REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR I916 57 



tions this last treatment should be supplemented by the use of 

 tobacco in the usual calyx spray for the codling moth and the 

 compound applied as soon as possible after the dropping of the 

 blossoms. 



The San Jose scale, greatly feared in earlier years, has caused 

 comparatively little injury in the Hudson valley, and in some sec- 

 tions has been remarkable for its scarcity. This reduction in 

 abundance is probably attributable in large measure to the 

 activities of various small parasites, though climatic conditions 

 may have considerable influence. Unsprayed orchards, even 

 though they have been infested with the scale for a series of years, 

 are in somewhat better condition, generally speaking, than they 

 were eight or ten years ago and a few fruit growers have been 

 encouraged by this comparative scarcity of the pest, to omit the 

 early spring application for the control of the scale. No serious 

 consequences have followed this procedure to our knowledge, 

 though it is a practice which can not be recommended at the 

 present time. 



The minute and destructive pear thrips have been abundant here 

 and there in the Hudson valley and has caused serious injury in 

 a few localities. Through a combination of fortunate conditions 

 the Entomologist was able to secure a somewhat satisfactory test 

 of the value of a thick lime-sulphur wash as a means of controlling 

 the thrips, the application being made before the buds crack. 

 The results are most encouraging though owing to the erratic 

 habits of the insect, there can be only a qualified recommendation. 



Injuries by the pear psylla have not been serious, as a rule, in 

 Hudson valley orchards and in many, comparatively few eggs were 

 deposited in early spring. The late application of the winter 

 lime-sulphur wash for the destruction of the eggs continues to 

 be one of the most satisfactory methods of controllmg this pest 

 though occasionally the treatment must be supplemented by mid- 

 summer spraying with a contact insecticide. 



Gipsy moth. The area infested by the gipsy moth at Mount 

 Kisco was examined, and though the scouting of the winter of 

 1915 and 1916 revealed an extension of the infested area there was 

 no marked change in the situation. The infested woodland had 

 been well cleaned during the winter and early spring, was thor- 

 oughly sprayed in early summer, and in August no living insects 

 were to be found. There is no reason why this local infestation 

 should not be eradicated if the work is prosecuted with desirable 



