Los Angeles herald., 1892-09-24
THOSE NEW AUSTRALIAN BUGS,
They Appear to Be Sadly Ne
glecting Their Duty.
An Inspection of Their Colonies Yes
terday by Fruit Growers.
Most of Mr.. Kobele's Importations In a
State of Desuetude-The Report
ON the Situation by Visiting
Fruit Growers.

The people interested in bugs, and
especially Australian Dugs, gathered in
great force yesterday morning at the
court house, in the Office OF County Hor-
ticultural Commissioner Scott. About
1890 O'Clock about go horticulturists
from Los Angeles, San Bernardino and
Orange counties were there, all busily
engaged in exchanging views upon the
utility of the little beetles which Mr..
Koebele has imported from Australia to
down the red and black scale, the now
threatening pests Of the orchardists.
The occasion of the assemblage was an
invitation sent by Mr.. Scott, at the re-
quest of various horticultural commits
sions, to fruit growers to come to this
city September 23d, and to make care
full and critical tour OF observation and
investigation of the orchards in which
the new parasites have been placed.
Various orchardists In the city had
placed vehicles at the disposal of the
visitors and they finally whirled away
to the scene of operations in the south
western part of the city, long process
sion of men, and one lady, very much
in earnest, to see what tine bugs were
doing, and especially the little steel
colored orcus chalybeus, which devours
the red scale.
THE ORCUs CHALYBEUS.
The first place visited was that of AL
bert Kercheval, on Lemon street. His
orchard has been badly infected by the
red scale. The colonization in his place
was upon large lemon tree. Relays of
the red scale parasite, the orcus chaly-
beus were placed on the tree, come in
January, some in February and the last
in March; in all about 450. The fruit
growers gathered about this tree, and
were soon busily inspecting the various
stages OF growth OF the ladybrd. While
no eggs were seen, all the other stages
of its growth were illustrated. The bugs
were seen on the leaves of the tree, but
not in the quantities which had been
expected. Mr.. Kercheval stated that
up to the present time the bugs had not
accomplished much.
They had not propagated rapidly, and
be could not zee that they had done
very much towards annihilating the red
scale. 1t WAS stated by some gentlemen
present, who saw the tree last year that
1t was in very much better condition
that all his trees are in better condition
this year, and that he attributes the
fact to having worked with them.
While the bugs were not propagating
as rapidly as wished, some of the gem
tlemen present thought that they have
not had fair show. They claimed that
when brought over from Australia they
did not arrive in good condition, and
that none of the additional lots have
been IN good condition when turned
loose. 1t could very readily be seen
that there was considerable feeling be-
tween some of the members of the party,
and that several gentlemen wanted to
have the beetles, or ladybirds, to be
more polite to the little steel blue beau
ties, to have a better chance to show
their mettle. 1t was said by these gen.
tlemen that the conditions have not yet
been favorable for them, and that it was
some 10 months before the vedalia
wrought much execution upon the
white scale.
The greater number of the orchardists
seemed to be disappointed in the results
at Mr.. Kercheval's Very few bugs
could be found on other trees in the vi.
cinity of the lemon tee, and, be the
reason what 1t may, they have not prop
agated rapidly up to the present time.
LEIs CONFORMS.
From Mr.. Kercheval's place the party
was driven to the large orchard OF
Samuel Mckinley, on Wilmington ave-
nue., to allow the visitors to see where
colony of leis conformis had been
placed to propagate and get away with
the woolly aphis on the apple trees.
After close inspection none could be
found of the colony planted there. All
had disappeared. Almost similar
state of affairs was witnessed at the or.
chard of William Niles, on Washington
street, where scarcely any traces could
be found OF about $40 of the red scale
parasites which had been turned loose
there to multiply last May.
Here the fruit growers organized
themselves into meeting. DR.. w.
Ormiston, of Azusa, was elected chair
man, and III. w. Krukeberg secretary.
A committee, consisting of Col. j R.
Dobbins, DR.. N. III. C]afin, Prof. Co.
quillett, John Burr and Samuel Nc
Kinley was appointed to prepare
report to be submitted to the meeting.
Mr.. Dobbins had been obliged to leave
the party before the meeting was held,
and did not participate in it. After
session by the committee under a hay
stack, they reported, and their report
was unanimously adopted. The meet
ing and the party then adjourned to the
city. The following is the report
FRUIT GROWERS REPORT,
The fruit growers, representing the
counties of Los Angeles, Orange and
San Bernardino, in convention assem-
bled for the purpose of making careful
investigation of the present outlook and
future possibilities of the predacious
insects that have been sent over by Mr..
Albert Koebele, from Australia, through
the efforts of the department of agricul-
ture, at Washington, and the California
state government beg leave to submit
the following report:
That we not only commend, but
warmly indorse, the effortsv of the state
board of horticulture in it's endeavor to
introduce beneficial insects to prey upon
all noxious insect life at present infest-
ing our orchards and gardens; and that
we appreciate and shall help every
legitimate effort to colonies parasitic
insects to prey upon those at present go
injurious to our trees and their products.
Nevertheless, we deprecate the circula-
tion OF the glowing accounts that have
been sent abroad by the state board
touching these ladybirds, as being pre-
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