222 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
get about blight seems to date back to 
about 1878, when some trees in Lake 
County were affected by a mysterious dis¬ 
ease that later was connected up with 
what we know to be blight. 
INSECTS THIRTY YEARS AGO. 
At the beginning of this period citrus 
trees were affected with a number of in¬ 
sects that were thought to be exceedingly 
destructive, and it was thought that if 
only a remedy for these insects could be 
obtained not much would be left to be de¬ 
sired in the way of handling this line of 
pests. The early literature teems with 
leaf-eating insects that are scarcely known 
today. 
The most prominent scale insects that 
they had were the long scale ( ) 
purple scale ( ) chaff scale ( ) 
soft scale ( ) and wax scale ( ) 
At the present time no one thinks these 
pests serious, unless perchance it is the 
novice in citrus growing. 
LATER INTRODUCTIONS OF DISEASES. 
Withertip and anthracnose are caused 
by the same fungus. This was probably 
introduced from South America during 
the middle nineties. Most likely with bud- 
wood. While a form of the fungus Col- 
letotrichum gloesporioides had been 
known to exist for some time it had nev¬ 
er developed into serious proportions, and 
was known only as specimens in herbaria. 
During the middle nineties and toward 
the beginning of the 1900s, a very viru¬ 
lent outbreak of this disease occurred. 
Previous to this time Fritz Noak had ob¬ 
served this disease as proving destruc¬ 
tive in parts of Brazil. 
Melanose and stem end rot may be en¬ 
demic and may also have been introduced. 
The strong probability is in favor of be¬ 
lieving that the fungus was introduced 
to the State. It seems quite improbable 
that a disease which can be so destructive 
should escape attention from such keen 
observers as Dr. Webber and Mr. 
Swingle, Dr. Irving F. Smith, Dr. L. M. 
Underwood, all specialists on plant dis¬ 
eases. If it is an introduced disease it 
seems quite certain that its introduction 
was some time during the nineties. 
Nail-head rust (Cladosporium herbar- 
um var eitri) also known in Florida as 
scaly bark, is confined to a very small 
portion of the State. Its distribution and 
behavior are such as to point very strong¬ 
ly to its being an introduced disease. 
All of the occurrences in the State have 
been traced back to one nursery. Fortun¬ 
ately this nurseryman distributed a very 
small amount of stock over a small region. 
Diplodia rot (Diplodia natalensis) has 
at no time assumed destructive propor¬ 
tions though it is met with from time to 
time. We have not studied the conditions 
sufficiently to enable us to form an opin¬ 
ion as to whether it is native or intro¬ 
duced. 
Black rot (Alternaria citri) is quite 
certainly an introduction from California. 
This has never proven to be sufficiently 
destructive to be of serious consequence 
to us as it is mainly a rot for the navel 
orange. 
Citrus canker, the newest and probab¬ 
ly one of the most vigorous of the dis¬ 
eases, is knocking lustily at our doors to 
