Insects Attacking the Potato by Alan G. Dustan is an illustrated Canadian reference arranged around the parts of the plant that pests injure. Publication No. 505 was issued in April 1936 by the Department of Agriculture’s Entomological Branch as a reprint from Farmers’ Bulletin No. 3.
Dustan is identified as an entomologist in the Division of Field Crop and Garden Insects. The publication combines identification keys, descriptions of feeding damage, illustrations and the control methods recommended at the time.
Beginning with the kind of injury
The introduction separates biting or chewing insects from insects that suck plant juices. This distinction provides the organizing explanation for the different kinds of injury and treatments discussed.
A key to foliage insects asks readers to compare size, body form, markings and behavior. It provides a route into the individual accounts instead of requiring the reader to know a name beforehand.
This is one of the guide’s most useful historical features. The author links observation of the crop with observation of the insect.
Beetles on the foliage
The Colorado potato beetle is treated first, with an illustration of the adult and a discussion of injury. Regional control notes distinguish Eastern Canada, the Prairie Provinces and British Columbia.
The potato flea beetle follows. Photographs show leaf injury and damage associated with the larva’s feeding on tubers, connecting two different kinds of evidence.
Blister beetles receive their own account and illustration. The text distinguishes them from the striped beetle even though older common names could cause confusion.
Readers studying historical crop protection will find the regional differences and attention to feeding stages more informative than a simple list of pest names.
Leafhoppers, aphids and plant bugs
Separate sections consider the potato leafhopper, potato aphid and four-lined plant bug. The account describes the effects of feeding as well as the insects’ appearance.
The aphid photograph shows a colony on the underside of a leaf. The enlarged plant-bug drawing provides a different kind of identification aid, showing markings that would be difficult to compare at natural size.
These pages demonstrate why a damaged plant may require closer examination. Similar general symptoms can arise from insects with quite different habits.
Stem borers and cutworms
The stem section introduces the potato stem borer, illustrated through its work inside a stem. The account turns from exposed foliage to damage concealed within the plant.
Cutworms follow, with a photograph of damaged potatoes. Their inclusion helps connect injury near the soil with the condition of both the growing plant and the harvested crop.
The guide’s historical scientific names should be compared with current entomological references when identifying material today.
Insects and slugs affecting tubers
A second identification key precedes the tuber accounts. It distinguishes kinds of holes, excavations, tunnels and surface injury.
Wireworms and white grubs receive separate discussions, supported by photographs of damaged potatoes. Slugs add another source of injury that would not be explained by looking only for insects on leaves.
These comparisons give the bulletin value as a record of crop inspection. The form of damage becomes evidence about where and how an organism has fed.
Historical control materials
The final sections summarize insecticides and special mixtures. They distinguish stomach poisons from contact poisons and illustrate a hand mixer used in preparing materials.
Lead arsenate, Paris green and nicotine preparations appear among the recommendations. These hazardous and obsolete procedures are historical information, not current instructions for treating a food crop.
Their inclusion helps explain the reasoning and equipment of the period, while current pest management requires current guidance.
Audience and scan
This free ebook suits agricultural historians and readers comparing insect identification methods. Its two keys and illustrations make it more navigable than an unorganized collection of remedies.
The PDF contains 20 digital pages, including blank leaves, the original cover and the numbered text. The scan retains aged paper and library markings. Enlarge the keys, insect drawings and injury photographs when comparing details; the original cover is preserved as the featured image.
Book details
- Author: Alan G. Dustan
- Publisher: Dominion of Canada, Department of Agriculture, Entomological Branch; J. O. Patenaude, Ottawa
- Year: 1936
- Edition: Publication No. 505; reprint from Farmers’ Bulletin No. 3; issued April 1936
- Digital length: 20 PDF pages
- Language: English
- File size: 1.94 MB
