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About The Coos Bay times. (Marshfield, Or.) 1906-1957 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 13, 1915)
" . . J i.. .J . -A 3iWtHSt wwissasa!!!: HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION . . .. y . V J . JL .J. ft ?-a-t s-il-d B -d-'iM-k hj -v ,-t 1 -. United States uepanment ui iuilujlc opeciai iv Bulletins and Special Articles Issued by tlio Government, of Interest to tho Northwest; &v Suggestions Covering a Wido Range of Activities; Results of Federal Investigations, Etc. Long Runo bTsir Rvcr Steamer, P nPIIAT river .rafric T M 1 Slal,8lnown 'VA'i r 1g,:"n" .' "'"A te SL" Birds Check Wireworm's Menace BIRDS nro probably tho most Im portant factor in restricting tho depredation!) of wlroworms, nc cording to tho United States Depart ment of Agriculture's new bulletin (Xo. 15(1), "Wlrowonns Attacking Cereal and Forngo Crops." While this bulletin is a "professional paper" and goes Into great detail regarding tho Hfo history and habits of these pests, it also suggests a number of prartlenl methods for chocking or eradicating this menace to such crops ns wheat, cotton and corn. Among tho birds that are known to feed on wlrowonns (either tho larvae that do tho damage or tho ndult beetles) nro the following: Dob white, flicker, mourning dove, ruffed grouse, crow, Whlppoorwlll, California quail, cowblrd, bobolink. Besides tho above, certain hawks, cuckoos, woodpeckers, phoebes, fly catchers, jays, blackbirds, orioles and sparrows help tho farmer In protect ing Ills grain from the undeslrablo wlrowonu. Whllo tho wlrowonns, when they do most of their damage are merely grubs measuring from one-half :nch to over threo Inches in length, they aro.moro readily recognized when grown Into adult beetles. Theso beetles nro known In certain locali ties as "click-beetles," "skip-Jacks," . "snapping bottles," etc. Theso nnmes nro nil derived from tho beetle's habit of snapping tho foro part of tho body wlion placed upon its bnck or held between tho fingers. Tho worms that do tho damago nro usually yellow or reddish-brown with throo pairs of short legs near tho front of tho body. Tho term wlroworm Is sometimes misapplied to tho larva of another group of beetles. Tho mealworm, which feeds upon stored products in warehouses ami grannries, Is tino of those falso wlrowonns. Tho beetles of this group of insects do not snap tho forepart of tho body as do thoso of tho trim wlroworm. One of Woixt Tests. Tho truo wlroworm, economically, is ono of tho fivo worst posts that attack Indian corn. It Is amongst tho 12 worst iiosts attacking wheat and oats. With tho exception iff tho cotton and corn wlrowonns theso In Rccts begin their attacks Immediately nftor seeding tlmo, when they nttaclc tho seed, eating out tho Inside and leaving only tho hull. When they nro very numerous they often contttimo nil tho seed, making rescedlng ncc osBary, nnd In sovoro outbreaks u second rescedlng is sometimes mado boforo n stand Is obtained. Asldo from tho extra Inbor and ' coBt of tho seed, this delays tho planting of tho crop, nnd.ir it Jio corn, in tho Northorn States tho sea son it too short to maturo so lato planted n crop nnd, except for tho fodder, it Is a failure Whoro wire worms nro prosont, oven In very small numbers, corn will mnko u poor stand, which will nccessltnto tho plantlng-ln of missing hills. In somo regions whoro theso Insects nro qulto numerous It Is customnry to sow threo or four times tho amount- of seed that would normally bo neces sary In order to got n good stand. Tho wheat wlroworm Is normally a grass feeder, living on tho rooto of sod, nnd with tho nbunjlanco of Its natural food supply producing no ap preciable disturbance In tho mead ows, but when tho sod land U broken thoso wlrowonns concentrate In tho drill rows or hills of corn, tho usual crop to follow sod In tho Unstern United States, nnd oflon produco nb noluto failure of tho crop by destroy ing tho seod and eating oft tho roots of such plants ns may germinate This speclos Is usually moro destruc tive, therefore, on land rccontly brokon from sod. Combatting Wheat YVIicworiii. To combat tho wheat wlroworm, tho Department's specialist rccom monds plowing sod land immodlntoly nftor tho first liny cutting, uaunlly early in July, whon tho land U In tomled Jor corn tho following yonr This land should bo cultivated dcef. ly throughout tho remainder of tho Kumuior. Land that Is in corn and badly in fostoil should bo dooply cultivated oven nt tho risk of Mightly "root pruning" tho corn. This cultivation Hlioulil bo contlnuod ns long as tho corn can bo cliltlvntod, and as soon ns tho crop la removed tho Hold should bo vory thoroughly cultivated before sowing to wheat. In regions where wheat is Reeded down for hay any treatment of Infested wheat fields Is precluded. Where wheat Is not followed by seeding, tho field Bhould bo plowed ns soon ns tho whent Is harvested. Thorough preparation of tho corn seed bed nnd a liberal ubo or barn yard manure or other fertilizer will often glvo n fair stand of corn In splto of tho wlrcwormg, n vigorous plant often being nblo to produco roots enough to withstand tho depre dations of sovornl wlroworms. Tho wlroworms that nttnek corn nnd cotton nro not hard nnd wiry as aro most of tho tribe, but soft nnd clongntcd. When full grown thoso grubs nro nbout nn Inch In length but scarcely thicker than pack thread. Unllko most of tho Eastern wlroworms, which nro usually moat destructive In damp, low-lying fields, theso insects scorn to be far moro numerous on tho higher pnrts of tho fields In light, sandy, soil. Theso wlroworms nro among tno most trou blesomo species of tho Southern United States. Investigators nro, as yet, unablo to recommend definitely any cultural method, but It Is prob ablo'that something In tho near fu turo will bo shown to bo effective. Destruction in Northwest. Tho dry-laud wlroworm, which at present seems to bo confined to cer tain regions In Washington nnd Oro gon, may bo destroyed by tho follow ing prnctlco: (1) Disc or drag harrow tho Sum mor fallow as early ns possible In tho Spring, In order to produco n dust mulch nnd thereby conservo tho nc cumulated Winter's molsturo; (2) contlnuo discing ns often ns Is neces sary to maintain tho dust mulch nnd keep down tho weeds; (n) plow tho Summer fallow In July or cnrly In August, nnd Immediately drag; (4) plow tho stubblo as booh as tho crop As theso wornm nro of threo dif ferent nges In most Infested fields, nnd as only about one-third of theso will bo In tho pupnl stago each year, It Is ovldont thut tho first year of this prnctlco will not show Btnrtllng results. Howovcr, If tho prnctlco is contiucd for n couple of years It will undoubtedly reduce tho number of theso pcstB vory considerably. Asldo from its boncflclnl rcsulta in killing insects, this mothod of handling tho land will materially reduco tho weeds. Karly discing merely Boftona up tho soil and allows all tho wood Bccd present to sprout, nnd tho ontlro crop of weeds Is subsequently destroyed by tho Summor plowing. Dy tho present method of farming tho wood seeds nro turned down to such n depth thnt many cannot gcrmlnnto, but Ho dormnnt and sprout whonovor they happen to bo brought tb tho Biirf.ico by subsequent ctiltlvntlon. Ono crop of weed seed Ib In this man ner often a pest for several succeed ing yenrs. A slight variation of thoso sugges tions will readily ndnpt thorn to tho moro humid Boctlons Inhabited by tho Inflated wlroworm, which occurs throughout most of tho Northorn United States, but Booms limited ns n pest to ccrenl crops In cortnln pnrtB of Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Tho Inflnted wlroworm Is only nbout one-half Inch long nnd pnlo yellow In color. ... Other wlroworniB of less Import ance, but known to nttnek vegetables, nlfnlfn, etc., nro described In tho now bulletin. Boy Champion's Potato Pointers A15-YRAU-OLD member of tho Department of Agriculture's and Utah's Agricultural Col lege Potato Club has raised a crop of potatooB valued nt J187.77, on ono-hnlt acre. Ills not profits woro ? 11 1.07. This Ib tho best record of nil tho Utah potato club boys this Benson, and aB a result, Howard Dal ton, of Wlllard City, Utah, tho chnm plon, Is to bo given nn educational trip to California at tho tlmo of the fair. Although tho year was not qulto bo good for potato production or usual, young Dnlton mndo a record which has probably not been exceeded moro than n dozen times In thnt dis trict, nnd thou only by Morlo Ilyor, and tho potato champion club ndult experts who had studied and put Into prnctlco tho moat advanced methods of farming. An others who grow po tatoes on irrigated land may bo In terested In tills boy's achievement, below Is tho story In his own words of Just how ho did it, which may bo of vnluo to potato growers not only In Utah, but In tho Irrigated bccUohb of Colorado, Idaho, Washington, Cali fornia, Wyoming, Montana, Nevada, Arizona, Now Mexico, Kansas nud Nebraska. Horo Is tho story: 'I'lio Story. In tho cnrly 8prlng of 1914 I bought my seed potntoes at Hurley, Idaho. I purohased tho Idaho Ilurnl potatoes. Thoy woro not especially selected socd, tliorcforo 1 was very careful In prepar ing tlio seed for planting. I was anx ious that evory need ploco had one or two perfect eyes on It. I then treated tho need with a formaldehyde volution lonu pint to no gallon of water). This treatment consisted in soaking tho seed (boforo cutting) for two hours In tho prescribed notation. Tlio purpose of tho treatment was to kill any scab germs uppuuilng on the surface of tho pota toes. Othor than this thcro was no troatment given. l'rom -March 10 to March 30 I pre pared my land. I covered tho ground with barnyard mnnurc, using eight tons of wet manuro to tho halt ncre. I plowod tho land 12 Inches ilcop, using four horses for the work. I Immediately followed tho plow with a sprlng-tooth harrow. I harrowed It threo different times. I did tho plowing In tho fore noon nnd followed with tho harrow In tho afternoon. I did this to consorvo tho molsturo and mellow tho soil. After harrowing I pulverised tho clods by dragging up tho soil with a squnre frumed timber. I tried In every way to ho particular about every phoso of cultivation, ns I figured that the secret of my suocens was good cultivation. l-'lvo dnys later, on April 6, I again went ovor tho land with a sprlng-tooth harrow. The following week I again went over It with ft spiked-tooth har row, which kept tho soil moist nnd mel low. Just boforo planting I wont over It ugnln with tho square timber In or der to mnko It perfectly level. On April 18 I plnntod tho seed In plowed fun own four Inches deep nnd tho rows 30 Inches apart, tho seed being dropped about 12 Inches npnrt In tho rows. Tho seed wns then covered about four Inches deep with a small hand plow. As soon ns tlio llttlo plants nppenred abovo tho ground 1 begun my work on tho field. I nt onco freed tho field of weeds by giving It a thorough bnrrow IniT with a spike-tooth harrow. This I did May R, and repeated tho samo treat ment on May 12. On May 20 I used tho hnnd cultivator, drawn by ono horse, giving them u thorough oulllvntlon with this Implement, nftor which I cul tivated them onco with tho hand hoe, cleaning out all tho weeds. Wntcliliig drouth. During all tho tlmo I was working In my potatoes I watched their growth very cnrnfully, as I wns warned about tho nppearanco of plant diseases and Insect enemies which might appear to liijuro tho plants. Fortunately, as far an 1 was nblo to detect, uolthcr plant diseases nor Insect enemies nppearud, an tho growing plants had such a strong, thrifty nppearanco. Up to Juno IS tho plants had grown rapidly and gavo a strong, vigorous appearance. Boon nftor this dato 4hoy began to blossom, and on Juno 25 1 gavo them tho first application of Irrigation water. I Irrigated thorn on July C, and ngnln on July 20. Tho crop wns matured with but these threo applica tions of water. After tho second Irri gation tho vines wcro so largo that I could not work In them without de ploying them. Tho operations practically ceased from this tlmo on until tho tubers were rlpo nnd rendy for digging. I sent ft soloeted SO pounds to tho Ktftto Fair, which wns held at Bait Lalco City Octo ber 3-10. for which I received honor ablo mention by tho Judges. On Octo ber 13, H and IS I harvested tho crop, nnd tho potatoes wcro weighed and sold right from tho field. I found, on enroful chocking of tho weights, thnt my half ncro bad produced 300 bushels of mnrketnbla potutoes, tho equivalent of 720 bushels per ncre. Tho following tablo will glvo tho Itemized cost of production, with tho net profits por half aero: Vnluo of crop 1187.77 Value of manuro s 2.00 Hproadliig manure 4,00 Plowing i.oo Harrowing six times,... J.60 Reveling ioo cost of seed. 460 lbs 6.20 WSlV'"! "ecd"". 2.00 Cultivating two times.... 1,00 Irrigating threo limes... 1.60 Harvesting is.oo Kent on land 8.00 Total cost 40.70 Iroft H1.07 .b iuiih i.y through fa. 7" thing of the past S' nvestlgatlon of "i hub counirj whlrti i " Stale., Doparun!? itiBt complotr.i -run !hn Inland limit SnrK . , rinnint u- . van is trm It . V '"PA t! f. Afowhund,vd;i7c' gntor found, h MW ,' VM run for any tiiafflt Lm 'csorinorob..ing,S(iS?,! On only 2C f tho foi W which this Information w9.l7l wna tin n v "'. n . WiCii 10 mile, an hSurlTfa Iobb than six An averse It i oven ex mil.'.. n i':..wM 75 or 100 iiiikiln ft ' which IB n good wto o'ffi, local freight tiaffic Wf In connection with it,. , , mi- iiueniion t,. t1(.r relation),, farm prlco of various pr, gLh wns found In i... . ..." "m character of riirrXS stnnco wiih t hn.i s 7 ,, ...'.?' farm price. In tho cm ol5 .... i . ." l"" WKto i.niS'.u irum II 'J () a, EgM Bllll moro. tho per centa ,. from 0.5 to 10 Uecausootltir bulk bnv iv.Ti rrnni,nnii. .,' from 10 to 10 per ccntotlUTtl mi inn niriii. wna w neat tb r wan from II to 15 per cent. On tho r.'lt I fir Omul an ln,.j. Bystom of waterways comliti off rivcra omntlm: inin Kin r.j. Uny, nnd hero thcro Is a rich trr region which la not conuife renciicu ny ran, nut is company easy of nccc-i by boat. Sufit Cisco, Hncramcnto nnd Stocktoi i tho principal renters forihlitnx A Bccond Coa'i cyslcm coniirj: tho Columbia Itlver nnd Iti ti tarlcs. Prom Portland Etcamuin down the Columbia to Attorliult as far a Cclllu l'nllj. Abon Celllo Kalis otlur boats reach pi on tno upper C'oliiinlln and si Jiivors. Farmci'c Assist Sn the Foot-nnd-Mbulh Fial TUB recent lifting of tho fxt mouth quarantines from I nrcaB provloiisl) cloned and (let licntlou or tho quarantine 1st other sections huii been rniJti Hllilc, Federal authorities tar, Ijtl co-operation, nut only of then.'! utnto orncmi , hut of farmeni siocunicii tiicniiMvcs. vim'. co-operation hni been moitlirl douce, progress In tho cradlatlcu tho dlsenso has been most ripllfl l-odornl ntithorltlcs have, oi n control over the movement c J stock In Interstate commerce i tho locnl quarantines are cttiffl nnd enforced by the state. flclcncy dopeudit In great en upon tho willingness of the i submit to tho uocezsary rntr Tho people not only obstruJ: quarantlno regulations, but thejt nil In their power to cxpMia: work of slaughter. In mmr thoy had tho ditches In wbldt miliums wcro to bo uuriea ooje wnlthiL' for the killing Rantt li rulo no objection was taltea tt i nppralscr'B valuation of tie b Intntirvil atnMr. wlilrli U IhOrDOrtB nrlHlnir In viow of tllO fact ttltq llttlo was generally known d; Berlotisness of tho mmx. fnrmnra illil nnl want to Slit ' their stock. They saw that tlii; mouths and feet grew ' Mmv tinit linn no experience i nftor offecta of tho pestllew constnnt aborting, tno w nrn.. mlllr Mm ability (0 I I'.UUUVU ........ ..w . Innln illnpnRn IliantUS aitCf Ul ' iblo Byniptoms hail djwffg Novorthcioss tncy occeja :: atlon, helping Instead oi b In only a vory icw ca - nn.. imnl n .nncp.nl toS tV "i"., '"V," " ' . ". f i. DUtUC ion wns so strongly against twi it was practically imp""'8""" Cnmn tnUta nrrt &lwa)S ftW.l Join tlio procession no matter 'J It is bound or how uusv ".