440 



THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



When the ant colony is in some location in which this remedy cannot 

 be applied, the only solution of the difficulty is to resort to stomach 

 poisons as recommended in several bulletins. However, this creoline 

 remedy can be applied in very many, perhaps the majority of cases, 

 and is' well worth the attention of any who are troubled by this house- 

 hold pest. 



Do not try to kill all kinds of ants in the yard. ]\Iany kinds do not 

 come into the house at all, but live on weed seeds. They pick up seeds 

 all over the yard and carry them to their nests to eat. In this regard 

 they are a positive benefit to us. Such are the large red ants, and the 

 black ants, a little smaller, and others. Unless these ants are nesting in 

 an undesirable place it is unwise to try to kill them. 



The Argentine ants are very small, about one-sixteenth of an inch 

 long or a little longer, and bright red in color. They cannot sting. 

 Their nest opening is small with a small mound of soil grains around it. 



THE DATE SCALES. 



By A. J. Cook. 



The date industry of Kiverside and Imperial counties is rich with 

 promise. Date trees are very productive and dates are toothsome 

 indeed. A recent visit to Mecca and Indio gave us convincing proof of 

 the truth of both the above statements. 



Fig. 105. — The 



Parlatoria scale, Parlatoria blanchardii (Targ.). 

 (After Essig.) 



There seems but one impediment in the way of a substantial and 

 lasting success in date culture in parts of California and Arizona. I 

 refer to the two date scales, Blanchard's scale {Parlatoria blanchardii), 

 and the :\Iarlatt scale {Phoenicococcus marlatti). I believe the impedi- 

 ment may be pushed aside, and if it is to be done, now is the time. The 

 work cannot commence too soon. 



The Parlatoria works like most of our scales on the exposed leaves 

 and stems— the males grayish white, the females black — and is so 

 immensely prolific that, if introduced, it soon covers the plant entirely. 

 This surely dooms the crop. Of course, fumigation, or severe pruning 

 and firing with torch soon spells extirpation with this scale. The 

 Phoenicococcus is far different. It works on the sheath beneath the leaf 

 stems, under a thick webbed matting of the palm fibers, often more than 



