Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-01-22

Bugs-Eow 70 Eradicate Them.
The Increase Of insect pests in the orchards
and Vineyards of California, especially since
1877, presents a very unfaTo-abIs outlook fer
the fruit-growing interests. TheS Board
of Agriculture, fer The purpose of directing
the attention Of fruitgrowers 90 the dangers
which threaten iheir industries, ordered an
exhibition Of specimens of insects injurious
to trees and fruit at the Pavilion during the
State Fair of 1880. The exhibit vas pre-
pared by Messrs. Cooke & Son of Sacra-
mento. The results attained are satisfactory.
as the Indications at present are that thor
ough warfare viii be inaugurated this winter
for tIls determination Of all ncxious insects
of the orchard and vineyard. The creatures
doing most damage at present in orchards
and Vineyards are the codling moth,
pbylloxsrs, scale insects, vine hoppers,
tree borsrs and the dried-fruit moth
in paeking-houses and store-rooms. The
question 81 to how aud when thess pests
came here Is only OF secondary Importance
at present. 1t Is an uadeniaol5 fact that
are dow can they DO prevented from
spreading or increasing? What means are
best adapted for their total destruction
Some Of these insects, especially the phyl-
loxeTa snd scale insects, have been carried
from one section OF country TO another, and
brought from foreign countries on young
trees, cuttings, gratis, etc. La the future
fru!t-gtowers should have sill youag trees,
cuttings, CRAFTS, etc, washed II some alkaline
-
destroying any insect life which may be upon
them.
THE COOLING MOTH.
It is fully understood that the cooling
moth has bsen spread throughout Central
California by the system OF return boxes.
Ia case Of tie continuance OF the
return box for marketing purposes, al
boxes and packages should be thoroughly
scalded before taken to orchard or vineyard
1t matters not whether the boxes were used
Tor apricot. peach, grape, etc, they are
liable to be in contact with packages contain
ing fruit infested with some Of the insect
pests-therefore the necessity Of scalding.
The oodling moth tCarpocapsa pomonellaI
can be found in nearly every county in Cali
fornia where fruit is grown extensively. II
Is estimated that nearly two thirds of the
apple and pear crop of 1880 WIS at least par
italy destroyed by this pest, and the spread
over new territory was a large percentage
over preceding years. That this pest can be
exterminated from our orchards there is not
the least doubt However experiments have
shown that the united action of all fruit
growers, or owners Of land on which there arr
fruit trees, will be necessary TO make sue
cessful warfare, such as will result in the total
determination of this pest from the orchards of
California. To obtain united action it may be
necessary to secure such legislation as viii
compel all persons to clean their orchards,
etc The fruit-growers of Tasmania at the
present time have applied to their Parlia-
ment for su h legislation as will enable them
70 clean their orchards of this pest Cooling
moth Germany has enacted very strict
laws on this subject When an insect inva-
sion takes place the whole population Is at
the command of the authorities to resist the
enemy. They were thus enabled to extsrmi-
nate the Colorado potato beetle on its az
pearance in 1876. Orchards infested by cod
ling-moth can be cleaned at nominal cost
Fruit bearing trees from 50 to $l4 per hun
dred-this includes cost of tools, wash, labor,
paper or other bands. The plan Of cleaning
giving the best results on practical applica-
tion, is as follows: Scraping the tree, taking
off all loose and rough bark, cleaning all
crevicss, etc; gathering the scrapings
carefully and destroying them ~ burning
washing the tree when scraped, the mix
ture should be alkaline. to destroy any insect
life left on the tree and to produce smooth
bark the application Of bands made Of
paper or other material (old grain sacks cut
up in strips are preferably. Ihe bands should
be examined at least every eighth day, and
the Larvae found in them destroyed.
PHYILoxERA.
This pest of the vineyard is spreading
rapidly in the vineyards of California. At
this time but few counties whsre grapes are
grown 70 any extent are free from It's ravages
Vi.iculturi5ts shouli make every practical
effors TO destroy this pest. We regret TO say
that the efforts if any made for its destruc-
ton lat least in the pastl in California, are
not reported. The remedies applied with best
results in France are bi-su!phite OF carbon,
placed in ground around the vines. As
to it's effica y fer destroying the insects,
ali reports agree But whether it Is inJurious
to the vines, and to what extent, reports diff
fer. The cost Of application in France is
from S24 to $50 per acre, according TO amount
of material used. SubmeTsiol Of the vines
in water for twenty-one days Is an effective
remedy.
SCALE INSECTS.
In the orchards and gardens of California
there can be found several species of scale
insects. Fif5een species ere reported. Only
FIVE viii be mentioned here: Red scale,
orange (; soft scale, orange; apple scale, San
Jose; apple scale, common; black scale.
The so-ealled red scale have spread to some
extent in the orange groves In Los Angeles
county. On trees infested the scale can
be found on the branches, foliage and
fruit The sO-oalled San Jose apple scale
has spread in orchards in Santa Clara county,
and las deprecated the value Of trees in
Tested considerably. The common apple
scale tAspidiotus conchiformis) is found in
some counties, AMI is considered the most
difficultt to destroy. The BOT scale-orange-
- (Iecanium hesperidum) is found on orange
trees in all parH of this State. The black
scale {Lseanium olee) is found IN gardens,
orchards, etc. The so called red scale and
San Jose apple scale have not been classified
as TO species. The above species of scale in-
sect are found in numbers sufficient to seri-
ouslY damage any tree or plant infested by
them, and should be cleaned.
These remedies have been recommended ::
Mr.. Holmes, an orange grower Of Florida,
writes: In my experiments for their re
lnoval, have been most successful in the use
of strong brine Of salt and watsr, applied
st intervals of two weeks. It Is heroic treat
ment, and takes the leaves off, but the scales
come with them, and, If doae just prior 70
the growing season, they soon send cut a
luxuTiant new growth and seem mora healthy
than before"
" G. Mason of San jose uses compound
OF one pound concentrated lye, one pint gaso-
line or bsnzine, half-pint oil tprobably whale
oil and five gallons of water and reports
good results.
Cooke & Son of Sacramento recommend q
wash composed of whale oil soap, sulphur
and anthracene oil, applied on trees by a Jet
of steam, but may be applied not by q pump.
vINE-HoPPKRs.
This destructive insect IS doing consider
able damage in vineyards. In ons case the
owner of vineyard reports damage az 81, 0G0
in 1880 It belongs to the order of Hemip5er,
or true bugs, is .I3 of an inch in length,
spread of wings, .27 of an inch. This pest
passes the winter by hiding itself under
fallen leaves, grass, etc; also in the crevices
and under loose bark on the vines. As soon
as the leaves appear on the vine in spring it
deposits its egg on the underside of the leaf
generally, and, having performed its mission,
dies. la May the young (lsrva1 appears, wing
less, and procures nourishment by thrusting
its besk into the leaf of the vine, and re-
mains very quiet unless annoyed (but
can skip around lively IL necessary
After several changes Testing of skins1
the perfect insect appear in August The
damage done by this insect is by destroying
the foliage. The vine assumes yellow colo-
the leaves become prenaturely dry, and
give the vine the aspect it naturally assumes
on the approach OF winter the plant Ian
puishes. the canes do not ripen well, the
fruit is stunted and widowed. and if the in