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Show SEED GROWERS TOLD REASON FOR DECLINE OF ALFALFA SEED CROP Ml BASIN; INSECT CONTROL URGED Dr. John A. Carlson Explains Results Of His Studies Forty-six Uintah Basin secd growers convened at a growers meeting in Myton on Monday evening to hear Dr. John A. Carlson and A. F. Bracken of the Utah State Agricultural college col-lege discuss important factors relating re-lating to alfalfa seed production in the Basin. Dr. Carlson, a recognized authority au-thority on causes of alfalfa seed failure and one of the original experimenters on remedial measures, mea-sures, was the principal speaker of the evening. He brought into focus the need for planting suitable suit-able types of alfalfa seed and the proper use of DDT to insure increased in-creased seed production. Early Investigations It was Dr. Carlson who instigated insti-gated the first investigations into the causes of alfalfa seed failure in the Uintah Basin. His initial studies were undertaken in 1925 at the Basin experimental farm. He has made a continuous study of the condition at the USAC since that time. In the early years of Dr. Carlson's Carl-son's alfalfa seed work the Uintah Uin-tah Basin was producing 36,000,-000 36,000,-000 pounds of alfalfa seed annually, an-nually, representing 42 per cent of the nation's output. In 1929-39 production had dropped in the area to 1,500,000 pounds annual ly. This was a decline from 382 pounds an acre to about 42 pounds an acre. It was in 1944-45 that Dr. Carlson Carl-son found that the lygus bug population was the primary factor fac-tor in the rapid -decline of the Basin's alfalfa seed crop. He discovered dis-covered that a pair of lygus bugs produced three or four generations genera-tions of young each summer, and that the insects sucked the juice from the plant, injecting a poison which caused the flowers to strip and prevented seed setting. With the discovery of DDT, Dr. Carlson found that carefully supervised su-pervised and proper dusting of alfalfa with the chemical produced produc-ed startling results. On a test plot last year, using DDT for dusting the first crop, Dr. Carlson Carl-son found the yield to be 716 pounds of alfalfa seed per acre. A similar plot which was not dusted produced only 69 pounds of seed per acre. Remedies Named Dr. Carlson, in his talk at Myton Monday night, encouraged use of adequate water to stimulate stimu-late large healthy growth in alfalfa, alf-alfa, and stressed the fact that reduced hay production directly reduces the capacity to produce seed. He encouraged seed growers grow-ers to work in close harmony with bee keepers, pointing out that alfalfa seeding is dependent on bees for pollination. Considering the effect of DDT dusting on bees, D.r. Carlson recommended rec-ommended that in Duchesne county dusting be done once and not more than twice with 20 nounds of 5 per cent DDT when the plant is six inches high and iust before the blossom stage. He stated that one aoplication of the dust may be sufficient and advised the use of a nower duster in applying it. He cautioned against the use of pummy for livestock feeding from fields dusted with DDT until further experiments reveal the effect on stock. The use of DDT for the dusting dust-ing of alfalfa to prevent the devastating de-vastating effect of the lygus bu.p is the climaxing effort of Dr. Carlson's work. Experiments to be Made A, F. Bracken, specialist from the USAC talked on the establishment estab-lishment of wilt resisting varieties var-ieties of alfalfa. He cited experiments experi-ments at Duchesne which show-Ranger show-Ranger and Buffalo to be the more wilt resistant types. With respect to these two varieties. County Agent Marden Broadbent announces that he has 800 pounds of registered Ranger seed which will be used this year for producing certified marketable seed. The following will plant Ran-eer Ran-eer during the 1946 season for this mirrjose: Heher Allred. Roosevelt. Roos-evelt. 15 ncrps; Howard Roberts. Pleasant Valley. 38 acres; Jess Allen. Pleasant Valley, 65 acres; Victor Brown, Monarch, 10 acres; ac-res; John Cronk, Myton, 5 acres; Wlllard Day, Roosevelt, 5 acres. - To produce wilt resisting alfalfa alf-alfa seed for farm purposes, Mr. Broadbent has received a shipment ship-ment of 900 pounds of Raneer. nnd announces that the following follow-ing will nlant durine the current season: Ariel Mitchie, Ioka: Rav E. Dillman, Roosevelt: Warwic Lamoreaux. Roosevelt; L. J. Gilbert. Arcadia: Thns. Gilbert. Arcadia and Clair Hopkins of Vernal. |