What was the impact of the boll weevil?
The boll weevil’s decimation of the cotton industry in the South had implications for the entire region. The pest was a driving force behind the “great migration” of poor tenant farmers into northern cities, and the state’s dependence on cash-crop production left its soil depleted and prone to erosion.
Are boll weevils still a problem?
Boll Weevil Eradication: A Complete Success The boll weevil has been eradicated in the Southeast states Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. Likewise, the boll weevil has been eradicated from Alabama, Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas and Mississippi.
How did boll weevil impact the cotton industry in Texas?
The boll weevil caused mass destruction in cotton crops as it fed on and laid its eggs in the fruiting structures of the cotton plant. An official with the U.S. Department of Agriculture toured an area in southern Texas in 1894 and reported that around 90 percent of the cotton crop was damaged due to the boll weevil.
What damage do weevils cause?
The larvae feed on the stem tissue and damage the plant, sometimes causing the stem to break off or fall over. They pupate in the stem and emerge as adults in about 50 days, though this period is very variable.
How did the boll weevil infestation affect cotton production in the South?
Key Terms. Boll Weevil Infestation of 1915: In 1915 and 1916, the boll weevil, a type of beetle that feeds on cotton buds and flowers, infested much of the cotton crops in the rural South. This infestation significantly reduced cotton production, as much as 70% in Alabama, and resulted in the loss of many cotton crops.
How did the boll weevil destroy the cotton crop throughout Georgia and the South?
In about 1892 a small beetle native to Central or South America made its way across the Mexican border in the vicinity of Brownsville, Texas and spread rapidly across the cotton growing regions. The infected bud or boll stops developing and often falls off as the beetle larvae eat it, and so damages the cotton crop.
How does boll weevil destroy the cotton plant?
Boll weevils can completely destroy a cotton crop. Boll weevils eat all the buds off the plants; they destroy any cotton that the plants manage to produce by eating and laying eggs in the cotton.
How do I get rid of boll weevils?
For Boll Weevil invasions in homes, a simple vacuuming clean up and laying traps should eliminate the invaders. Malathion 57% is an organophosphate insecticide that can be applied to crops and non-crop plants to kill a wide variety of insects, including Boll Weevils.
What does weevil damage look like?
All plants in your home or garden are susceptible to weevil infestation. Larval root weevils will look like white grubs or worms and will be found in the soil. Adult weevils are beetle-like insects that can be black, brown, or gray. This damage will appear in the night, as root weevils come out to feed at night.
What killed the boll weevil?
Malathion 57% is an organophosphate insecticide that can be applied to crops and non-crop plants to kill a wide variety of insects, including Boll Weevils. For large croplands, Malathion is primarily used with a professional skid sprayer or boom sprayer.
How does the boll weevil destroy the Cotton Plant?
Boll weevils can completely destroy a cotton crop. Boll weevils eat all the buds off the plants; they destroy any cotton that the plants manage to produce by eating and laying eggs in the cotton.
What does a boll weevil look like?
The most distinctive feature of a weevil is its head. Most weevils have elongated heads which look like pronounced snouts, leading to the alternate name of “snout beetle.” Most weevils are wingless, and many have antennae which fold when not in use.
Where does the boll weevil come from?
Today’s species is the Boll Weevil (Anthonomus grandis) which originally comes from Mexico, where it feeds on wild cotton. Unfortunately, around 1892 it crossed the Rio Grande and entered the United States. What it found were huge and rich cotton plantations which mean rich food resources for them.
How is the boll weevil controlled?
The boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis), the most serious cotton pest in the United States in the early 1900s, was finally controlled by appropriate cultivation methods and by the application of such insecticides as chlorinated hydrocarbons and organophosphates . A species of boll weevil resistant to chlorinated hydrocarbons…