Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1923-04-13

BY G. A. White, Editorial Manager,
SOL Improvement Committee,
southern Fertilizer Association.
rnree simple and inexpensive things
Ild be done to kill boil weevfls early
IRE they can lay eggs.
l. Destroy the green cotton stalks
early in the fall.
4 Poison the weevil before cotton
squares form in the spring.
3, Do the two things mentioned thor.
oughly on communicative ba-
sis.
The outlay for poison will ordinarily
be 10 to 80 cents per acre for the treat
ment mentioned
Let us take up each recommendation
in detail. The reason for killing the
green cotton stalks is to deprive the
boil WeeYils of its food.
If the cotton is picked early and the
green stalks destroyed Immediately the
boil weeyils will starve in great num-
bers before the following spring. But
what is more important, the few wee
wills that survive their long hiberna-
ton will, with greater certainty, be
forced out of winter quarters early be-
fore squares form on cotton plants. This
affords just the opportunity desired to
get at and poison the weevil before
they have an opportunity to lay eggs,
so that there will be no future genera
tons Of those weevils to do damage.
Poisoning at this period Of the
plants growth is inexpensive. One
to two pounds of calcium arsenate per
acre is all that is needed. Nor is there
need for a machine with which to ap-
ply the poison. A dust bag shaken over
the tops of the young plants has proven
an effective way for applying poison.
1t is probable, however, that a special
ly designed machine would more ef-
tecttVely force the poison into the buds.
For this early poisoning the object
is to put poison in the terminal or top
growth bud of the cotton plant. 1t is
there that the weevil feeds until squares
form. If the bud is full of poison dust,
the weevil will suck some of it up
when feeding and be killed.
Early poisoning has been widely
pTacticed with good results. The Flor
ida Experiment Station, especially, has
clearly demonstrated that one applica-
ton of poison to the terminal buds af-
ter all the weevils are out of winter
quarters, is all that is necessary to ap-
ply for control of the weevils for the
entire season.
But the early destruction of cotton
- and early poisoning as described
Nwnot be completely effective unless
they are both done on community
wide basis If only part of the green
cotton stalks of a community are de-
stroyed not all the weevils will be
forced into winter quarters early and
therefore, not all may come out of win
ter quarters early so that they can be
poisoned before they lay eggs.
And if only part of the farmers in a
'neighborhood poison early, those VINO
do not will allow the weevils to get a
start that may cause a migration INTO
treated fields during the season.
Therefore. this simple and ineXpen'
siye method of boil weevil control VIII
be most completely effective when eV'
erybody in each community puts II INTO
force. But it will pay to adopt these
measures even if no other person IN
the neighborhood does. 1t VIII Keep
down infestation and hold down the cost
of the expensive poisoning later IN the
season.
One application of poison Is usually
sufficient to kill the weeVils before the
squares form.
Often many wintered over Weevlls
will be found on young cotton long BE-
fore souaring time. Unless they are so
numerous as to be destroying the ter
minal buds of the plant, they need cause
no alarm. Most of them VIII die De-
fore squaring time.
But if they are bad enough to top the
young cotton, make an application OF
poison when they start this damage and
then poison again just before squares
form.
Farmers are also urged to begin
planning for a community destruction Oh
cotton stalks early next fall. This can
be done most quickly and effectively by
ripping up the stalks with pIow' wee
wills cannot feed on dead stalks 1t mas
been found that as high as 81 per cent
Of weevils going into winter quarters
will not survive if deprived OF their
food by October 18th.
Weevils can be so completely sup
pressed by the methods mentioned as
to end the fight for the season, but uhtll
these methods are put in force on
community basis the cotton farmer
should be prepared so that If 1t is
found necessary, poison can be applled
by approved methods to the fru-ting