7 



TRAPPING THE MATURE MOTHS. 



The moths fly by night and many may be caught by traps. Tlic 

 junior author of this bulletin has improvised a simple device 

 which is herewith illustrated and described. A post is set in the 

 ground, the post being of sufificient height to hold a lantern 

 above the plants so that the light may be seen for some distance. 

 A hole 1 1-2x6 inches is previously bored in the top of the post. 

 Into this a wooden pin (3), shaped as shown in the cut, is fitted. 

 The top of the pin is so shaped as to receive a pan (4) which 

 may be made similar to an ordinary cake tin 2 or 3 inches deej) 

 by 12 or 14 inches in diameter. When in position the pan con- 

 tains water with a coat of kerosene oil. After the pan is placed 

 over the pin a square piece of sheet iron (2) is screwed to the 

 pin to support the lantern. This square sheet of iron should 

 have sides of length equal to diameter of the base of lantern, 

 and should have three corners turned up and with a pin through 

 the fourth to hold the lantern securely. A lantern with larger 

 sized globe (1) is preferable since smaller globes get hot and 

 then break should there come a dash of rain. The trap as put 

 together and set up in the field is shown in the cut (5). The 

 moths fly towards this light and many of them fall into the pan 

 and are destroyed. Many more will be caught upon still nights 

 than upon windy nights. Where winds are prevalent, place 

 trap toward the leeward side of the field and where winds are 

 not prevalent, traps can be placed at equal intervals from each 

 other or in the center of small fields. Two, three or even one such 

 trap per acre will give good results. When one considers the 

 great egg-laying capacity of a single moth it is hard to over- 

 estimate the value of capturing 10 to 50 or more moths a night, 

 possibly per acre, if they are plentiful. By pruning partly in De- 

 cember and partly in March we commenced the picking season 

 of 1911 with 70 per cent of bolls infested as shown in the ac- 

 companying table, and then by fighting the insect according to 

 the methods given above we succeeded in controlling the situation 

 somewhat and in reducing the percentage of infestation as also 

 shown in the table. 



