9 



adopted in preference to direct means, such as poisons and machines, 

 ■which, aside from their doubtful utility under manj' conditions, involve 

 expenses for labor or material that soon hopelessly reduce the margin 

 of profit. 



During the past season the Division of Entomologv has bcon engaged 

 in field experiments to demonstrate that cotton can be produced suc- 

 cessfully in spite of the boll weevil. Some of this work was conducted 

 on the plantation of Col. E. S. Peters, in the Brazos Valley, near Cal- 

 vert, Texas. This valley is, on account of its low and moit^t situation, 

 the presence of timber, and the almost exclusive production of cot- 

 ton, the most serioush^ affected portion of the weevil territor3\ In fact, 

 the most favorable conditions possible for the multiplic:ition of the 

 insect are there present, and Colonel Peters's plantation is a typical 

 one. 



The accompanying diagram (fig. 2) shows the location of some of 

 the experimental fields. The soil is the typical alluvial deposit of the 

 valle}^ and practically identical throughout the 128 acres included in 

 this experiment. The seed was the ordinary seed of the region, grown 

 on the same plantation the 3'ear before, of an unknown varict}", as is 

 usually the case in that region. The stand was equallj^ good everywhere. 

 No means of fighting the weevil w^hatever, aside from those mentioned, 

 were practiced. In none of the fields did any other insects, aside from 

 the weevil, cause any considerable injury. The boll worm was pres- 

 ent, but did very little damage; the sharpshooter was scarcel}^ noticed; 

 and the leaf worm did not appear in sufficient numbers to warrant 

 poisoning. 



To summarize the results of these experiments: 



1. Early planted cotton with thorough cultivation produced two- 

 thirds of a bale per acre. 



2. Early planted cotton with careless cultivation produced one- 

 ninth of a bale per acre. 



3. Early planted cotton with fair cultivation produced one-half bale 

 per acre. 



4. Late planted cotton with wide rows yielded about one-fourth of 

 a bale per acre. 



5. Late planted cotton with narrow row^s, sprayed thoroughl}^, 

 yielded about one-fourth of a bale per acre. 



The evident conclusions are: 



First. A profitable crop in the most unfavorable situation can be 

 produced by early planting and thorough cultivation, !is in Field I 

 (fig. 2). This field produced one bale to 1.5 acres; the average pro- 

 duction in the United States is one bale to 2.3 acres. The experiment, 

 moreover, was performed during probably the most generally disas- 

 trous season for cotton culture in Texas for twenty-five years. 



