THE BIDI-BIDI.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XLVI, Issue 10684, 30 December 1925, Page 3

THE BIDI-BIDI.

PROBABLE NATURAL ENEMY. (Per Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. Agriculturists, and particularly woolgrowers, will be interested in some investigations made recently by; the De- / pa.rtment of Agriculture, which seem to point to the discovery of a natural enemy of that troublesome weed, bidibidi. _ The presence of this vegetable pest in large quantities on sheep runs is well known to reduce greatly the selling value of wool. Recently the Department received a report from Mr W. H. Montgomery, of Little River, to the effect that bidi-bidi was disappearing on certain hillsides in the district, amd particularly in the Puha Valley. Mr F. E. Ward, Instructor in Agriculture, investigated the matter, and was told by Mr J. McGowan that on certain faces the I bidi-bidi had blackened, and had almost disappeared; whilst in other spots it was still flourishing. Mr Ward found that remnants of the plant, in the localities where they had blackened, still remained, and at the roots of these remnants he discovered several forms of insect life. Specimens of these were forwarded to the Government mycologist at Wellington, who reported that of these insects, a crane fly larva was most likely to have been responsible for the condition of the plants. Tho result of these investigations opens up the possibility of the introduction of this natural enemy in districts badly infested with bidi-bidi and the ultimate extermination of the weed.