OCR Text |
Show A New Pest of tho Sugar Beet. A sugar-beet peat has developed in Cafifornia which promises trouble unless un-less soon cheched. Prof. Woodworth dlscribes it as "a smnll maggot which burrows between the membrances of tho leaf, eating out all tho green substance, sub-stance, and, when full grown, falling to tho ground, producing an oval brown pupa, in which is developod a fly about the size and geneial appearance of the common house fly. This insect lays its eggs upon tho beet leaves, generally two sido by side, in a place, and tho young worms whon they hatch from these eggs again enter the leaves and begin their work. Thoeggs are very conspicuous, sWnder white bodies, found on botti tlie under and upper sido of thu leaf, and tho shells remain attached to tho lea long after the worms hatch from them and become adult and enter tho ground. The insect appears to have two or three generations a year, and seems to be capable of doing n great deal of injury, especial upon the sugar beot where the effect of the destruction of the green matter of tho leaf would materially reduce re-duce the sugar content of the beet. The new pest is so threatening a danger that the university of California is making a special study of it with a viow of ascertaining ascer-taining its origin, spread aud best method me-thod of combating it. Orange Judd Farmer. |