94 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
sions of the Department of Agriculture 
to send to the native home of the white- 
fly investigators and explorers to se¬ 
cure the natural enemies, insect and 
fungous, of the whitefly and introduce 
them into this country to further assist 
in reducing its numbers and the damage 
which it does. 
Mr. Temple—I think in my own case 
and most of the other growers who have 
that foe to deal with, we find that he is 
the most active “bird” we know anything 
about. The people in charge of the va¬ 
rious stations with their fungus, Dr. Mor¬ 
rill with his fumigation, other people with 
their various sprays that I have tried in 
the most thorough and systematic manner 
possible; all have some way to combat 
this pest, and while they are all good to a 
certain extent, yet they offer only tempo¬ 
rary relief. Fumigation I know by ex¬ 
perience is good, because I fumigated one 
of my groves and it killed everything that 
way in there, but in thirty days the grove 
was infested again with the whitefly. The 
methods now employed might be used to 
advantage if the whitefly was only a local 
nuisance but there isn’t much use in go¬ 
ing to all the trouble and expense to 
fumigate and spray when the first wind 
that blows will bring in a fresh swarm 
from an adjoining grove. My home place 
is on a lake and when the flies are on the 
wing and the wind happens to be in the 
north, they come across in swarms like 
blind mosquitoes. As they are not the re¬ 
sult of spontaneous generation, they must 
come from somewhere. They have a hab¬ 
itat somewhere; Prof. Hume says 
China; if that is true we should dislike 
China more for her whitefly peril than 
her Yellow Peril. We must get at some 
method of controlling permanently this 
menace, some whitefly evil that will sub¬ 
ject it before it subjects us, and I think 
the people who suffer from! it feel as 
strongly as I do. Now, you people who 
haven’t the whitefly, don’t feel slighted; 
you’ll get it. You are just as much in¬ 
terested in this, because you are going to 
find out why we feel so strongly. 
Mr. Hart-—I also wish to second these 
resolutions most heartily. It is work 
along the lines I think will be most ef¬ 
fective. Mr. Temple has expressed my 
sentiments in regard to it exactly. I be¬ 
lieve to obtain permanent relief we will 
have to depend on the natural enemies. 
It is not only on our groves but all about 
us on other places. If the department will 
make an effort and it is successful, in a 
short time I am satisfied it will cause the 
whitefly to drop back as a minor trouble. 
I am sure the department will assist us in 
this matter if we go at it in the right 
way, and I will be willing to contribute 
liberally to send a horticultural explorer 
finomi this state. I heartily second the 
resolution. 
Mr. Temple—I will be glad to be a sec¬ 
ond member of Mr. Hart's syndicate to 
under-write it. 
Mr. Parker—I also wish to heartily 
second this motion. I have several times 
made a statement to different parties that 
I thought the time was at hand to locate 
the home of the whitefly and its natural 
enemies, and I think the time is now. 
Fumigation, sprays and fungi are all do¬ 
ing good work. Fumigation and spraying 
are artificial means and fungi are the 
natural means, but we need all the help 
we can get. 
I understand our worthy President is 
