August "21] sasscer: insects on imported nursery stock 353 



IMPORTANT INSECTS COLLECTED ON IMPORTED 

 NURSERY STOCK IN 1920 



By E. R. Sasscer. Washingtoti, D. C. 



During the fiscal 3'ear 1920, 11.081,756 plants, not including bulbs 

 and seeds, were offered for entry into the United States from the five 

 principal exporting countries of Europe, which were distributed as 

 follows: England, 1,041,700; France, 9,334,645; Holland, 705,411; 

 Belgium, 1; Germany, 1.^ The total niimber of foreign plants offered 

 for entry was 11,423,821, showing a decrease of 5,412,459 as compared 

 with the previous fiscal year. This reduction of foreign plants enter- 

 ing the United States has not, however, resulted in a corresponding 

 decrease in the number of iniurious insects arriving on nursery stock; 

 but to the contrar>% the list of interceptions, which comprises some 

 well known pests, includes more insects than any year hitherto. In 

 asmuch as a complete list of the insects and diseases intercepted on 

 foreign plants from October 1919 to De:ember 31, 1920 will be pre- 

 pared in the near future, it is proposed to confine this paper to insects 

 which are known to be injurious. 



The Brown Tail Moth was intercepted on eleven occasions on fruit 

 seedlings and stocks from France; and the Sorrel Cutworm {Acronycta 

 rumicis L.) was found in one shipment of Mahaleb stock from the same 

 coiintry. Rose stocks from Holland, Scotland, Ireland, England, and 

 France were infested with Emphytus cinctus L., and several shipments 

 of bulbs from France and Holland were infested with Eumerus strig- 

 atus Fallen, and Merodon equestris Fabr. One shipment of French 

 Paradise Apple stock was fovmd exhibiting an infestation of the White 

 Tree Pierid (Aporia crataegi L.), and a shipment of Rosa rugosa from 

 Holland was found to contain specimens of Cacoecia podana Scopoli, 

 which is a general feeder, and not known to occur in the United States. 



The Pink Bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella Saunden) was inter- 

 cepted in cotton seed from China and Japan, and in seed attached to 

 burlap arriving from Egypt and Holland. It has also been intercept- 



•The number of plants entered from these countries from 1913 to 1919 inclusive 

 will be found in previous reports under the same title published annually in the 

 Journal of Economic Entomology. 



