19
Growing Good Potatoes in the Pacific Northwest
Some Ideas on the Homely "Spud" by Men Who Know Whereof They Write.
HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
3
8 This is the fifth of a scries of
3 articles discussing potato grow-
ing.
By 0. M. MOEEIS, Horticulturist; J. 0.
HALL, Plant Pathologist, and M. A.
TOTHEES, Asst. Entomologist,
at Washington Experiment
Station.'
WUCII damage is done annually by
cut worms to potato vines in
many parts of the state. Al
though they, like the grasshoppers and
wire worms, are not especially fond of
potatoes, yet they are very general feed
ers and often do considerable damage.
They work at night and hide in the soil
in the day time a few inches beneath
the surface, where it is often difficult
to find them, owing to their close re
eemblanco to the soil. There are many
different kinds of cut worms, but their
work is much the Bame and to the un
trained eye they look much alike. Fig.
1 gives an idea as to their general ap-
kinds of crops. Their injury to the po
tato consists in the destruction of the
leaves and stems. During the season of
1913 there was the most serious out
break of grasshoppers, in certain dis
tricts along the Columbia and Snake
rivers within the memory of the earli
est inhabitants. Fortunately, in most
districts where the outbreak was very
bad the season is quite early and the
early potato crop was well along or
nearly grown by the time the insects
swarmed into the fields and gardens.
For this reason little damage was done
to early potatoes, but in many cases the
lato potatoes Buffered severely, espe
cially where the grasshoppers were very
abundant, in which case they even de
stroyed the vinos down to tho Burface of
the ground. In many parts of the state
grasshoppers are more or less abundant
every year, but tbey are not numerous
enough to be very destructive to a crop
as thrifty as potatoes.
AH of our especially destructive grass
hoppers spend the winter in the egg
stage in the ground. The eggs are from
one-eighth to one-fourth of an inch in
length, cylinderical, yellowish, and are
Tig. 1. An Adnlt Moth; b, c, d, nearly Mature Worms; e, egg Greatly
Enlarged; t. Eggs. All Natural Size Except e.
pearance. When full grown the larvae
average about an inch to an inch and
a half in length and about one-fourth of
an inch across. The adults of the cut
worms are the ordinary grayish mottled
winged moths so commouly seen in all
parts of the country flying about lights
at night in summer. The eggs are laid in
the spring by the adult female moth.
They are deposited on a great variety
of plants, depending much upon the
species of moth. The eggs hatch out into
titiy cut worms which grow to matur
ity, feeding the while on most kinds of
gdrdrn crops, field crops and many
kinds of weeds. They pass the pupal
stage under ground, the dark brown
chysilids being enclosed in earthen cells.
There are several broods during the
year, depending upon the climate and
moTe or less upon the local weather con
ditions. The winter is passed usually
in tho pupal stage under ground, but
some of the adult moths are often Been
in winter, especially in our houses.
Sometimes the winter is passed in the
partly grown larval stage and when
spring comes they are ready to feed
upon the first green vegetation that ap
pears. Contrcl Measures.
Although many control measures have
been devised for this pest from time to
time there seems to be none that give
perfect results.
Clean culture is one of the mo3t effect
ive remedies, however, and if consis
tently followed will give a good meas
ure of success. Flow infested land in
tho fall to break up the pupal cells or
bury and destroy tho over wintering
caterpillars.
The arsenical sprays, applied to the
vines as directed for the potato beetles,
will aid in protecting them from being
eaten.
One of the commonest treatments,
however, and a very effective one, is to
poison the worms with the poison bran
mash as recommended for tho grass
hoppers. Tho poison mask should bo
scattered along the rows and not around
thj field, for the worms are in the soil
in the field.
Grasshoppers.
Several species of grasshoppers are
well known b pests destructive to all
deposited in compact masses of from
fifteen to seventy in small pouches in
the ground. These tiny paekets are
made by the females with the tip of
their abdomen and the eggs laid in them
in a very exact position, the whole be
ing sealed up with a frothy mass which
Methods of Control
The most effective methods of con-
t.ol of grasshoppers on potatoes are the
same as are employed for their control
n general. ' First, find the breeding
ground in the scab land or pasture in
the fall and either plow up or burn
over to destroy the eggs in the ground.
Burning is more practicable for the
bluffs and hillsides than plowing. It
is unnecessary to try to burn over steep
rocky hillsides devoid of vegetation in
asmuch as tho grasshoppers do not lay
their eetrs where there is nothing for
the young to feed upon. In case the
land can not be burned over or plowed
in the fall it should be burned over in
the spring just as soon as the grass gets
dry enough for fire to travel in it, but
before tho young grasshopper get their
wings the last of June or the first of
July. This treatment will destroy prac
tically all of the young hoppers before
thev are able to do any damage to tue
crops and before they can fly away from
the fire. Of course this treatment de
stroys the pasturage for the rest of the
summer, but where it is a matter of
saving a very valuable crop it is no
doubt preferable to lose tho pasturage
than the crop. If the burning is done
n the fall the pasturage is not injured
for the next season.
A machine has been devised called a
hoDRcr-dozer" into which the young
grasshoppers can be gathered and killed
by contract with kerosene. This ma
chine has become an important factor in
the control of grasshoppers in many
parts of the country. The "hopper
dozer ' ' is constructed as shown in (Fig.
2), The sides and back can be made
of sheet iron or oil cloth. The pan at
the bottom to hold the kerosene should
be made of tin or galvanized iron and
about three inches deep. This machine
is simply drawn across the fields and
tho young hoppers, in trying to escape,
jump into it and get wet with the kero
sene and are killed. Many of the hop
licrs will jump out, but once they are
wet with the oil they are sure to die.
This machine can only bo used on com
paratively level land and for this rea
son it is not as useful in this country as
in Kansas and some of the other states
where it has served so well.
Where the grasshoppers arc already
in the fields, orchards and gardens the
best treatment is to poison them with a
poison bran mash, the formula for whieh
is as follows:
Bran 25 pounds.
Syrupy 1 gallon.
Paris green 2 pounds.
Mix the Paris green dry with the
bran, then add the syrup dissolved in
enough water to make a stiff mash when
added to the bran. About three gallons
of water will be sufficient. This bait
should be scattered in and around the
field and between tho rows of potatoes.
Another formula, which has been used
in California with very satisfactory re
sults, is as follows:
Bran 40 pounds.
Syrup 2 gallons.
Arsenic 5 pounds.
The bran should be wet so that water
can be squeezed out if held in the hand.
After this stir in the syrup and then
the arsenic. Stir thoroughly and then
let stand over night, stirring again be
fore applying on the field the next aay.
Potato Dlants may be protected to a
considerable extent by the application of
the Bordeaux mixture. This serves as
a repellant and tends to keep the hop
pers off the plants. .
Fig. 2. The Hopper Dozer.
hardens somewhat and protects the eggs
from injury. The eggs are, as a rule,
about one-half to one inch under ground.
The female erasshonner deposits her
pcrcm in the fall, beginning about the
----- ,
first of August and continuing until the
cold weather kills her. A single lemaie
lays about two packets of eggs. Most
nirira ore laid in vacant or little used
pasture lands, scab land on the bluffs
and hillsides, and in Janes ana aiong
the roadsides. The etres begin to hatch
in the spring as soon the vegetation
starts well and tne weatner DCgins to
get warm, and continue a couple of
months, according to the species, but all
of the eggs in a single pod hatch to
gether. The young hoppers feed upon
anv kind oi plant nearest to them. They
are not very conspicuous during the
early part of their lives, and do not at
tract much attention until they get their
wings about the first of July and mi
grate into the fields, orchards end gar
dens. There is but a single brood or
ceneration in a year. Tho young hop
pers hatch out in the spring and when
full grown have wings. Tney continue
tn feed and destroy the crops until lato
summer and early fall, when they cease
to feed very extensively. Alter mating,
tho female lays her eggs and Doth male
and female die with the approach of
cold weather.
100
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