The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1927-04-21
WAR ON CORN BORER
BEGINS IN FORTNIGHT
DIR. Woods To Direct Federal
Activities Against The Pest.

IiOlc WCCho CIC ~ lllICu oOdLCo DCPal u
ment of Agriculture will enter upon
the second stage of it's $10,000,000
campaign to head off the European
corn-borer in it's devasting march to-
ward the Western corn belt.
May l is the date upon which the
Government will cease to rely upon
the voluntary efforts of farmers to
clean up the great infested areas in
the northeastern part of the country,
and will proceed with the work under
plans expressly laid down by Con-
gress in the borer control act, passed
at the last session.
DIR. Woods To Direct Campaign
DR.. A. F. Woods, former president
of the University of Maryland, and
now dire sor of scientific work in the
Agriculture Department, is the direc-
tor of this campaign-generally re-
garded as one of the most intensive
fights ever waged against single
plant pest. In addition to the S1O,-
100000 to be spent by the Federal
Government, thousands of dollars will
be contributed to the cause by the in
dividual States affected.
Since March IA the department has
been at war with the destructive cat
erpillar through the medium of the
farmers living in the seventy-six
counties of the extreme western por-
ton of the infested area-which in
cludes Southeastern Michigan, North
eastern Indiana, Northern Ohio,
Northwestern Pennsylvania and
Western New York. Under this plan
farmers have been engaged in burn
ing, blowing under, or otherwise des-
troying the stubble in their infested
fields, the Government providing
them with full information and
demonstrations as to the conduct Of
this work.
Field Demonstrations.
Field demonstrations in the select
ion and operation of borer-control ma
chinery have been and are being held
in hundreds of communities under the
supervision of the Agriculture De-
partment cooperating with the extern
sion departments of State agricul-
tural colleges and county extension
agents.
On May 1, the Government will be-
gin its inspection of the work done.
If it is found that the fields have been
cleared of the pest in an acceptable
manner, the individual farmers will
be recompensed at the rate Of So per
acre for such work as they may have
done over and above normal farming
operations on the plots. Where the
work has not been done satisfactorily,
the Federal forces, under authority of
State departments of agriculture, will
conduct the necessary cleanup, the
cost to be charged to the individuals
on whose farms the work is done to be
collected by State authorities ON the
same basis as taxes.
Equipment Is Ready.
For this work the Government al
ready has equipped itself with hun
dreds of auto trucks, tractors, burning
machines, stubble beaters and gang
plows and much other machinery
chosen and bought for this particular
work.
The Department of Agriculture es-
Inmates that there are 100000
acres of corn-growing land infested
with the borer at the present time
and that the cleaning up of approx
mately 100000 acres can be accom-
plished under the present control act.
1t is admitted frankly that eradica-
ton of the pest is impossible. The
object of the control measure, there
fore, is to check the spread of the
borer and reduce infestation to
minimum.
Menaces $4,000, 100000 Crop.
In this connection it is pointed out
that the total spread of the infesta-
ton in this country has resulted in
period of only about ten years, indi-
eating the speed of this menace to the
nations $2,OOO,0 100000 corn crop. The
infested area was increased by fifty
per cent last year, it has been esti-
mated, which was much more rapid
than in the preceding years.
The actual monetary loss to Amer
lean farmers on account of the pest
has not been large in comparison with
the value of the total crop, it is cited,
yet in individual fields there has been
twenty to thirty per cent damage,
thus indicating the destructive pos
sibilities if the spread is not brought
under control.
Although the borer thrives best in
the stalks of corn-boring up and
down inside the pithy stalk and rob-
bling the ears of maturity--it has
been found that it lives exceedingly
we'll, too, on grasses and many other
succulent plants.