MONTHLY NOTES ON GRUBS AND OTHER CANE PESTS. 47 
THE JOHNSTONE RIvER District. 
I was interested to note the remarkable scarcity of grub-injury in 
the Goondi area, for the beetles were particularly abundant last 
December. The farm of Mr. R. Davis, which is typical of those at 
Daraji, has always suffered considerably in former years, but there is no 
*sign of grubs this season. It will be remembered that the Goondi Mill 
was very late in starting last year because of the damage from the cyclone ; 
hence all the cane was cut after September and the ratooning coincided 
with the egg-laying of the beetles. Mr. Davis also planted late, so that 
all of his crop came in for cultivation during the critical time, and his 
crop is perfect. 
I was also able to visit other farms through the kindness of the 
Colonial Sugar Refining Company’s officials, and Mr. E. S. Smith, the 
cane inspector at Goondi, took me to Stockton paddock, a grazing area 
of 240 acres owned by Mr. Shaw. This is a most interesting spot, since 
most of the money from the Cane Pest Destruction Fund is spent for 
beetles collected there. Furthermore, strange to say, the surrounding 
eane has not suffered from grub-injury. Mr. Shaw planted 30 acres 
along one side of this paddock, and though this is adjoining feeding- 
trees to windward, the first ratoon crop is in excellent condition. 
Examination revealed numerous grubs in the grass-land ; hence, it appears 
evident that all this extensive supply of beetles is developed there, and 
they have not taken to the cultivated fields. If, however, all of this area 
was cultivated, the ravages of the pest would probably appear. 
At the South Johnstone Mill the scrub has only been felled along 
the narrow valleys, so that naturally much of this cane area is affected 
by grubs, for feeding-trees border most of the fields. 
I was very fortunate in making the acquaintance of Mr. F. L. 
Sugden, one of the most successful growers of the district ; a man untiring 
in his efforts to improve the condition of his fellows, many of whom are 
labouring under most distressing circumstances. Mr. Sugden’s own 
success has evidently been due to his extensive experience along agricul- 
tural lines and scientific application. Although his cane was seriously 
troubled with grubs for several years, he has now practically rid his fields 
of the pest. He uses lime in the cane holes on even the new land, and is 
a firm believer in the value of conservation of humus. He also recognises 
the value of removing the feeding-trees of the beetles; in fact, this 
probably accounts for much of his present immunity. Another factor 
which has an important bearing on this case is that Mr. Sugden controls 
weeds in the cane of his stump-land by spraying them with sodium 
arsenite. In this connection Mr. Sugden called my attention to a striking 
demonstration of the value of spraying. On adjoining stump-fields one 
grower removed the weeds by chipping, while his neighbour for the same 
purpose used several sprayings of sodium arsenite. The full-grown 
cane in both fields now shows a marked difference, although the land was 
identical in every way. The chipped field is badly damaged by grubs, 
