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Contributors to Boll Weevil Eradication

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Contributors to Boll Weevil Eradication Bulletin 1154 March 2006 Mississippi Agricultural & Forestry Experiment Station Vance H. Watson, Director J. Charles Lee, President • Mississippi State University • Vance H. Watson, Vice President Mississippi People – Contributors to Boll Weevil Eradication RFe.sAeaurbcrheyPrHoafersriss or Delta Research and Extension Center Stoneville, Mississippi InformatioLnauTerachBn.oClolgayrk Specialist Delta Research and Extension Center Stoneville, Mississippi Bulletin 1154 was published by the Office of Agricultural Communications, a unit of the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine at Mississippi State University. Copyright 2007 by Mississippi State University. All rights reserved. This publication may be copied and distributed without alteration for nonprofit educational pur - poses provided that credit is given to the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. PREFACE From 2001 to 2003, the Mississippi Entomolog - State University, 49 were/are employees of the Unit - ical Association planned and prepared a special pro - ed States Department of Agriculture, five were/are gram for the November 2003 Annual Meeting. That employed by Mississippi State University during special program was to celebrate the 50th anniver - part of their professional service and with the Unit - sary of the association, including a half-day session ed States Department of Agriculture during another on the Mississippi Boll Weevil Eradication Pro - part of their service, four were employees of the gram. The eradication program began in Mississippi Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Com - in 1994 before it encountered problems and ended merce Bureau of Plant Industry, five were/are Mis - briefly. It started again in earnest in 1997 and was sissippi farmers and agribusinessmen, and one was a under way statewide at the time the jubilee celebra - distinguished U.S. congressman. All were distin - tion was being planned. guished citizens of Mississippi during part or all of The information presented in this bulletin was their professional careers. first presented in a more abridged style at the 50th The following individuals, in addition to the anniversary celebration in a series of posters enti - first author, served on the Boll Weevil Eradication – tled . In this MEA Program Subcommittee, which planned the way,Btohlel WaseseovciilatEiorandhicoantoiorendHtahlel opfeoFpaleme who had Celebration of Boll Weevil Eradication part of the made significant contributions to boll weevil control program for the November 2003 MEA Annual Meet - and eradication, as well as those Mississippi ento - ing and also made substantial contributions of infor - mologists who had worked diligently on boll weevil mation and pictures: Farrell Boyd, Jimmy problems during the early part of the 20th century Etheridge, Dick Hardee, Gerald McKibben, Joe when control methods were inadequate and difficult. Mulrooney, Jim Smith, Eric Villavaso, Jeff Willers, A total of 83 individuals are featured in the bul - and David Young. letin. Nineteen were/are employees of Mississippi Mississippi People – Contributors to Boll Weevil Eradication INTRODUCTION Mississippi people in various professions have purpose of this presentation. The boll weevil, made major contributions to a national Boll Weevil Boheman, is a small- Eradication Program that is nearing completion sAnnotuhtonboemeutlse g(rwaneedvisil)grtahnadtiscame into the United across the entire Cotton Belt of the United States. The States from Mexico near Brownsville, Texas, about contributions of these people need to be concisely 1892. The boll weevil was adapted to live and repro - recorded and archived because of their importance in duce primarily on a single host plant, cotton. Conse - the agricultural history of Mississippi, and that is the quently, its spread into the United States was purpose of this bulletin. The Boll Weevil Eradication inevitable once the southwestern margin of the enor - Program has been an important part of improved cot - mous cotton growing areas of the southern United ton insect management that is safe and successful. States approached or encroached on the weevil’s From both a national and state perspective, boll wee - native territory. vil eradication has been the most comprehensive Once the connection was made between the boll insect management program ever undertaken. Missis - weevil and U.S. cotton, the weevil infestation sippians who have worked on boll weevil control and moved north through Texas and east across the cot - eradication, both native born and others who made ton-producing states at a rate of about 50 miles per Mississippi their home during their professional year until it had infested most of the cotton in Texas careers, are important contributors to the agricultural, and all of the cotton-production areas east of Texas scientific, and educational history of the state. by 1922. The weevil crossed the Mississippi River Numerous manuscripts that provide information from Louisiana and infested the southwest corner about the boll weevil and insight into its impact on (Adams County near Natchez) of Mississippi in the agriculture, economy, culture, and quality of life 1907. in the South have been written and published (e.g., As the weevil progressed in its invasive migra - Cross 1973, Helms 1977, Smith and Harris 1994, tion across the South, it destroyed the region’s econ - Brazzel et al. 1996, and Smith 1998). Hardee and omy, which was largely dependent on cotton as its Harris (2003) wrote a perceptive and concise pres - main source of cash income. Much of the system of entation of boll weevil history, its impact on Ameri - agricultural research by the United States Depart - can agriculture, and the importance of boll weevil ment of Agriculture (USDA) and the state experi - eradication. Currently, the most comprehensive ment stations was founded on the need to solve the compilation about the boll weevil and boll weevil boll weevil problem. The highly successful Cooper - eradication is a Cotton Foundation reference book, ative Extension Service that now exists in every state of the union was founded to teach farmers how Boll W(DeeivcikleErsroandiectaatilo. n20in01th).eOUnneitcehdaSptaerteisntthhreouregf h - to grow cotton in spite of the boll weevil. e1r9e9n9 ce book tells the Mississippi boll weevil eradi - Insecticides that were highly effective in control - cation story (Harris and Smith 2001). ling boll weevils were eventually developed and A very brief synopsis of the boll weevil story, seemed to be a panacea for the cotton farmer. Eupho - which is detailed in the above references and other ria over the success of this chemical technology was literature, is a needed introduction to the primary short-lived. Insecticide resistance in the boll weevil Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station 1 made many of the insecticides ineffective. philosophies had substantial followings in the com - Farmers became fearful about the future of such munity of professional entomologists. an ephemeral boll weevil control method and in the The success of the North Carolina/Virginia trial late 1950s began to look for a better way to deal resulted in the choice of eradication as the national with the boll weevil problem. In 1960, after much goal. Consequently, the BWET was expanded to lobbying by cotton industry leadership, the U.S. become the Boll Weevil Eradication Program, which Congress appropriated funds to construct the USDA progressed incrementally south and west and reached Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Boll Weevil Mississippi in 1994. Concurrent western programs Research Laboratory on the campus of Mississippi were conducted in California and Arizona. There State University. This unique laboratory facility was were some start-up problems in Mississippi after the formally dedicated in March 1961. A highly initial start in 1994. These problems delayed full focused, multidisciplinary, and large-scale (more implementation of the program until 1997. However, than 70 scientists and science support staff) research since 1997 the Mississippi Boll Weevil Eradication program was dedicated to developing the knowledge Program has progressed across the state and is now base and control methods necessary for eradicating near completion over the entire state. the boll weevil. Successful boll weevil eradication coupled with By 1969, the cotton industry wanted to know if introduction of transgenic Bt cotton (genetically eradication technology was far enough along in engineered caterpillar-insect-resistant cotton) has development to achieve boll weevil eradication. A completely changed cotton insect management in national Special Study Committee determined that Mississippi from an insecticide intensive program to effective techniques were available and recommend - minimum chemical insecticide use in a true inte - ed that a large experiment should be conducted to grated-pest-management system. test a multifaceted program (eight control techniques The remainder of this bulletin is devoted to its integrated into a coordinated program) that would primary purpose — an account of key Mississippi determine if boll weevil eradication were feasible. people and their contributions toward the manage - Consequently, the Pilot Boll Weevil Eradication ment and eradication of the boll weevil. Experiment was initiated in 1971 and concluded in People working in Mississippi over many years 1973. This large-area experiment covered most of of efforts in boll weevil control, preparation
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