Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1921-10-14
PENNSYLVANIA STARTS
WAR ON APPLE DISEASE

/ The Pennsylvania State De
partn1ent of Agriculture has an
nouuced the opening of fell
| headquarters in Holmesburg, Pa
where it will direct an activ
Campaign against the Japanes
beetle, which was brought int
| PENNSYLVANIA from New Jersey
| A laboratory has been esta b
1ished in Riverton for study 0
this insect pest under governmen
supervision and more than 8
Icollege students, including re
preventative of various sta
universities, will join in the flgl
to prevent the spread of the pest
While reports that ravages Of tht
beetle were so bad in New Jersey
that practically everything was
being destroyed by them ant
made unfit for use were not alto
getller true and were somewhat
far-fetched, the fact remains thai
they have attacked growing
apples and trees, rendering the
fruit unfit for market, says a
writer III the current number OF
American Forestry. The beetle
has caused destruction to certain
shade trees and also injured such
crops as field corn by emitting the
green silk, preventing fertiliza-
ton OF the grain.
The Japanese beetle. which is
doing this damage in Burlington
and Camden counties, New Jersey
was first noted in 1916, having
apparently been brought from
Japan. AS many as 10000 Of
these beetles have been collected
in one day, and the territory in
volved amounts to about 5000
acres of the best soil.
They are described as very re-
sistant to unfavorable conditions,
strong flyers and particularly
active in warm, clear weather.
They are voracious, deyouring
flowers, shrubbs, nursery stock,
vegetables, corn and great va
riety Of marketable produce. In
attacking the foliage they skele-
tonize the leaves, while they act.
ually eat the fruit OH the tree.
A strong flyer, and capable Of
dispensing itself over considerable
distances, an added danger lies
in the ease with which it is car
ried in passing vehicles Or on
peoples clothing. Investig ators
report that it was in this way
that the beetle got into Pennsyl-
vania, where it made its appear
L. to,A
The Japanese beetle has so far
proved immune to the usual me-
assures, including various deadly
and effective agents, and no alb
solutely effective poison has been
found which can be successfully
used to kill it, the poisons expert
imented with being found to ruin
plant foliage, 10 be ineffective
against the beetle, or, if fatal,
the beetle was repealed by the
poison.
Conspicuous white spots on the
sides and at the tip of the abdo-
men, usually not concealed by
the wing covers, distinguish the
beetle FROM others of the same
general size and habits foundi II
New Jersey. 1t is about the
size of the ordinary potato bug,
but somewhat f1atter, of shining
bronze green, the wing covers
brownish, tinged with green to-
ward the edges It is very pro-
life. Most Of its life cycles of
one year is spent III the ground,
as egg, grub or pupa.
While the larvae enjoy a diet
of decomposing roots and al
kinds of compost, they feed on
the healthy roots of grasses
plants, shrubs and trees, such as
dock, plantain, timothy, blue
grass, corn, rye, wheat, clover,
dandelion, willow, violet, elder
and azaea.
Prof. &c. Sanders, head OF
the Bureau of Plant Industry
State Department of Agriculture,
and c.. II. Hadley of the Fedora
Department Of Agriculture have
met in conference to formul al e
plans for the eradication of the