24 Truck Growing in the South. 



INSECTS. 



The amount of damages done by insects to the crops of 

 the United States is something alarming, and the trucker 

 comes in for his share of the damages rendered by the 

 bug. There should be concert of action by truckers of 

 the same community, with a view to reducing the number 

 of injurious insects which would go far toward reducing 

 to a minimum the ravages done to garden crops. By co- 

 operation of the gardeners of the same community, there 

 are many kinds of injurious insects that could be almost 

 annihilated. The preservation of insect enemies, such as 

 insectivorous birds, lizards, toads, wasps, etc., would go far 

 toward solving the insect problem. However there are 

 methods by which loss by insects may be reduced if per- 

 sistently followed. Of all the insects which the gardener 

 has to deal with perhaps the most destructive is the cut- 

 worm. There are a number of different species of this 

 worm, but their habits are practically the same, and all 

 can be destroyed by the same methods. In warm climates 

 such as Florida and the Southern portion of the Gulf 

 States, this worm never hibernates, but is active all winter. 

 This continuous increased activity of the worm calls for in- 

 creased activity on the part of the trucker. In order to deal 

 intelligently with this worm, some knowledge of its habits 

 is necessary. The butterfly deposits the egg only where 

 there is some green crop growing at the time of laying. 

 In about a week the egg hatches and the worm starts out 

 on his destructive career. He cuts down the plants and 

 lives on the fat of the land until he is full grown. Then 

 he puts on his overcoat and remains inactive for a while. 



