The Rural Voice, 1990-06, Page 62SOMETHING SPECIAL FOR
FATHER'S DAY
Men's Jewellery Boxes
Cribbage Boards
Chess Sets
Bird Carvings
Gift Baskets
Men's Soaps & Toiletries
Mugs & Steins
Gift Gallery Plus
18 1st Ave. S.
Chesley 519-363-3362
FOR ADDED
• VALUE • DURABILITY • APPEARANCE
Specializing in Painting Galvanized Steel
Ace Barn Painting Ltd.
Glen, Dave, & Doug Edwards
R.R. 1 Elmwood Ont. 519-364-1698
58 THE RURAL VOICE
WHAT'S NEW
MACHINE VACUUMS
UP POTATO PESTS
The Beetle Eater from Thomas
Equipment Ltd. went into limited pro-
duction last month.
Rolling through potato fields, the
Beetle Eater looks something like a
giant, multi -legged predatory insect.
A blower shoots air upwards through
the plants, knocking potato beetles and
other pests loose. As the same time, a
vacuum action sucks them up and dis-
charges the dead bugs on the ground.
In preliminary field tests by McCain
Foods Limited, the parent company of
Thomas Equipment, the Beetle Eater
removed an estimated 75 to 80 per cent
of potato beetles in one pass, a result
comparable to results with chemical
treatment.
Thomas Equipment president Her-
man Tiedke says the Beetle Eater is an
environmentally sound alternative to
systemic insecticides at a fraction of the
cost.
The machine is the brainchild of
potato grower James Szynal of
Florence, Mass. Although the idea of
vacuuming up pests is not new, Szynal
developed an efficient method of dis-
lodging the insects.
"McCain Foods has placed a sub-
stantial order for the new machines for
use in their farming operations," says
Herman Tiedke. "McCain will be using
the Beetle Eater as one part of their
overall program to reduce possibly
negative environmental effects
throughout its operations."
Thomas Equipment has worldwide
rights to manufacture, market, and sell
the Beetle Eater. The company is a
manufacturer of agricultural and indus-
trial equipment, including potato har-
vesters and a line of skid steer loaders.0