The 'Graveyard Bug' Threatens Kennewick Berries
Horticultural Inspector warns local growers that a destructive snout beetle is infesting regional strawberry patches and offers advice on how to eradicate it.
The strawberry root weevil has made its appearance in the strawberry beds of Kennewick and Richland. In order that our strawberry growers may get as full a knowledge of this pest as possible, it will be time well spent for them to read very carefully the detailed account of this pest and how it works. The adult weevil is a snout beetle about 1/6 of an inch long, also called the graveyard bug or the sleepy weevil. The insects pass the winter in both the adult and grub stage, and the beetles often enter dwellings, proving a source of worry to the housewife. Irrigation ditches are a ready means of distribution, along with buying and setting out plants from infested districts. Crop rotation is the primary control; growers are advised to turn under infested patches and plant corn, alfalfa, or potatoes.
“The beetle is without wings and travels very slowly. Another name for it is the graveyard bug or the sleepy weevil.”
Agricultural pests have defined the Tri-Cities economy for over a century. While the strawberry root weevil was a major concern for early orchardists and farmers in 1915, modern growers still battle invasive species and soil pathogens that threaten the economic stability of the region's specialty crops.
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