25 
T R.y C K C R P INSECTS 
NORTH 
CAROLINA 
VIRGINIA 
: 
POTATO. 
'SEED CORN MAGGOT ( hvlemvia cilicrura formerly Pep-omvia fusciceps ) 
Franklin Sherman (April 6) Very serious outbreak, of Seed corn 
maggot in' the eastern part of North Carolina, covering Pitt, 
Beaufort ,T\rell and Pamlico • counties .the' maggots attacking 
.seed potatoes in" the soil before ~>hey sprout. This type of 
damage is an entirely new thing in our experience. Damage was 
first-reported late in March and the insects are still at work 
Mr .W.Mabee : , Extension Entomologist, made careful counts in 
infested fields and found that 85/» of the seed had been destroy- 
ed, necessstating replanting or abondoning the crop. He estim- 
ated' that in the infested region the crop.-will be reduced 50^ 
by the depredations ; 6f this insect . The infested region lies 
in- the low costal plain and has a generally • sandy loam soil. 
The weather this spring has bee** a bno rmally warm especially 
since March 1 i ! ' • "V" ' 
: ,- '-..r. v ■•:■;.; • , v . . .■ . ■ 
W-.J, Sohoene (April 18) We hav'e had- a number 'of ■ reports from the 
Truck' Experiment' Stat ion, from County Agents, and from Dr.E.P. 
Frcmme ,the Plant Pathologist at the Experiment^ Station , regarding 
• the prevalence of the Seed -corn -maggot in Eastern Virginia. 
DrvFromme has just spent a 'number of days in eastern Virginia 
in going over some of the. potato fields. He reports that he is of 
the opinion that the £eed«-corn maggot is "not responsible for the 
primary injury; that the chief difficulty is that the potatoes 
are affected with the Fusarium rot which- is the '• primary cause 
of the trouble. -Dr Frbmme +iells me that this 'fusarium disease 
of potatoes- requires a very high temprature' ; £ or development and 
it appears that the 'high tempratures were present at the plant- 
ing time in the Eastern Shore- this year, He further reports 
that he found some potatoes which were rotting and which were 
not infested with maggot. 
Some years ago in making. some collections of the closely . . 
related species Peg cm yja brass icae I very frequently 'took the 
larvae of the seed corn maggot and I was unable to *ind these 
larvae in any but decaying tissue. 
Mr.M.ShapcValoy,o.f the Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S.D.A. in a 
■report dated April 11-14 says '; The .outbreak on' the Eastern 
Shore of Virginia is quite general. Some perfect fields are to 
be found in central and northern Northampton County, but 15 % 
of hills missing is very common, 25% to 3Cy£ is frequent, and 
50/° to 75* has been observed. 
