ON THE MORE IMPORTANT INSECTS OF THE 
TRUCK-FARM AND VEGETABLE GARDEN 
Bv J. J. Davis, Assistant Entomologist for Northern Ilwnois 
Vegetable gardening is now one of the most important of the 
various agricultural interests of Illinois. According to the census 
of 1900 there were 256,213 acres in vegetables in Illinois in 1899, 
and the value of the products amounted to $10,346,797, this being 
the fourth largest valuation of such products for all the states. The 
average valuation of vegetables was $42.09 per acre, while that of 
all crops taken together was but $10.04. Altho the gardening- 
industry in Illinois, and especially in Cook county and counties ad- 
joining, has greatly increased since 1899, the figures for that year 
serve to indicate the relatively great importance of vegetable-grow- 
ing in IlHnois. 
Chicago is the principal center of the truck-garden industry of 
this state, and for a distance of 12 to 18 miles north, south, and 
west of the city, agriculture is almost wholly gardening. This area 
is especially well adapted to such farming, as the more or less sandy 
character of the soil permits early tillage — a very important fact 
from the truck gardener's point of view, since it enables him to get 
his products on the market at an early date, while prices are still 
high. Cook county growers have a market close at hand, so that 
they can personally dispose of their produce, making sales from their 
own wagons, thus avoiding freight and commission charges. 
Further, Chicago affords an ample supply of manure for continuous 
fertilization, which is absolutely necessary where such intensive 
farming is practiced, and where so much is taken from the soil each 
year. 
Another important consideration is the labor supply ; for such 
crops as onions and cucumbers require large numbers of laborers at 
certain times of the year, and in isolated localities and in small 
towns there is usually insufficient help in the busiest parts of the 
season. In Cook county, however, the city of Chicago can usually 
furnish all the labor required, and at a cheaper rate than in remote 
localities. 
Probably the most important garden product of Illinois is the 
potato. The area in this crop in Illinois in 1899 was 139,464 acres, 
and the estimated value of the product was $4,702,033. In Cook 
county alone there were 15,336 acres in potatoes. Onions and cab- 
bage are important crops, as are also asparagus, celery, beets, and 
that class of vegetables known as general truck, which includes rad- 
ishes, lettuce, parsnips, carrots, rhubarb, beans, etc. The growing 
