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ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Distribution of imported nursery stock, by States Continued. 



INSPECTION OF IMPORTED PLANTS AND PLANT PRODUCTS. 



A record has been kept since the organization of the board of all 

 the interceptions of foreign plant pests and diseases on imported 

 nursery stock and other plants and plant products. As a result of the 

 requirement of the Federal plant quarantine act as to foreign inspec- 

 tion and certification, practically all of the foreign countries which 

 are doing a commercial trade of any importance in such products with 

 the United States have installed adequate inspection service, and for 

 the most part it is undoubted that these countries are probably giving 

 as good inspection service as human skill and science can afford. The 

 result of this service has been a tremendous improvement in the sani- 

 tary condition of the plants and plant products imported into the 

 United States. The infestation has been reduced to probably as near 

 a minimum as is humanly possible. Nevertheless, the records referred 

 to indicate that in spite of this inspection and the foreign certifications 

 accompanying importations, large numbers of injurious insects and 

 plant diseases are still coming into the United States on imported 

 plants. Inasmuch as one of the principal arguments of objectors to 

 foreign plant quarantines is that proper inspection will eliminate 

 these evils, it is opportune at this time to call attention to a summary 

 of the conditions actually shown by the inspection records of the last 

 seven years as to the plant imports from the principal exporting 

 countries. With respect to insects, these records indicate that there 

 have been received from Holland during this period 1,051 infested 

 shipments, involving 148 kinds of insect pests; from Belgium, 1,306 

 infested shipments, involving 64 kinds of insects; from France, 

 347 infested shipments, involving 89 kinds of insects; from Eng- 

 land, 154 infested shipments, involving 62 kinds of insects; from 

 Japan, 291 infested shipments, involving 108 kinds of insects; from 

 Germany, 12 infested shipments, involving 15 kinds of insect pests. 

 Many of these intercepted insects are not known to be established 



