204 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIET\ 
dropping young fruits in the spring. 
They cause the leaves to lose their 
gloss and put on a graysh or ashy ap¬ 
pearance. They occur most abundantly 
during dry weather, especially in the 
spring, and are easily destroyed with a 
weak sulphur solution. 
Only in rare instances have the effects 
of purple mites been observed this 
spring, their occurrence being rather be¬ 
low normal at this season of the year. 
RUST MITES. 
(These attack citrus fruits through¬ 
out their entire growing period, and 
cause the fruit to become discolored, 
dark or rusty in appearance. This rust 
affects the selling price of the fruit and 
also prevents it from growing quite as 
large as it would if not attacked by the 
rust mite. • ' 
In some sections growers have long 
followed the practice of spraying their 
trees with sulphur sprays as a means of 
keeping their fruit bright, and as a result 
have marketed their fruit to much better 
advantage; but in the majority of groves 
the growers have paid little or no atten¬ 
tion to rust mites, and consequently have 
had a large per cent, of rusty fruit. 
During the past year, however, a much 
larger number of growers than ever 
before have sprayed their groves several 
times during the year to destroy the rust 
mites, and have found their bright fruit 
has in most cases averaged 50 cents per 
box higher selling price than rusty fruit. 
Indications are that a much greater num¬ 
ber of growers are preparing to spray for 
bright fruit this coming season. 
FOOT ROT. 
Though a stubborn disease, if taken in 
time may be cured, or at least controlled. 
Because of the difficulty of removing the 
soil from around the crown roots in order 
to treat them, many growers have neg¬ 
lected their infected trees until the dis¬ 
ease has advanced too far, but in some 
instances where growers have given 
their trees the proper * attention, old 
seedling groves that have been affected 
for some years are still in apparently 
healthy and productive condition, and 
the foot rot disease, if not cured, is at 
least held in check. 
GUMOSIS OR SHAGGY BARK. 
This disease does not seem to be 
spreading quite as rapidly as it did two 
or three years ago. As it occurs on the 
trunks, limbs and branches, which are 
much easier to get at for the purpose 
of treatment than in the case of foot rot, 
growers, as a rule, have employed some 
method of treatment with the result that 
the disease has in many cases been cured 
or controlled. This has doubtless pre¬ 
vented the spread of the disease to the 
extent that was feared a few years ago. 
WITHERTIP. 
Has caused the dropping of young 
fruits to some extent, but as a rule such 
dropping has not exceeded the usual 
dropping at this time of year. 
MELANOSE. 
It is too early as yet to form a definite 
idea as to what extent melanose will af¬ 
fect fruit this year. Tiny spots of mela¬ 
nose have been observed on the tender 
leaves of the new growth, but so far it 
