November 24, 1922.
The boll weevil, a dry subject but a live one. These are some observations on this subject that come from James Holloman who spent months in the areas badly infected and what he has doped out the subject that is practical and worth deepest consideration. To write about the boll weevil is a dry subject. Just quiz the cotton farmer and see. It is today the south's very greatest economic problem. Pamplets on the subject by the thousands have been written and millions of them distributed over the entire country. Theory after theory has been advanced, scientific, experimental, technical and foolhardy. But to get down to the very root, to the milk in the coconut, the best information is coming direct from the cotton farmer himself. The man who knows is the fellow who has been dealing with him ever since his advent and destruction begun, on through the devastation period and into a rejuvinating activity in the cotton fields with the weevil in hand and controlled. Every part of the cotton area of the south has or will have to pass thru this period of weevil infection. No part is free from the insects ruin. Every path is open to his invasion and work and it is up to the cotton grower to overcome him and rehibilitate from his disastrous effects. This is being done everywhere a foothold can be secured. Authorities say intense cultivation which means greatly reduced acreage, early planting, preparation of seed, more care in the quality of seed, and the consequential work of picking squares, clearing up weevil haunts, will produce cotton on a satisfactory scale, providing there is a wise use of a preventave in the case of intensive infestation. It has taken from three to four years to learn these lessons in weevil infected areas and hence the first sdctions infested have been the first to overcome the weevil. We find Texas making a million bales this year, Alabama is almost back to normal and southwest Georgia is making almost a pre-weevil crop considering acreage planted. As the weevil advances and the people learn the lesson of how to meet him on the level and win out other sections will no longer feel the losses of his work. Boll weevils multiply in cotton stalks until frost and then hibernate, go into winter quarters. Only the mature weevil passes the winter, the full grown fellow. Standing stalks make for them a fine winter home and into these they snug themselves nicely away, with the first killing frost. Stalks, grass, weeds, dead leaves, stumps with cracks in them, etc., furnish homes for the winter. And if these covers stand farmers may expect next spring and summer an abundance of the pests. The earlier the stalks, etc., are destroyed the fewer the weevils left and consequently the smaller damage to the next crop. Kill the stalks now before frost. That's the idea. Hibernation is the root of the weevil. Start now at the root. Begin the fight now. Turn the stalks under with all the other vegetable matter. Don't burn it. You are losing if you do.
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