Circular no. 862 



March 1951 



Washington, D, C. 



UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



3 

 J, 



Some Plant Responses to Certain 

 Insecticides in the Soil/ 



By Arthur C. Foster, senior pathologist, Division of Fruit and Vegetable 

 Crops and Diseases, Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural 

 Engineering, Agricultural Research Administration 1 



CONTENTS 



Summary 



The problem of chemical resi- 

 dues in soils 



Nature of the inquiry 



Review of literature 



Asenical residues 



Synthetic organic substances 



DDT 



BHC 



Other substances 



Greenhouse experiments 



Materials and methods 



Analysis of data 



Results with DDT 



Responses of species and 



varieties 



Influence of soil conditions 

 Responses to components of 



DDT 



Results with BHC 



Results with chlordane 



Results with toxaphene 



Page 



4 



5 



5 



5 



6 



6 



8 



9 



10 



10 



13 



14 



14 

 17 



19 

 21 

 21 



23 



to 



Greenhouse experiments — 

 Continued 

 Results with parathion 



DDT-treated soils exposed 



weathering 



Materials and methods 



Results 



Field experiments 



Materials and methods 



Results 



Greenhouse study of orchard 



soil 



Materials and methods 



Results 



Discussion of toxicity of insecti- 

 cides 



General 



DDT 



BHC 



Other substances studied 



Conclusions 



Literature cited 



^V^^'^ Vo ^ i ' V ^^ * 8 



SUMMARY 



Page 



25 



27 

 27 

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 30 

 30 

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33 

 33 

 34 



35 

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36 

 37 



38 

 38 

 39 



Extensive greenhouse and field experiments on the effects of 

 DDT, BHC, and certain other insecticides upon plant growth when 

 mixed with the soil have been in progress at the Plant Industry 

 Station at Beltsville, Md., since late in the summer of 1945. This 

 circular summarizes the results obtained primarily in studies with 

 DDT but includes some data on BHC, chlordane, toxaphene, and 



1 The author acknowledges the assistance of Victor R. Boswell, principal 

 horticulturist and assistant head of the Division, in connection with the plan- 

 ning of the work, the analysis of data, and the preparation of the manuscript 

 for publication; of Drs. H. L. Haller, R. C. Roark, R. H. Carter, L. Kob- 

 litsky, C. A. Weigel, and R. D. Chisholm, of the Bureau of Entomology and 

 Plant Quarantine, with chemicals, chemical analyses, and helpful counsel. 



