﻿11.— 
  NOTES 
  ON 
  COTTON 
  BOLL- 
  WORMS 
  {EAJRIAS 
  FABIA 
  i^ND 
  

  

  E. 
  INSULANA). 
  

  

  By 
  T. 
  N. 
  Jhaveri, 
  L.Ag., 
  Entomological 
  Assistant, 
  Bombay. 
  

  

  The 
  species 
  of 
  boll-worms 
  that 
  are 
  so 
  common 
  in 
  Gujarat 
  are 
  the 
  

   spotted 
  ones, 
  E 
  arias 
  Jabia 
  and 
  E. 
  insulana. 
  Of 
  these 
  two, 
  fabia 
  is 
  much 
  

   more 
  prevalent 
  than 
  the 
  other. 
  The 
  Pink 
  Boll-worm, 
  which 
  is 
  so 
  common 
  

   in 
  the 
  Madras 
  Presidency 
  on 
  Cambodia 
  cotton, 
  is 
  not 
  found 
  here 
  doing 
  

   any 
  perceptible 
  damage 
  to 
  the 
  crop. 
  It 
  generally 
  appears 
  about 
  the 
  last 
  

   picking 
  of 
  cotton 
  in 
  summer, 
  while 
  this 
  Jabia, 
  which 
  is 
  so 
  common 
  in 
  

   Gujarat, 
  specially 
  in 
  Surat 
  and 
  Broach 
  districts, 
  where 
  the 
  Herbaceum 
  

   type 
  of 
  cotton 
  is 
  so 
  largely 
  grown, 
  takes 
  a 
  heavy 
  toll 
  of 
  the 
  outturn 
  by 
  

   attacking 
  the 
  crop 
  in 
  all 
  its 
  stages. 
  In 
  the 
  seedling 
  stage 
  of 
  the 
  crop 
  

   young 
  tender 
  shoots 
  are 
  being 
  bored 
  and 
  killed. 
  In 
  some 
  years 
  more 
  

   than 
  50 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  young 
  cotton 
  plants 
  are 
  found 
  being 
  bored 
  and 
  

   damaged 
  ; 
  but 
  this 
  is 
  not 
  being 
  noticed 
  and 
  seriously 
  taken 
  care 
  of 
  by 
  

   the 
  raiyat, 
  as 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  think 
  it 
  worth 
  while 
  because 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  only 
  

   the 
  tops 
  are 
  being 
  pruned, 
  which 
  the 
  raiyat 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  obliged 
  to 
  

   do 
  later 
  on 
  to 
  stop 
  tall 
  growth 
  of 
  the 
  crop 
  and 
  stimulate 
  more 
  branching 
  

   on 
  the 
  side. 
  Later 
  on, 
  as 
  season 
  advances, 
  early 
  bearings 
  of 
  the 
  crop 
  

   are 
  seriously 
  affected. 
  Young 
  buds, 
  flowers 
  and 
  early 
  developed 
  small 
  

   bolls 
  are 
  found 
  infected 
  and 
  one 
  notices 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  boll- 
  worm 
  

   attack 
  in 
  shedded 
  buds 
  and 
  flowers. 
  

  

  For 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  controlling 
  them, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  to 
  find 
  out 
  their 
  exact 
  

   relation 
  with 
  the 
  shedding 
  of 
  flower-buds 
  either 
  due 
  to 
  this 
  or 
  to 
  the 
  

   climatic 
  conditions, 
  some 
  trials 
  were 
  made, 
  the 
  results 
  of 
  which 
  are 
  as 
  

   under 
  : 
  — 
  The 
  control 
  measures, 
  that 
  were 
  tried, 
  were 
  (1) 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  Bhinda 
  

   crop 
  (Ladies' 
  finger, 
  H. 
  esculentus) 
  as 
  a 
  trap 
  round 
  about 
  the 
  cotton 
  area, 
  

   and 
  (2) 
  the 
  removal 
  of 
  afliected 
  young 
  shoots 
  of 
  cotton 
  with 
  boll-woims. 
  

   As 
  for 
  the. 
  first 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  found 
  that 
  wherever 
  the 
  Bhinda 
  crop 
  thrived 
  

   well, 
  it 
  successfully 
  entrapped 
  this 
  boll-worm 
  and 
  prevented 
  it 
  from 
  going 
  

   to 
  the 
  cotton 
  crop. 
  In 
  the 
  year 
  1912, 
  a 
  small 
  patch 
  of 
  Bhinda 
  crop, 
  

   about 
  3 
  to 
  4 
  Gundhas 
  in 
  the 
  kitchen 
  garden 
  at 
  Nadiad 
  Farm, 
  was 
  found 
  

   badly 
  infested 
  with 
  this 
  boll-worm 
  in 
  the 
  month 
  of 
  September. 
  About 
  

   80 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  the 
  plants 
  and 
  50 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  the 
  pods 
  were 
  attacked. 
  

   These 
  were 
  removed 
  and 
  this 
  greatly 
  helped 
  in 
  controlling 
  the 
  pest 
  from 
  

   going 
  to 
  the 
  cotton 
  area 
  which 
  was 
  near 
  by. 
  Similar 
  trials 
  of 
  controll- 
  

  

  ( 
  93 
  ) 
  

  

  