Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press., 1927-03-10

Your Federal Government has fl
nanced, drawn up battle lines and a
herculean fight is now under way
against the European corn borer
which threatens the great corn areas
of the United States.
The enemy, which first made itself
felt in Massachusetts, Maine, and the
New England States and invaded
Canada, last year swept down from
the north into New York, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Michi-
gan, and as far west of Northwestern
Illinois. The infested areas were so
numerous that drastic efforts were
deemed necessary.
One of the most intensive cam
paigns ever launched against plant
pest is now under way. The Federal
appropriation Of $10,0O0,0o0 pro-
vides for thoroughly cleaning up on
every farm in the western portion Of
the infested area.
This cleanup campaign necessitates
the destruction, by fire or burning,
of all remaining corn stalks and other
refuse on and about corn land and in
feeding lots and pastures,
Cor stalks, corn cobs, and other
fleshy-stemmed plant material which
nigh offer harboring place for the
corn borer must be destroyed before
May in order to reduce the number
of borers that pass the winter in such
material and prevent emergence of
the moths in the late spring.
Full cooperation is necessary on the
part of all Federal and State officers,
educational agencies, the press, agri-
cultural organizations and especially
the farmers themselves, to stamp out
this pest.
While it is not certain that the ef-
fort will be wholly successful it is
reasonably certain that it will result
in a very great reduction of the bor-
ers carried over the winter.
1t is certain that in the future far
mers will have to adopt methods of
corn cultivation that will result in the
destruction of corn stalks that may
contain borers before the first of
Nav. Such systems are now being
worked out.
The methods now adopted of de-
stroying the corn borer in corn stalks
and debris left standing in the field
consists of polling, raking, and burn
ing of such material, to be followed
by blowing so as to turn under any
surface material previous to putting
in the seasons crop. This is being
done in all infested areas at the dis
cretion of the officials charged with
the enforcement of the act.
Exceptions to the requirements for
polling, raking, burning, and plowlng
previous to planting will be where
fields were we'll plowed last fall or
where methods of spring plowing and
the condition of the fields are such
as to secure equally efficient methods
of destruction. All such methods and
systems are subject to the approval
of the officers in charge.
The regulations will doubtless re-
ouire that all lands in infested area
on which corn was grown in 1928
which are to be used for oats or Other
small grains, grass, or millet crops, II
either spring or fall seeding, must bt
prepared with stubble beater or by
plowing under of corn refuse com
pletely, in a manner satisfactory tt
the officials in charge, before the croI
is planted.
Federal reimbursement will bf
made to farmers for labor costs IN
Cured in the cleanup work whlcf
are over and above the costs incurred
in the cleanup work which are ovel
and above the costs incurred in nor
/ NAL farm operations.