Produced by The Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) THE BOLL WEEVIL How to prosper in Boll Weevil Territory [Illustration: Prof. P. G. HOLDEN Director I H C Agricultural Extension Department] "A one crop system will impoverish any country, and in turn it will impoverish the people that are on its farms. It is only through diversification of crops and the using of our energies every day of the year, as well as our hands, that we can make a great rich country and a great, strong, vigorous people."--Prof. P. G. Holden. [Illustration: G. H. ALFORD Of I H C Agricultural Extension Department] HOW TO PROSPER IN BOLL WEEVIL TERRITORY By G. H. ALFORD PUBLISHED AND COPYRIGHTED BY THE AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION DEPARTMENT INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER COMPANY OF NEW JERSEY PROF. P. G. HOLDEN, Director CHICAGO, USA [Illustration: A good stalk of cotton] Introductory This book was prepared to furnish information on farming in the boll weevil territory. Special attention has been given to the production of cotton in infested districts and to showing how to adopt a system of farming which has been found profitable by many farmers in boll weevil territories. It was written by a man who has had practical experience all his life in growing cotton in Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. He later devoted a number of years to the special study of the boll weevil in the cotton fields of these states as special agent for the Farmers' Co-operative Demonstration Work. In addition to this, he is acquainted with the financial and economic conditions throughout the cotton belt. Dedicated to all Cotton Growers How to Prosper in Boll Weevil Territory The System of Farming Necessary to Obtain Best Results Under Average Conditions in Boll Weevil Territory In order to obtain profitable returns from farming in boll weevil territory, we must--First, grow an early crop of cotton; second, use every means possible to destroy the weevil and reduce their number to a minimum; third, follow a system of diversified farming. =Grow an Early Variety of Cotton:= To secure maximum cotton crops in spite of the boll weevil pest, the cotton grower must use every effort to bring the crop to maturity just as early in the season as possible. An early crop means profit--a late crop goes to the weevil, not to the farmer. If we are to succeed in growing cotton under boll weevil conditions we must-- 1. Reduce the cotton acreage so that the most effective cultural methods may be closely followed. It is often advisable to reduce the acreage 50 per cent. 2. Plant only warm, fertile, well-drained land. 3. Thoroughly prepare the seed bed before planting. Young cotton plants do not grow well in cloddy ground. [Illustration: Boll Weevil; enlarged above; natural size below]