The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1922-07-19
D. R. COKER ON HOW
TO POISON BOIL WEEV|[
Hartsvile, S. c., July Is, 1922.

To the Editor:
notice appearin gin all of the daily
ana weekly papers this week an ar
tlcle from Clemson College purportinp
to give advice as to the latest and
most approved methods of handling
the boil weevil.
am sorry to take issue with the
weevil experts Of the College on this
matter but feel compelled to do SO as
my own experiments and those of
many of the best farmers in the State
lead me to differ from them i'm imDort-
ant particulars. Clemson College is
supported principally by the farmers
OF South Carolina and l submit that
where there is important evidence
available from many of the best and
most reliable farmers in the State, it
should be given at least equal weight
with that of the "expcrimentcrs in
Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tex
as and. Oklahoma.
The boil weevil has been in South
Carolina for several years during
most OF which time the Government
ana colleges experts have advocated
method of weevil control which was
expensive, which required much judg-
ment in its application and which in
volvcd night work. Besides in prac-
tlce last year the Government method
proved to be dangerous in that some
crops were severally damaged bv
plan lice after two or three applica-
tlons of the calcium arsenate in dust
form.
nave abundant evidence that tho
early poisoning of the wccvils by the
nolasses-calcium arsenate method is
a success and is so cheap and simnlo
that it can be put into universal prac-
tice. | think it fair deduction from
the results obtained that, when nut
INTO universal practice, it will greatly
delay the rapid increase Of wcevils
and allow the whole crop to fruit fo,,
some time longer than when earlv
control methods are not applied.
Inc experience of Mr.. McDuffie,
farm manager for Ex-Governor r. +
Manning on his Meredith place, is suf-
hclent on this subject although it is
confirmed by practically every other
FARMER who used the molasses treat
ment in time Mr.. McDuffie no;sonad
ms worst infested field of 10 acres on
or about May %, at which time there
were no squares upon the cotton. I'm
to that time he had picked wecviIs
from this field frequently and upon
the day of poisoning was getting at
Ihe rate OF about 200 weevils per acre.
Mr.. McDufiie poisoned this field
several times between May "a and
June ~, on which day he told me that
ne had frequently and carefully ows
amlned this field during that interval
lMay "a to June 27) and had sent
hands into it to search for weeviis
also that Ex-Governor MANNING had
pcen with him on at least one occasion
searching for weevils, that he had
peen unable to find single live wee
vll IN this field during that period.
that nc had been carefully over the
ilela curing the past few days and
haa found but two small spots in
W'nlcn any ny squares were being pune
Sured' (lhesc of course he had care
I9liy picked up.) The cotton referr-
ca TO was planted in March and was
carried TO the end of the period of
damage. About one week Iatar M, ~
McDuflie told me that he'd inst nlowni
over q 66-acre field and had offoreJ
his ploW hands &c for each punct,1rcd
square. They had turned in ahout
alre. 'd"''es per
~ l could quote Messrs. w. A. and
Eco. Stuckey Of Lee county, ], w
1oodson ,;3f and r. P. Gillespie Of Harts-
HHlnie, Hna;,, "A. II. Rogers of Society Hill
n oesiaes my own force Of experiment.
H. th: ana a most Of other farmers in
tins section to the effect that annlicn.
Iions OF the molasses mixture apnl;od
Tor the first time from Nav I'd on IN
TO June IL and even later upon cottnn
which was at the time badly infested
WIN Weevils resulted in the promnt
weevils. u 'i'e
;, 1t is hardly reasonable to sunnoso
that the weevils chose the particular
Date of May 24 to disappear from tho