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tion work. It is next to impossible to prevent every package 

 of plants or seeds from being passed by a postoffice without first 

 having been inspected by the proper authority, as many packages 

 are either not marked at all, or they are marked "merchandise" 

 and in the great rush in the distribution of mail matter a number 

 of packages will be overlooked. On account of this uncertainty 

 some serious pest would be liable to be introduced into the coun- 

 try. Therefore, by prohibiting all plants and seeds by mail all 

 this danger is avoided. 



On August 20, 1912, Congress passed what is known as the 

 Plant Quarantine Act. Under this act all importers of nursery 

 stock and other plants and plant products are required to obtain 

 a permit from the Federal Horticultural Board, U. S. Department 

 of Agriculture, Washington, D. C, for importing all such plants 

 from foreign countries. Application blanks can be had from the 

 Superintendent of Entomology, Board of Agriculture and For- 

 estry, Honolulu. By nursery stock is meant all field grown florist 

 stock, trees, shrubs, vines, cuttings, grafts, scions, buds, fruit pits 

 and other seeds of fruit and ornamental trees, except field, vege- 

 table and flower seeds, herbaceous plants, bulbs and roots. After 

 receiving a permit to import the desired plants the importer must 

 order his plants from a country which maintains a government 

 plant inspector who shall furnish a certificate of inspection in 

 duplicate, one to be attached to the bill of lading, the other to 

 the shipping case. Each package or case must be marked with 

 the name of the grower of the plants, the shipper, the name of 

 the consignee and the locality where grown, and must also have a 

 list of the plants contained in the package attached to the outside 

 of the same. From countries which do not maintain a govern- 

 ment inspector only certain plants to be used for experimental 

 purposes can be imported under a special permit granted for that 

 purpose. 



The following horticultural products are prohibited from entry 

 into the United States or its territories : All five-leaved pine 

 trees, on account of the white pine blister rust, from Europe and 

 Asia; all citrus fruits, mangoes, sapotes, peaches, guavas and 

 plums from Mexico on account of the Mexican fruitfly, and date 

 palms from certain counties in California, Arizona and Texas 

 on account of two serious scale insects. Cottonseed of all species 

 and varieties and cottonseed hulls from any foreign locality and 

 country excepting the Imperial Valley in the State of Lower 

 California. Mexico, on account of the cotton boll weevil. Alli- 

 gator pear seeds are prohibited from importation into the United 

 States from Mexico and Central America on account of the avo- 

 cado weevil. Sugar cane is prohibited from importation into the 

 United States, excepting Hawaii and Porto Rico, on account of 

 serious insect pests and fungus diseases existing in foreign coun- 

 tries. However, although allowing sugar cane to be imported into 

 Hawaii and Porto Rico, these countries are prohibited from send- 



