VIII. A BRIEF REPORT OF NURSERY STOCK 

 INSPECTION IN WESTERN NEW YORK. 



The inspection of nursery stock has recently become of much 

 importance in this state. Such inspection serves two purposes: 

 First, it enables the nurserymen to comply with the laws in 

 other states, which require that a certificate showing that the 

 stock has been inspected shall accompany all nursery stock sold 

 within the state; and, second, it enables the officiating entomolo- 

 gist to keep a careful watch over the nursery stock grown in the 

 state, and thus materially aids in enabling him to detect early 

 the arrival of new pests in the nursery or the unusual increase 

 of old offenders. 



Early in the past season the writer was appointed by State 

 Entomologist Dr. J. A.Lintner to act as his deputy for the purpose 

 of inspecting nursery stock. Acting in this capacity, he has in- 

 spected stock from over twenty nursery firms. Most of the inspect- 

 ing was done while the trees were in the packing yard. Between 

 15,000 and 20,000 trees were inspected in the packing yards. 

 About 3,000 of these trees were infested with insects, most of 

 which were either the peach tree borer or the wooly aphis. Over 

 1,000 of these infested trees were rejected as worthless. The 

 remainder, which were not so badly infested, were freed from 

 the insects by the application of insecticides. 



In, addition to the insects above named, the oyster-shell bark- 

 louse, scurfy bark-louse, a scale insect scientifically known as 

 Asterodiaspis quercicola Bouch^, and the pear-tree Psylla, were 

 occasionally found. 



Method of inspecting the stock. — When circumstances would per- 

 mit the stock was first inspected in the field and later in the 

 packing yard. In the packing yard the trees requiring certifi- 

 cates were examined separately or in bundles, provided the bun- 

 dles were not so large as to prevent the whole length of the tree 

 being seen. Each tree was carefully examined from the roots 

 to the top and only such trees as showed no evidence of the work 

 of injurious insects or diseases were considered satisfactory. 

 Where the stock can be first seen in the field, such close examina- 

 tion in the packing yard is, of course, unnecessary. 



