06 TENTH BIENNIAL REPORT 



possible effort has been made to prevent it from entering 

 our state, for it is believed that should it gain entrance it would 

 eventually become very destructive to alfalfa and entail enormous 

 losses to our agriculture — not for one year only, but for all the future 

 unless natural or more satisfactory artificial means of control are 

 found. 



The writer, in company with the State Horticulturist, has visited 

 Utah several times and has made a study of the weevil and its damages 

 and has been much impressed with its destructiveness. When it 

 first appears in a locality not very much damage is done, but after a 

 few years, when it has greatly multiplied, the alfalfa is very much 

 damaged. So far as experience to the present time has shown, this 

 weevil is as injuirous now as' it was a few years ago ; that is, no factor 

 has intervened to reduce the powers of mi^ltiplication and destruction, 

 so far as we have information. Where effective control measures 

 have been carried out the damage has been reducd and good crops 

 of hay are grown, but satisfactory returns still come only at the price 

 of vigilance and hard work. 



In this connection it should be mentioned that on the occasion 

 of the last visit to the vicinity of Salt Lake, we w^re much impressed 

 with the abundance of a certain parasite of the weevil which the 

 Bureau of Entomology has introduced and which is rapidly multiply- 

 ing. There seems to be good reason to hope that much benefit may 

 result from the introduction of this parasite. 



Control Methods Now in Use. 



As previously, the main dependence in the control of the alfala 

 weevil is dragging jast after the removal of the first crop of hay. 

 This method is followed by success and where thoroughly carried 

 out, the farmers are getting very satisfactory returns. The Bureau 

 of Entomology has also conducted experiments in poisoning the foliage 

 of the alfalfa early in the season and has secured encouraging results. 

 It is quite possible that this method may be found to be of much value. 

 For the present, however, poisoning is considered to be in an experi- 

 mental stage. 



How the WeevU Spreads 



Up to the past year the alfalfa weevil has occurred only in one 

 continuous region which at first was small and confined to the vicinity 

 of Salt Lake City, but which has rather rapidly increased in size 



