122 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



April U, 1906. 



INSECT NOTES. 



Mole Crickets. 



In previous numbers of tlie Agrtndtural Kcvx 

 (Vol. II, pp. 104, 200, 298), and in the We^t IiidUin Bulletin 

 (Vol. II, p. 349), accounts have been given of the mole 

 cricket, where the methods in use for combating it have 

 also been discussed. 



The mole cricket occurs in most of the Islands of the 

 West Indies, and in certain of them— St. Vincent, St. Lucia, 

 Dominica and Trinidad — it is well known as a pest. 



Mole crickets live underground making their burrows in 

 all directions, and eating off the roots of plants. The eggs 

 are laid in these subterranean galleries, and the young and 

 adults spend most of their lives in them. At night, however, 

 they come to the surface and feed on tender plants. The 

 underground burrows can be located by the surface openings, 

 and frequently by the dead or dying plants, the roots of 

 which have been eaten oft". 



On account of its habits the mole cricket is difficult to 

 combat. Many methods have been tried, the cheapest and 

 most effective of which is perhaps a poisoned bait similar to 

 that used in Porto Kico, which is made of the grass known as 

 'Verba dulce ' and is prepared as follows : — 



The Verba dulce* plants are chopped into pieces about 

 an inch in length and covered with Paris green or arsenic. 

 Half an ounce of Paris green to every quart of the grass is 

 a good proportion to use. This mixture should be thoroughly 

 .<itirred, so that the poison should be evenly distributed. 



infested field.^. The bait may be placed on, or just below 

 the surface of the soil near the plants. Clean cultivation is 

 a great aid to the eft'ectiveness of any remedial measure, as 

 the removal of weeds deprives the insect of a large portion of 

 its food, and the frequent stirring of the .soil tends to fill up 

 its burrows, and exposes the insect itself to the attacks of 

 lurds and other natural enemies. 



Mole crickets that have eaten poisoned bait retire into 

 their burrows to die, and the results are thus not readily 

 seen. If, however, this method be followed for some time, 

 it will be found effective, and the cost is very small. In the 

 case of cutworms attacking cotton, already mentioned, the 

 cost of the poisoned bait, and its application, was only about 

 20c. to 24c. per acre. 



L'arbon bisulphide, creolin, creosote, naphthaline, 

 tobacco, and kerosene, have all been tried at the Porto Rico 

 Experiment Station, but none have proved to be so cheap 

 and effective as the poisoned bait of 'Verba dulce.' 



In a recent number of the l'ort-of-,'ipai>i Gazette 

 a correspondent recommends the use of ' Green's Parasol Ant 

 Destroyer,' a tea-spoonful of which is poured into each hole, 

 and the hole is then plugged up. This (probably a prepara- 

 tion of carbon bisulphide) might prove effective, but would 

 be likely to be very expensive. 



Fig. 2. the mole cricket. 

 Adult from above at left, from side at right. 



In combating cut worms at Barbados (Af/riciillurnl 

 New!:, Vol. IV, p. 'MS) a poisoned bait made by mixing 2-5 lb. 

 bran with 1 lb. Paris green, and stirring in sutticient 

 mola.-ses and water to make a thick mash, has given excellent 

 results, and wouhl ]irobably prove equally effective with the 

 mole cricket. 



In using a poisoned bait, it should be distributed in 

 .small quantitie.s, at frequent intervals, throughout the 



* Tliis name does not api>ear in the ' Economic Plants of 

 Porto Rico ' by Co..k & Collins, 1003. [Ed. A.N.] 



EDUCATIONAL 



Agricultural Instruction in Elementary Schools. 



In tiie report on the elementary schools, Barbados, 

 fur the year \'J05, published in the Ojpxial Gazette of 

 I\larch 2y, 190G, the Inspectors write as follows on the 

 subject of agricultural instruction : — 



The work in this important subject has been maintained 

 during the year, and there are signs of progress. Fifty-one 

 boys' schools and three girls' schools, the same as in 1904, 

 presented children at the annual examinations in the object- 

 lessons based on the text of the Tropical Readers and 

 Nature Teaehiwj. About one-third of these also showed 

 either school gardens under cultivation, or plants growing in 

 pots or boxes. The number of passes obtained was not as 

 high as last year's figure, being only 674 as against 820, but 

 the school gardens are decidedly better managed than before, 

 and the number of them has increased to twentj'-one. These 

 received grants of implements from the Imperial Department 

 of Agriculture ; and twenty other schools received pots and 

 boxes in which to cultivate plants. At the Bu.shy Park 

 exhibition on December 5, it was generally acknowledged 

 that the exhibits from the schools were of a higher standard 

 than those at previous shows, and that they evinced more 

 care and attention on the part of the children. A boy from 

 St. Jude's won a prize for grafting, and the Society Boys' 

 School, and Mount Tabor Boys' received Dijilomas from the 

 Commissioner of Agriculture for their exhibits. 



It is stated that some difficulty has been found in 

 inducing the teachers to take up this subject heartily. They 

 are discouraged b}' the fact that, after experiencing reductions 

 in .salaries for teaching the ordinary subjects, they have been 

 called upon to take up, in their schools, two other subjects, 

 agriculture and drawing, for which they received no 

 extra pay. That anything has been done by them in this 

 subject of agricultural instruction, is to be attributed entirely 

 to the encouragement and .substantial a.ssistance given by the 

 Imperial Department of Agrieultuie. From the Legislature 

 they have received no encouragement at all, although it is- 

 recognized to be of unquestionable advantage to the general 

 community. 



