"Hand picking . . . may prove practical" . . . (p. 3). 

 Assuming any hand work is practicable, which in general it 

 decidedly is not, the use of a hot air blast would do this work 

 many times faster. A number of torches operated from a 

 vehicle work relatively still faster, with less damage to the 

 crop. But with poultry kept going the year around, they will 

 usually take care of the bugs as a matter of course. 



"It has often been suggested that a hopperdozer might 

 be employed 'to collect the adults and nymphs of the grain bug 

 while they are feeding on the heads of the grain. An opera- 

 tion of this kind, however, would be complicated by the fact 

 that the insects generally drop to the ground when closely 

 approached. Then, too, at the time when most of the injury 

 by the grain bug occurs, the condition of the grain is such that 

 the passage of any collecting machine would result in con- 

 siderable damage to the crop" (p. 33). "In grain fields the 

 feeding is confined to medium sized and rapidly growing heads 

 of immature seed. After the grain reaches the "dough" stage 

 the insect ceases to feed upon it . . ." (p. 23). "The grain 

 bug adults are very conspicuous objects in the field, owing to 

 their large size and tendency to seek the upper part of each 

 plant when feeding or resting on the grain heads. On clear 

 days ... at least 95 per cent of the adults present in the 

 vicinity may be seen without moving any part of the plants. 

 When disturbed, however, most of the adults immediately 

 drop to the ground and seek cover" (p. 24). 



All this shows that the most feasible way to attack the 

 grain bug on grain consists in the use of poultry on an ample 



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