56 
The fact as above stated that the Devastating Locust breeds only or 
almost wholly in places overgrown with tarweeds would indicate that 
if these weeds were destroyed by being plowed under, and later by 
thoroughly cultivating the soil, so that those appearing afterward 
would be destroyed, the locusts would no longer choose such places for 
oviposition; and just in proportion as this practice was extended, 
in the same proportion would there be a less number of the locusts pro- 
duced in the localities operated in. And if it were possible to wholly 
eradicate these patches of tarweeds, that would evidently settle the 
question of locust ravages in that section of country for all time to 
come. Not only should the tarweeds in the pasture lands among the 
foothills be destroyed, but also those growing along the roadsides and 
in waste places about cultivated fields, since the locusts which hatch 
out in such places aid in no small degree the devastating work of the 
migrating swarms. Too much stress can not be laid upon this subject 
of preventing, as far as possible, the breeding of the locusts, and of 
destroying the young ones before they acquire wings. It has been the 
unfortunate experience of many of our orchardists in the region of 
country subject to these locust invasions, that after once the locusts 
have acquired wingc and come into the orchards in immense swarms, 
one following the other, little or no headway can be made against 
them ; our greatest efforts, therefore, should be directed against these 
pests before this stage of their existence is reached, and while it is 
still within our power to successfully cope with them. In this respect, 
an ounce of prevention is worth many pounds of cure. 
In the case of small trees these can be protected from the ravages ot 
the locusts by being covered with sacks of cloth or of paper, allowing 
these to remain upon the trees until all of the locusts have passed away. 
For this purpose common barley or gunny bags, oat-meal sacks, and 
paper sacks of various kinds have been used. These were simply slipped 
over the young trees from above and the mouth of the sack tied about 
the trunk of the tree. In place of sacks some persons employed old 
newspapers, which they wrapped around the trees and fastened with 
strings. I saw several hundred young orange, prune, and various other 
kinds of deciduous trees which were inclosed in barley sacks, and I was 
informed that the sacks had been on the trees for over live weeks, still 
when several of them were removed the trees appeared to be as healthy 
and vigorous as any I ever saw. It was reported that a large number 
of trees had been killed by thus being covered with sacks, but I was 
unable to find a single case where this had occurred. The following 
paragraph on this subject is from the California Fruit Grower, of San 
Francisco : 
During the recent grasshopper invasion A. J. Lloyd, who has an orange orchard 
near town, covered his young trees with gunny sacks, to prevent damage, as re- 
ported hy the Oroville Mercury. The effect has been most disastrous, for upon re- 
moving the sacks it was found that about 900 trees had been killed. 
