INSECTS IJ^JURlors TO COTTOK. 195 



ture of flour. If that be added, lighter cloth should be 

 used for the sacks. 



The remedy for the cotton -worm is sim23le and effective. 

 It simply needs careful watching, especially upon the part 

 of the southernmost planters, and prompt work immedi- 

 ately upon its appearance. 



Cutworms. 



For very few plants could a list of their insect- pests be 

 made without mentioning the destructive cutworms (see 

 page 214: to 217), and cotton is no exception. Their char- 

 acteristic manner of cutting off the young plants at the 

 surface of the soil is so familiar to every planter and 

 trucker that no discussion of their life-history and habits 

 is here necessary. The best method for their destruction 

 is by distributing through the field bunches of clover or 

 grass poisoned with Paris green. This may be best done 

 by spraying a patch of grass or clover with the poison, 

 then cutting it, loading it on a wagon, and scattering 

 bunches over the field with a fork. For best results such 

 traps should be spread over the field just as the plants are 

 appearing above ground, or even a day or two before ; some 

 care is necessary in so doing this that it will not result in 

 injuring the young leaves. 



Grasshoppers. 



A much similar treatment will prove effectual for grass- 

 hoppers, which frequently do considerable damage to the 

 foliage. Twenty-five pounds of bran, one pound of white 

 arsenic, mixed dry and then slightly moistened with water 

 and cheap molasses, will form an excellent '^ mash "for 

 their destruction, by placing a teaspoonful at the base of 



