The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1924-06-19
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Letters from the People

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1t seems that great many people
especially those who are western
bred-do not know what a serious
pest the Colorado Potato Beetle is
and how much damage they can do
to a potato field in short time.
The life cycle of the bug is about
40 days from eggs to eggs. A fe-
male will lay several hundred eggs in
a few days. These she deposits
around librally all over the patch.
From ten to twenty light yellow
eggs in tight cluster on the under
side of the leaf. If not disturbed
in eight or ten days they hatch and
immediately go to feeding on the po-
tato foliage. The young are great
feeders, and grow very rapidly in
warm weather. Inside of ten days
or such a matter they go into the
ground and soon immerge full
Pledged bug ready to produce large
family which in turn will become
mature and produce large family
that devour the leaves of the potato
leaves and then GO into the ground
for winter.
To give those who are not familiar
with the pest, some idea of their de-
structability and their power to null
tiply, several years ago in Mime
sofa the writer saw thirty acre
field toward the end of the bloom
big, heavy vines in healthy shape
that had been sprayed twice when the
grower was taken i'll and inside of
five days all that was left was the
stumps of the main vine-literally
eaten to the ground, in that short a
time. Ten to fifteen young-the soft,
brick-red bugs with black spots-will
eat big heavy vine inside of "a
hours SO one can easily see how de-
structive they are if not controlled.
The Understanding the pest in
all its glory-firnly believes that,
had it not been for the inroads Of
the Lady Bird BEETLE eating the eggs
of the potato bugs, this year the
growers would have had to spray
their vines at least three times for
the early varieties and many more
for those varities like the Melted
Gems and other late maturing spuds.
This costs money and time and adds
TO the cost of production. Besides
that, the farmer unorganized as he
is, has no way to add this cost to his
selling price so he must hold the sack
as usual.
With the help the Lady Bird bug
has given, if every single soul who
has spud growing or an acreage as
well, people living in town who have
only hill or two and all others, will
pick off and destroy the adult bug
the hard shell striped beetle-and the
young and keep them killed off from
now on until fall, we can rid the val
hey Of this destructive pest. If they
are left uncontrolled the rest of the
season in this warm climate, the spud
business will be given one of the
most serious blows possible and pos
sibly wiped out entirely. It seems
that all could unite in this effort now
and save one of the most productive
crops raised in the valley. It is just
as much of interest to the tree fruit
men who have few hills and to the
man in town as it is to the man who
makes that part of his business. Fig
ure up how much money the spuds
bring in to the valley and then figure
how much your loss will be if these
checks are not coming n.
The spud grower is not asking out
side aid. All he wants is for every
one who has hill of spuds to keep
the bugs down, killed off entirely.
When you pick off the bugs be care
full and not modest the Lady Bug
beetle. If you don't know the diff
ference get someone to show you. IT
you have a neighbor who says, ooh
I have only small patch or few
hills and what bugs there are wont
make any difference. / am too busy
let 'em eat what few I have and ]
will buy my winter spuds", that is