44 BULLETIN 746, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



64 cents per acre. The apparatus used in the test is illustrated in 

 Plate VII. 



A 125-acre field at Belle Alliance Plantation near Donaldsonville, 

 La., which was naturally divided into approximately 5-acre plats by 

 drainage ditches, was selected for the experiment. One plat was 

 poisoned once a week during the nine weeks from April 19 to June 14 

 while other plats received from one to four applications of 2 pounds 

 per acre at weekly and fortnightly intervals, beginning at different 

 dates during the nine weeks' period. The season was rather dry and 

 rain did not interfere with the work any more than might be ex- 

 pected under Louisiana conditions. 



Borer eggs and " dead hearts " were observed throughout the 

 spring and summer in the various plats, and in October, when status 

 examinations were made, considerable variation was found in the dif- 

 ferent plats, but no relationship between the poisoning and borer in- 

 festation could be established, the treatment evidently having no ef- 

 fect whatever. This is probably due to the fact that the poison did 

 not enter the central whorl or " throat " of the plants, where tr i 

 young larvae were feeding. 



These experiments will indicate to the reader just how difficult is 

 the control of the sugar-cane borer, and how inefficient are the usual 

 methods of repression when used against it. For a long time the 

 application of poison to sugar cane was regarded as hardly practi- 

 cable, but when tried it was found to be not prohibitive as to cost or 

 labor, although of absolutely no benefit. 



REACTION OF ADUXTS TO HONEY AND OTHER BAITS. 



In the control of certain pests of vineyards in Europe, baits con 

 posed of fermenting molasses and other substances have been re- 

 ported as successful in attracting the adults. In fact the use of these 

 baits appears to be a well-established practice in some communities. 

 It is also well known that collectors often make use of a mixture of 

 stale beer or rum and brown sugar for attracting certain night-flying 

 moths. It was thought worth while, therefore, to test the attraction 

 of various chemicals and mixtures to borer moths. 



Five modified flytraps were hung in cane and corn fields known to 

 be infested. All the traps were baited with the same substance at a 

 time, and were left in the fields for at least 24 hours. The following 

 mixtures and chemical compounds were experimented with: (1) 

 Honey; (2) honey, water, and alcohol; (3) 1 part honey dissolved in 

 3 parts alcohol; (4) stale beer, low-grade sugar, and alcohol; (5) 

 stale beer and sugar; (6) oil of anise; (7) imitation strawberry 

 sirup; (8) orange-flower sirup; (9) cedar oil; (10) solution of citrir 

 acid; (11) pyridin; (12) xylene; (13) vanilla extract; (14) oil of 



