BUREAU OF ENTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE 77 
Croplands Surveyed for Golden Nematode 
The golden nematode program continued to provide for a system- 
atic field survey of all croplands within and near the quarantined 
areas of Xassau and Suffolk Counties, Long Island, N. Y. Lands 
surveyed during the year on Long Island totaled 33,700 acres, from 
which 57,000 soil sample lots were collected. Golden nematode infes- 
tations were found for the first time on 962 additional acres bringing 
the total known infested acreage of Long Island to 10,760. Of this, 
3,800 acres have been removed from agricultural usage by housing and 
industrial developments, thus leaving 6.960 acres of agricultural land 
infested. The new infestations found during this year were all con- 
fined to Nassau and western Suffolk Counties except for one isolated 
infestation on the north fork of eastern Suffolk County near the town 
of Cutchogue. In addition to the surveys of croplands, inspections 
were made of 300 nurseries and retail plant sales establishments in 
Kings, Nassau, Queens, and western Suffolk Counties. These sur- 
veys resulted in the finding of 8 such establishments infested with 
the golden nematode, making a total of 92 to date. The program to 
treat these establishments with D-D (dichloropropane-dichloropro- 
pene) was continued. A total of 33 infested nurseries were treated 
during the year. Surveys were made in cooperation with 15 States. 
In all, 69,000 samples were collected representing nearly 217,000 acres. 
A cooperative Federal- State survey of potato- and tomato-growing 
areas in California has been completed. Nearly 23,000 soil samples 
were collected from potato graders, storage sites, and potato and 
tomato fields in 26 counties. These samples are representative of 
more than 88,000 acres of cropland. Laboratory processing of these 
samples was completed without finding any evidence of the golden 
nematode. 
Compensation Paid for Acreages Withheld From Host 
Crop Production 
A compensation program designed to prevent the increase and 
spread of the golden nematode by withholding infested acreage from 
host crop production was continued during the year. A total of 1,215 
acres of infested land was withheld from production. The Federal 
and State of Xew York governments shared equally in the payment 
of $97,179 compensation to farmers. This program provides pay- 
ments only to owner-operators of infested properties. The payment 
of compensation to renter-operators for withholding lands from pro- 
duction was discontinued by the State of New York in 1951. 
Improved Device for Detecting Nematodes in Soil 
A more efficient soil-washing machine has been developed to sepa- 
rate golden nematode cysts from soil taken from potato fields sus- 
pected of being infested. Designed in cooperation with the Toledo, 
Ohio, laboratory of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agri- 
cultural Engineering, this machine is lightweight and portable and 
operates at a lower cost and with greater efficiency than similar equip- 
ment available heretofore. 
