Show destructive WORK OF ALFALFA WEEVIL ua n C cloverleaf clover leaf weevil A egg 13 13 0 B larvae beeding Ve eding P cocoon 1 beetle same dorsal view this beetle also infests alfalfa fields and may be easily confused with the alfalfa weevil by the farmer the alfalfa weevil introduced into this country dt at a single spot near salt lake city over ten years ago has i slowly spread throughout the northern halt half of 0 utah including three of the most productive product counties and taken a foothold in ili the adjacent parts of idaho and wyoming it destroys about one half of the annual yield un less measures are taken to prevent it the weevils we evils after spending the winter in the fields about tile the roots of tho the plants deposit large numbers of pale yellow eggs in cavities made in the stems with their beaks the little green worms which hatch from these during spring and early summer cluster upon the fresh shoots of alfalfa plants and feed becoming most numerous about june 1 they destroy much of the first crop injure the quality of what remains and compel early cutting to prevent total loss 1098 the actual damage to the first crop to Is not tar far from 60 per cent of its value upon the cutting of the first crop the larvae gather upon the bit of food which Is afforded by the now new shoots and destroy them as fast as aa they appear this condition bastis until the normal harvest time of the second crop so that it Is a total loss lose the d damage agag e to the first two crops usually amounts to about one halt half the annual yield A valuable method for preventing the injury to the second crop consists in brush dragging the be stubble after removal odthe of the first cutting this was devised by the utah experiment station in operation cooperation co with farmers it was improved later however in actual practice by the tha adoption ot of a weighted spike tooth harrow with several layers of woven wire stock fencing underneath instead of the old fashioned brush drag this treatment was widely adopted as a means of crushing the and tilo also as an I 1 means of exposing them to the rays of the sun and to the choking action of the dust the bureau bareau of entomology has proved that neither the mechanical ch anical crushing nor the direct rays of the sun contribute much to the effectiveness veness of the dust mulch treatment and that most of the insects in ili all stages die long before they are bof adult alfalfa weevils We evils smothered smother ed by the dust duat the essential factor in killing the weevils Is the heat absorbed by the soil from the suns rays to kill the weevil the surface of the field to be treated must bo be dry free from clods cracks and vegetation to ger gec best results however the sky roust must be clear and the weather warm under these conditions when the soil reaches the necessary temperature of degrees ea all stages of the insect are killed in less than two minutes the second crop of alfalfa Is then free to grow the effectiveness of this treatment however Is directly proportional to the thoroughness with which the above condl tlona are complied compiled with it the soll soil Is ili not in good condition it must bo be cultivated before dragging ahe the great objections to this method ol of fighting the weevil la Is that it requires much cultivation of 0 thu tho alfalfa at the bruiy aimy haying season polon poison for alfalfa We weevil evils several fa furi nera have adopted the method of spraying the he alfalfa stubble with arsenate of lead ifil instead blead of creat ing a dust mulch apply appl the poison at the rate of 12 pounds in four bar felti aels of hater ater per acre where a large area to ie to be covered a gasoline on gins for power Is necessary two llna linta of liose lione are operated by two men and bordeaux bor denux nozzles held at a dia tance tanca of about IV feet from the ground equally good work ork could probably be done with a small quantity of arsenate arac nate of lead by a better method of distribution this spray method however lavetter Is la bottar better adapted to large fields than the duat mulch method alfalfa weevil it Is IB also applicable sit a well to the rocky fields where cultivation is ie sot not desirable analyses An alysea and feeding tests testa show that there theio is not the slightest danger 0 of f poisoning animals which eat the hay if the abe field needs cultivation a combination of both spraying and brush dragging from the standpoint ot of c cultivation however la in lost when followed I 1 by irrigation pasture laiture with hogs hogi in early spring the only method which can be recommended om mended at the present time for protection of the first alfalfa crop is IB pasturing with hogs bogs after the eggs of the weevil are laid la in april or may the flold field to bo be pastured Is divided into two or more equal lots each provided with water shelter and facilities for feeding the hogs should have rings in their noses if the owner wishes to preserve his stand of alfalfa the hogs bogs are moved from one uro ure to another as fast as they are able to clean up the growth of alfalfa A small grata grain tation ration should supplement the alfalfa for growing and fattening pigs but Is riot not to be given the brood sowa under these conditions the first crop of alfalfa Is secured with no labor cost pork economically produced and the weevil eggs and larvae are destroyed dest deat toyed before they can do any harm thus the field Is left clean tor for the tha growth of a second crop which can be cut for hay the occurrence of weevils in farm products which are being shipped by freight and express stored in warehouses and sold in markets has been exhaustively studied with a view to learning how the spread of the insect into new territory may be prevented fruit vegetables alfalfa seed and nursery stock contain practically no weevils we evils with the single exception of potatoes which have afien in contact with infested green alfalfa alfalfa hay sometimes contains adults and some of them may remain alive tor for six months in tha th stack about the only other danger of spreading the weevil Is by carrying it in clothing either on the person or in baggage |