The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1923-02-20
Grazing.


o,,e districts where it is impos-
t liz 10 practice fall destruction OF the
s ,1nts somewhat the same results
Pl%"'b he accomplished by grazing the
e cdId with cattle, sheep or goats. MS
i' new local measure, however, since
IS IS oN supply of live stock in regions
the Eore The bulk of the cotton crop IS
WINGED is insufficient for the pur-
ploo" Even where poisoning is prac-
PosJJ' fall Grazing is still advisable, and
hceud a 5 need be apprehended OF
~ ling the stock, since there IS
PoisI Sufficient poison on the plants
rai G:g s;,,re stock. even Immediately al
TO ~ aJnnIication. and, furthermore, a
tel a,;derable period of time generally
cG tunses between the last poison appli-
ela .;on Of the season and the earliest
grazing. o
considerable local difficulty in the
.o0troI of the boil weevil is expert
Co onod in southern Texas and occasion
en- en-, IN Louisiana, owing to the pres
any m!o Of stumpage or sprout cotton.
cnro,t plants are sometimes encour-
oPd because they produce a small
a. very early crop. This may have
p pun dcfensible before the advent OF
g glo bo1l weevil but at present the
o oro is undoubtedly the worst that
p porId possibly be followed. The wee
C liz seek out these large plants in the
o otl2 spring and produce progeny
o o@ri than they otherwise could, and
tbese progeny infest the planted cot
t tnr at an abnormally early date. Vol
.,nteer cotton causes the same results
aver over a considerable portion OF the cot,
ton belt. The cotton seed scattered
oLort seed houses and gins and along
roodsides frequently produces plants
,,b;rh furnish early-season breeding
Noes Tar( for the weevil. Needless to say,
pt such plants should be destroyed.
destruction of Weevils in Hibernation
II is often possible for the farmer
10 reduce considerably his spring wee
VII infestation by proper winter clean
20 measures round his fields. The
Ireevils will hibernate successfully III
on,, trash or rubbish and it is very
aood practice to burn over or clean
IN anv such situations around the
cotton field during the winter, espe-
c;al1v the fence rows and ditch banks
In addition much can be accom-
n,ished bv the elimination Of hiberna-
lion quarters. Especially along the
more northerly portions OF the WeeVil
zone the most successful Information
* largely confined to the timbered
areas and as a result serious Weevll
injury is only experienced III the feids
adjoining such timber. Under sucn
conditions it is OF the utmost import
ance to plan all clearing operations
so that the open areas Tor cultivation
are consolidated into as large tracts
as possible, thus increasing. n
amonnt of land which is sufficiently
distant from timber to suffer MIN
imum amount OF weevil injury.
Locating Fields to Avoid Weevl
Damage.
Nearly every farmer who has beer
raising cotton for a few years IN the
presence OF the boil weevil knows that
there are certain fields on his place
where the weevils always appear hrst
and in greatest numbers. With this
information as a basis it is sometimes
nossible to reduce the damage by re-
raining from planting cotton IN such
fields and planting the more distant
fields. This practice, however, is ad-
yisable only when no attempt IS MADE
70 control the weevil by poisoning.
Those fields adjoining timber. where
the weevil infestation is heaviest are
usually the new lands of the place and
are thus the most fertile and capable
Of producing the best cotton crop II
the weevil injury is eliminated. Fur
thermore. when such fields adJom nj
bernation quarters the weev1ls con-
centrate on them instead of scattering
over larger areas and they serve to d
certain extent as trap crops, making
if possible to poison the Weevils on
these fields and thus prevent their
spread over the remainder OF the crop
Procuring an Early Crop of Cotton.
The foregoing facts relative to the
life history. Information, emergence;
and MULTIPLICATION of the boil weevil
show very plainly the importance OF
producing the cotton crop Just as ear
" in the season as possible. In reali-
ty the production of cotton IN the
presence OF weevils is nothing more
or less than race between the set
ting of bol1s on the plant and the null
tipiication OF the weevils, and every
thing possible should be done to aid
the cotton plants in winning this race.
The following are some OF the more
important steps which may be taken
The first step in procuring an early
crop is the early removal OF the plants,
so that the land may be plowed dur,
ing the fall and winter and the seed
bed thoroughly prepared. just now
much can be done is of course prob
lem for the individual farmer to de-
termine and depends largely upon ia
Dor and weather conditions, but the
Importance OF a well-prepared, sohd
seed bed can hardly be overestimated'
Furthermore, unfavorable weather
conditions shortly before planting OF,
ten prevent blowing at that time, ana
early preparation does away with TINS
y risk.
Use of Early Varieties of Cotton
One OF the most important steps
4 which have been taken to reduce the
weevil damage has been the develop
ment and introduction of varieties OF
cotton which mature their crops ear
4 her in the season than those varieties
which were planted before the Weevii
INVASION The variety to be planted