﻿— 
  52 
  — 
  

  

  Colorado 
  in 
  1899. 
  Several 
  of 
  the 
  flea-beetles 
  — 
  readily 
  distinguished 
  

   from 
  other 
  beetles 
  infesting 
  the 
  beet 
  by 
  their 
  leaping 
  habit 
  when 
  

   alarmed 
  — 
  seriously 
  injure 
  the 
  leaves 
  by 
  riddling 
  them 
  with 
  small 
  holes. 
  

   The 
  worst 
  of 
  these 
  is 
  the 
  pale-striped 
  flea-beetle 
  {Systena 
  tayiiata), 
  

   abundant 
  in 
  beet 
  fields 
  in 
  Illinois 
  in 
  1898 
  and 
  1899. 
  Two 
  insects 
  hith- 
  

   erto 
  little 
  noticed 
  by 
  the 
  economic 
  entomologist, 
  and 
  known 
  locally 
  as 
  

   French 
  bugs 
  (^Monoxia 
  puncticollis 
  and 
  Af. 
  consputa), 
  have 
  made 
  a 
  

   serious 
  attack 
  upon 
  this 
  plant, 
  the 
  first 
  of 
  these 
  species 
  in 
  New 
  Mexico 
  

   and 
  the 
  second 
  on 
  the 
  Pacific 
  coast 
  — 
  especially 
  in 
  Oregon. 
  The 
  former 
  

   sometimes 
  riddles 
  the 
  leaves, 
  leaving 
  only 
  a 
  network 
  of 
  veins, 
  and 
  of 
  

   course 
  checking 
  the 
  growth 
  of 
  the 
  plant 
  or 
  even 
  killing 
  it. 
  

  

  The 
  well-known 
  blister-beetles 
  of 
  various 
  species 
  have 
  infested 
  beet 
  

   fields 
  with 
  serious 
  consequences 
  in 
  many 
  places, 
  especially 
  in 
  the 
  

   northern 
  Mississippi 
  Valley. 
  They 
  are 
  most 
  destructive, 
  as 
  a 
  rule, 
  after 
  

   a 
  period 
  of 
  unusual 
  abundance 
  of 
  grasshoppers, 
  on 
  the 
  eggs 
  of 
  which 
  

   their 
  larvae 
  feed. 
  The 
  muck 
  beetle 
  {Ligyrus) 
  has 
  occasionally 
  been 
  

   somewhat 
  injurious 
  to 
  beets 
  over 
  limited 
  areas 
  in 
  western 
  Nebraska, 
  

   working 
  underground 
  and 
  gnawing 
  the 
  beet 
  from 
  without, 
  sometimes 
  

   entirely 
  imbedding 
  itself 
  in 
  the 
  root. 
  White 
  grubs 
  and 
  wireworms 
  are 
  

   less 
  injurious 
  than 
  might 
  be 
  supposed 
  from 
  their 
  great 
  numbers 
  and 
  

   general 
  feeding 
  habits, 
  owing, 
  no 
  doubt, 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  beets 
  are 
  rarely 
  

   planted 
  after 
  grass, 
  in 
  which 
  these 
  insects 
  mainly 
  breed. 
  A 
  root 
  aphis 
  

   {Pemphigus 
  belce) 
  sometimes 
  does 
  serious 
  injury, 
  frequently 
  attributed 
  

   by 
  beet 
  growers 
  to 
  the 
  more 
  active 
  and 
  conspicuous 
  ants 
  which 
  live 
  in 
  

   its 
  company. 
  The 
  most 
  noticeable 
  instance 
  of 
  this 
  injury 
  known 
  to 
  

   us 
  was 
  reported 
  from 
  La 
  Grande, 
  Oregon, 
  where 
  both 
  the 
  quantity 
  and 
  

   the 
  quality 
  of 
  the 
  crop 
  were 
  seriously 
  affected 
  in 
  1899. 
  A 
  considerable 
  

   injury 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  by 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  green 
  plant-bugs 
  or 
  stink-bugs 
  

   (^Liodenna) 
  locally 
  abundant 
  from 
  South 
  Dakota 
  to 
  California 
  and 
  

   Mexico. 
  

  

  PRINCIPAL 
  PREVENTIVE 
  AND 
  REMEDIAL 
  MEASURES. 
  

  

  The 
  more 
  important 
  measures 
  of 
  prevention 
  of 
  insect 
  injury 
  to 
  the 
  

   beet 
  are 
  clean 
  culture 
  and 
  a 
  suitable 
  system 
  of 
  rotation. 
  So 
  many 
  of 
  

   the 
  insect 
  enemies 
  of 
  this 
  plant 
  depend 
  largely 
  upon 
  certain 
  common 
  

   fleshy 
  weeds, 
  that 
  the 
  growth 
  of 
  these 
  in 
  or 
  near 
  a 
  beet 
  plantation 
  is 
  a 
  

   menace 
  to 
  the 
  crop. 
  The 
  red 
  or 
  spiny 
  pigweeds 
  {Ajnarantus), 
  white 
  

   pigweed 
  or 
  lamb's-quarters 
  {Chenopodii/m 
  album), 
  purslane, 
  and 
  the 
  

   cocklebur 
  are 
  the 
  principal 
  examples. 
  Weeds 
  of 
  this 
  description 
  should 
  

   not 
  be 
  allowed 
  to 
  gain 
  any 
  foothold 
  or 
  even 
  to 
  make 
  a 
  start 
  in 
  or 
  about 
  

   a 
  beet 
  field, 
  for 
  if 
  they 
  do 
  they 
  are 
  likely 
  to 
  attract 
  their 
  special 
  insects, 
  

   which, 
  when 
  these 
  weeds 
  are 
  destroyed, 
  transfer 
  their 
  attentions 
  to 
  the 
  

   beet, 
  sometimes 
  with 
  highly 
  destructive 
  effect. 
  Many 
  beet 
  insects 
  pass 
  

   the 
  winter 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  under 
  the 
  protection 
  of 
  fallen 
  leaves 
  and 
  other 
  

  

  