Spraying for Codling Moth with DDT application (July 30, 1945)

The codling moth would call an end to the apple belt industry engulfing the Ozarks of Arkansas at the turn of the 20th century. Moths burrowing inside the apples as larvae and growing out of the core of the apple during the summer, wreaked havoc on orchard fields all across Arkansas, with nearly 73% of unsprayed apple trees becoming defaced with wormy holes, making them inedible. If the moths were left unnoticed on season, the next season they would double in size and strength, a trend that spread across most orchard fields during the 20th century. DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) was an extremely toxic chemical compound used to effectively kill the moths, but its extreme toxicity made it an non ideal fix to the issue, with many farmers in the Ozarks losing their fields with the passing season.

The Apple industry that defined the 19th and 20th century of Northwest Arkansas would fall to this viral pest spreading across the Ozarks. The orchards that showed little defections in the shape of worm holes would be small one season, but the following season would exponentially spread among the rest of the field. Toxic use of DDT did not entice many buyers looking in Northwest Arkansas, but this ever lasting legacy is remembered today in Rogers, Arkansas.

Cotter's Population Makeup

Centennial Frisco Caboose