128 [NJUBIOUS AND BENEFICIAL INSECTS OF CALIFORNIA. 



During the spring months the young are to be found in great num- 

 bers, but by summer they have so hidden themselves as to give the 

 general impression that the pest leaves the trees during that period. 

 In the fall the adults begin to deposit the large masses of eggs which 

 make them more conspicuous. The entire strength of the female is 

 converted into eggs, only the shriveled and dry skin remaining after 

 all have been deposited. 



The insect hibernates in the adult and egg stage, but due to the 

 uneven hatching caused by the warm weather in the southern part of 

 the State, practically all stages of the young and the adult males and 

 females may be also abundant during the winter months. 



Nature of Work. — This is a most destructive insect in the green- 

 houses, ornamental gardens and citrus orchards. It attacks the roots, 

 bark, fruit and foliage, and due to its great numbers, often ruins the 

 plants, fruit and trees. On the fruit it masses in great clusters and is 

 often found in the navels of the oranges, so that it can not be easily 

 removed. The infested leaves and young fruit may drop prematurely 

 because of the severe attacks. Large quantities of honey-dew are 

 secreted, affording a growing medium for the black smut fungus which 

 covers the tree. In short, the work of the pest is exceedingly harmful 

 and disgusting wherever it may be found. 



Distribution.— The citrus mealy bug is probably more widely dis- 

 tributed throughout the State than any other mealy bug. It lias been 

 recorded as occurring in many of the northern counties, most of the 

 central and southern citrus growing counties, excepting Tulare, San 

 Bernardino and Riverside. 



Food Plants. — This insect is an omnivorous feeder, attacking the 

 following plants: Rex begonia, Bignonia, bottle-brush, Bouvardia, Ces- 

 trum, eitron, coffee, Coleus, cotton, deer-brush, ferns, fuchsia, geranium, 

 grape, grapefruit, English ivy, leadwort (Plumbago), moonflower, 

 nettle, nightshade, oleander, orange, trifoliate orange, Guadaloupe 

 palm, passion vine, peony, poinsettia, potato vine, pumpkin, redwood, 

 Strelitzia gigantea, S. regina, Tacsonia jjasminoides, tangerine, tobacco, 

 umbrella plant, carob and wandering Jew. 



Control. — The cottony, wax material secreted by the mealy bugs 

 renders them resistant to most of the methods employed in the control 

 of other scale insects. 



Spraying. — In all of the spraying experiments conducted it was 

 found that an oil emulsion, which would readily dissolve the cottony 

 wax, gave the best results, and the work then resolved itself into the 

 selection of a spray that would not only give good efficiency in killing 

 the mealy bugs, but which Mould cause less injury to the fruit and 

 foliage of the trees and would be the least expensive. The spray that 

 more nearly fulfilled these requirements proved to be the carbolic acid 

 emulsion, prepared as follows: 



Water 40 gallons 



Whale-oil soap 40 pounds 



Crude carbolic acid 5 gallons 



The water should be brought to the boiling point in an iron kettle 

 and the soap thoroughly dissolved in it. After this add the crude car- 



