14 The Bulletin. 



need only be mentioned by name. Perhaps the most famous weed of 

 this group is the jimson weed, commonly called "thorn apple." 

 The larvae of the Horn Worm not only feed upon the leaves of this 

 plant, but is one of the plants commonly visited by the Tobacco 

 Fly, which seeks the honey which is secreted by its long, tubular 

 flowers. The jimson weed is also one of the native food plants of the 

 Tobacco Flea Beetle, or Flea Bug, as it is commonly called. Another 

 notorious weed of this same group is the horse or bull nettle. This 

 weed harbors such well-known insect pests of tobacco as the Horn 

 Worm, Flea Bug, and Bud Worm. Still other weeds of this same 

 group are the common ground cherry, the black night shade, matri- 

 mony vine, and hens-bane. 



Plants which we consider cultivated plants are just as much weeds 

 as wild plants when they are growing out of their proper place. The 

 same group of plants which furnishes us tobacco also furnishes us 

 several well-known cultivated plants. Chief among these might be 

 mentioned Irish potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplant. The cultivation 

 of these plants near the tobacco field should always be avoided unless 

 they are used in the nature of trap crops or are carefully watched 

 to see that insects do not become abundant upon them. The same in- 

 sects which attack tobacco are frequently pests of these crops. 



In advising the destruction of weeds in and about the tobacco 

 field it must be taken into consideration that many of the insect 

 pests of tobacco prefer these weeds as food plants to tobacco. The 

 tobacco farmer can take advantage of this fact by using these weeds 

 as trap crops. The weeds that are to be used as trap crops are al- 

 lowed to grow, but are kept heavily sprayed with either of the poisons 

 containing arsenic. The insects visiting these crops are, of course, 

 poisoned by securing a portion of the arsenic, and are killed. 



Spraying. 



In what follows much will be said about spraying, and we firmly 

 believe that spraying should properly become a regular farm practice 

 with tobacco farmers. We believe that it can be done in such a man- 

 ner as to return to the tobacco farmer as large profits as the orchardist 

 secures from spraying, and with much greater certainty of results. 

 Once the tobacco farmer is thoroughly convinced that spraying is as 

 much a necessary practice as fertilization, seed-sowing, and cultiva- 

 tion, just that soon will he realize the profits to be secured in this 

 way. The cost of the material is comparatively nothing and 

 the cost of application is not excessive — certainly it does not ex- 

 ceed the cost of the old laborious process of "worming." The insecti- 

 cides can usually be applied most successfully in liquid form, though 

 some farmers are quite successful in applying Paris green dry. For 



