THE SAX JOSE SCALE IX XORTH CAROLIXA. 



By Feanklin Sherman, Jr., Entomologist. 



SUMMARY. 



The more important facts brought out in this Bulletin are as follows: 

 The San Jose Scale is widespread in North Carolina and does great 

 damage to fruit orchards if they are not regularly treated to keep it in 

 control, but in orchards which are thoroughly treated it is kept in 

 practical control (not exterminated), and the orchards are profitable. 

 The insect is a native of northern China, from where it was introduced 

 INTO California and thence to the eastern United States by shipments of 

 nursery stock. It is small and inconspicuous, and therefore is not usu- 

 ally noticed by the farmer or fruit-grower until the trees begin to die. 

 Its natural powers of spread are very limited, but as the young insects 

 are easily carried about on the bodies of other insects or birds or blown 



BY the wind, it will SPREAD THROUGH A LARGE ORCHARD IN A FEW YEARS. FoR 

 transportation OVER LONG DISTANCES IT IS ALMOST ENTIRELY DEPENDENT ON 

 THE SHIPMENT OF INFESTED PLANTS. IT ATTACKS NEARLY ALL KINDS OF FRUIT 

 TREES (THOUGH SOME VARIETIES ARE COMPARATIVELY FREE), AND ALSO SOME 

 OTHER PLANTS, BUT AS A RULE FOREST OR SHADE TREES DO NOT HARBOR IT OR 

 SPREAD INFESTATION. IT WILL KILL A FRUIT TREE IN FROM ONE TO SIX OR EIGHT 

 YEARS, DEPENDING ON THE AGE AT WHICH THE TREE BECOMES INFESTED, AND A 

 FULL-GROWN TREE MAY NEVER BE ENTIRELY KILLED. THE INSECT IS ATTACKED BY 

 SE\'ERAL PARASITES AND PREDACEOUS ENEMIES, BUT THESE CANNOT IN ANY SENSE 

 BE RELIED ON TO KEEP IT IN CHECK. THE INSECT IS KNOWN TO EXIST IN 57 

 COUNTIES IN THE STATE, FIFTEEN OF THESE HAVING LOCALITIES IN WHICH IT IS 

 GENERALLY DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY. 



The REMEDY NOW MOST WIDELY USED FOR THE SaN JoSE ScALE IS TO SPRAY 



the tree thoroughly with the llmesulphur wash in late winter. 

 There are some other remedies which are also satisfactory, some re- 

 quiring LESS LABOR IN PREPARATION, AND THEREFORE FINDING FAVOR AMONG SOME 

 GROWERS. As THE SaN JOSE SCALE HAS CAUSED FRUIT-GROWERS TO PAY CLOSER 

 ATTENTION TO THEIR TREES AND TO TROUBLES- OF OTHER KINDS, IT IS CAUSING A 

 CONSIDERABLE REFORM IN THE MANAGEMENT OF ORCHARDS, AND THE CAREFUL, 

 UP-TO-DATE GROWER IS IN NO DANGER OF BEING PUT OUT OF BUSINESS BY THEI 

 INSECT. 



The Bulletin for next month (June) will give an account of the dis- 

 tr'ibution of this pest in the different counties of the state, and will give 

 numerous quotations from letters by growers showing the results of 

 their efforts to subdue it. 



Persons who suspect that their fruit trees are infested with the 

 San Jose Scale, but who have not already had the matter passed upon 



BY some entirely COMPETENT PERSON, SHOULD SEND TWIGS SHOWING THE 

 TROUBLE TO THE AUTHOR, TOGETHER WITH EXPLANATORY LETTER. 



FRANKLIN SHERMAN, Jr., 

 Entomologist, Dept. Agr., Raleigh, N. C. 



