The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1925-04-21
APPLY POISON WHEN
PLANTS ARE YOUNG
POUND BEFORE SQUARES APP
PEAR IS WORTH 20 POUNDS
WHEN FIELDS INFESTED.
SPEAKS FROM EXPERIENCE
County Agricultural Agent Gibson
Gives Advice Based on Actual Elk
perience of Six Years With Weevil.
Late Poisoning of Little Benefit.


Realizing the necessity OF an early
campaign against the boil weevil Mr..
A. f. Gibson, the county agricultural
agent. sends this message through
The Dawson News to the farmers of
this section:
Last year was considered through
out the cotton belt as being a fairly
good one for profitable cotton produc-
ton, and though Terrell county has
the reputation of being a great cotton
producing county it required upward
of $4,000 acres of cotton to produce
10000 bales (less than one-third OF a
bale TO the acre., allowing less than
$4,000 per acre gross income. This
amount. after deducting the cost OF
seed, rent of land, taxes, cultivation,
fertilizer, poison, picking, ginning and
other invisible expenses leaves the
cotton farmer in about the same CIR
cumstances he was in at the beginning
of the year, and surely leaves nothing
to repair tenant houses, build fences,
terraces and other necessary things on
the farms. And yet last year was
better cotton year than the year be-
fore
1--WE are inclined to think that the
trouble with Terrell and all other
counties in Georgia has been in the
failure to save the crop, and not the
failure to produce it. 1t is inevitable
that the price Of cotton be increased
or per acre production increased be-
fore much profit will be realized from
cotton growing, even though we make
cotton a surplus cash crop and raise
all the feed and food at home.
Now the cotton crop this year can
be saved if anything like normal ram
fall prevails, but we cannot think Tor
an instant that it will be saved unless
we get in behind the weevil with cal
cium arsenate and fast cultivation.
Much has been said about how to
fight the weevl with calcium arsenate,
and we will not fall out with anybody
for disagreeing, but it is our opinion
that a pound of poison just before the
squares appear is worth twenty pounds
when the fields are heavily infested.
From experience in the past SIX
wears in poisoning the weevil we have
found that the first application should
be made when from four to SIX leaves
are on the cotton, at the rate OF three
pounds per acre. and applications ev-
erv FIVE to six days thereafter till the
squares appear. Then stop poisoning,
but 90 into the fields and pick up a
quantity Of the fallen squares and put
in a glass container and place where
they may be easily seen every day.
When the weevils begin to hatch IN
the lars we know they are in the fields.
Go that day and poison, not the next
day or the day following but go that
same day and poison, and poison well.
If they get by at this time it is gone
goslin, so far as making a normal cot
ton crop. although poisoning will pay
even later; but that is the crucial time,
and delay means danger.
1T is the common opinion among
MANY good farmers that to poison be-
fore squares form is waste OF time
and money, which perhaps in lew
instances might be true; but this boil
weevil problem is a big one and chanc-
es are dangerous, especially in view
of the fact that calcium arsenate is
cheap and very little is required Tor
these early applications. Something
might happen that will prevent putting
or the application just as the squares
are forming, then again we might not
get all OF them with this application;
therefore. we contend that early poi
soning is safer and that it is unwise
to take chances.