cium arsenate indiseriminately and
without purpose. Do not rely on it
as more than one means of aiding
in the weevi1 fight. Be sure you Sc
cure the right character of material
and apply it with the best skill you
possess. Five applications will need
to be made about one week apart.
The time of doing the work will vary
from June Is to July IS. These
are presumably extreme dates. CAL
cium arsenate is a means to an end.
~ 7s