The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1886-04-03

Some four or five years ago there ap.
peared in the Agriculturist very short
article-l think it was the last column
on tho first pagc--to the effect that some
person, not the writer, had entirely clear.
ed his orange trees Of scale by putting
bits Of soap in the upper parts. The
writer little more than stated the fact, 40
that, probably. the article was read with
inat.enton and lcredulty. slt must have
been one Of the latter; but now am in.
clined to think there was much more in
the article than it got credit for; and
that, if practiced Systematically, it may
be found valuable as well cheap and
easily applied antidcte to the deadly lit.
tie pest.
In confirmation OF this think may
safely give the experience Of one of my
neiGhhors. Mr.. George Carmichael. a
successfully farmer and Orchardist from
Wisconsin, who has thousand young
orange. trees, not yet in bearing, which
for years have been the scaliest trees
have ever seen. lie was much perplcxed,
but not the man to give up the fight
discouraged He remembered that in
early life he had fought insects success
fully by throwing dry ashes over
his fruit trees early in tho morning
when the dew was on. II occurred to
him that soap might do good. Be bought
Il box Of common bar soap. and cut 1t
into oblong pieces the size Of ones
thumb, but not quite 50 thick, and st uck
four or five on thorns, well up in each
tree.
When he returned in the fall, he found
| every tree clean and thrifty, except u
very few from which the soap had been
taken or got of. The latter were as sea.
~ aud srrawny as before. On most of
the trees there were small remains of
the soap still on the thorns, and on all
the white coating that had been dia.
solved and washed down over the bark.
Each spring since, before going north.
he has applied the soap always with the
same happy results.
! will add that his trees come out Of
the January freeze better than the aver.
age. Nothing lowers the vitality of the
orange tree like scale in any and all Of it,
half dozen forms. Nothing 10 easier
Killed in its earlier life. but most litli.
/ cult when fixed on the bark. enclosed IN
| its coat Of mail or gum. which nothing
seems able TO dissolve or penetrate. Per.
haps narhtha might do it.
/ The young scale long scale for exam.
I plel just hatched walks over the bark
about four days, tiny insect. so small
and delicate as to be visible only to the
keenest naked eyes. In this period Of
activity she mates, and il then ready e
settle down for the balance of her briel
/ life. She then inserts the beak of hel
/ head into the bark and nestlss down
snug. Her legs being of no further uss
soon fall Oft, gum cSudes and enclo es
her completely, except a pair Of breath
my holes in her sides. Thus secure. ST.,
lives on the juices of the tree, and com
petes her liie.work Of producing some
80 eggs for the continuance and multi
plicaton of her species.
n probable explanation OF this soal
remedy is that it is operating during the
whole scale season. The dews and rain.
slowly dissolve and carry down the soaI
over the branches and trunk and the in
sect thus finds its hane and perishes he
fore 1t can settle down to its destructiv,
work.
The soap appears to be so ELUSIVE Of
destructive that the parts OF the bari
below untouched by the soap arc alec