148 JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY [Vol. 15 



One year we found San Jose scale in two or three nurseries. We assisted 

 and advised in destroying, spraying and fumigating so that this year 

 not a single scale was found in the nurseries of the state. At the present 

 time we have a very bad infestation of the common oyster shell scale 

 in the orchards, and a few nurseries of the state. Altho not as harmful 

 a scale as San Jose we have insisted that the scale be eliminated from 

 nursery stock. We have helped in three instances in the destroying 

 and spraying of these trees before they were offered for sale. In our 

 work with the White Pine Blister Rust we have caused to be destroyed 

 large numbers of black currant and white pine and established a policy 

 for the white pine nursery grower that currants and gooseberries must 

 be grown at least half a mile from the white pine. Before we were sure 

 that this disease had spread so generally thruout Minnesota, we caused 

 to be destroyed many more plants of Ribes than we would advocate 

 at the present time and yet we have had no "come back" from our 

 growers. The idea is that if we do all we can to keep a disease or insect 

 in check with the knowledge that we have at the time and play the 

 game with our cards on the table, the nurserymen will stand back of us. 



Being alert for all new forms and keeping our insect and plant disease 

 survey as efficient as possible will certainly help in preparing for any 

 emergency. Some insects are bound to get in, in spite of quarantines 

 and other restrictions. For instance, Crioceris asparagi, was taken for 

 the first time two years ago in a nursery near our eastern boundary. 

 This insect, from reports of its spread this year, will be in a few years a 

 pest of asparagus in Minnesota, A year ago in some gladioli bulbs 

 from Holland we found an insect which is a bad pest of onions in Europe. 

 It is impossible that we caught the only specimens of the insect, and if 

 our climate is suitable, this insect must soon be added to our list of 

 onion insects in the state. We do not know what the European Com 

 Borer will mean to us but we are getting prepared for it. 



Reviewing our experience with the pests found in nurseries of the 

 state, the question often arises as to just what has been accomplished' 

 in keeping these forms in check. It seems to me it simply amounts 

 to this "to be forewarned is to be forearmed." In spite of our disarma- 

 ment conference there are som.e things that we shall always have to 

 fight, our principal weapon in all cases being "education" of ourselves 

 and our constituents. 



It is also possible in much of our fight against bad pests, at least 

 in Minnesota, that we have had nature on our side. Even with the 

 San Jose scale it may be that it will not live over a series of years with 

 us. Some preliminary experiments seem to show this. Several years 



