Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1919-11-14
THE SAN JOSE SCALE
And How To Combat THIS Msnane TO
Our Orchards,

Years ago when the San Jose scale
hrst made IL appearance generally all
over the United States the cry went
up that the fruit industry was doom
ed. In many sections this pest kill
ed thousands and thousands of trees.
In one particular locality in Georgia
where the peach business had at
tanned great proportions. this little
insect completely wiped out the or
chards, and not even to this day
have they been reestabished. This
was not the case, however. ia the
greater part of the fruit growing
localities.
1t took several years to learn how
to combat the menace;at first SPRAYS
OF kerosene oil and other like materi-
ais were used. These did not prove
satisfactory and often killed the
/ trees that they we're intended to
protect. But finally the concentrated
lime-sulphur solution was discovered
and the scale no longer was a serious
menace to the growing OF fruits.
If left alone, the San Jose will
rapidly kill out an orchard 1t is
aid that if one pair of scales and
their season S offspring could repro
doce uninterruptedly for one season
at the end of the growing year there
would be 5000. 900. 600 scales or e.
nough to cover a ten acre patch of
land. This gives some notion of how
rapidly these little insects grow in
numbers, The young scales may be
seen in the early season. and then
from time to time again during the
summer and fail other young can be
found.
These young scales are soft bodied
and orange yellowish in color and
not much larger than the point of q
pin. Just after being Matched they
move about freely on the tree, but
very soon they attach themselves
and insert their mouths into the
plant and start sucking the juices.
After once starting to feed, they do
not move again, but secrete scale
over themselves and remain at the
same point for the rest of their life.
This scale that they form is cover
ing and protection. it is this scale
that NAMES it hard matter to fight
these little pests during the summer
or growing season. for any material
strong enough to get under this COW
ering and kill the insect beneath will;
have to be streng enough to injure
the growing tree.
The time TO combat this pest is
during the dormant season of the
year,a the time when the tree is not
in active life. At that season a
strong solution of lime sulphur can
be applied that will have sufficient
strength to enetrate to the insect
and yet not hurt the plant. The ma
terial used is made by boiling forty
pounds of quickIime and eight pound
of flowers OF sulphur together for at
least sixty minutes in fifty gallons OF
water. After boiling. the water
boiled away is replaced. This mate
rial is tested with hvdrometer and
diluted until the hydrometer reads
four to five degrees Baume. II no
hydrometer is at hand, the strong
material should be diluted about
eight times with water before being
applied to the trees.
Where the infestation of scale is
bad, an application should be made
during November after frost This
should be repeated during the latter
part OF February or just before the
trees come into bud. Some growers
prefer to use an oil spray for the
first application and the strong lime
sulphur for the February application
There are many commercial oil
sprays on the market that are satls-
factory for this work, as we'll as CON-
mercial brands of lime-sulphur that
can be purchased, saving the trouble
of making them at home. Where
only few trees are to be sprayed
it is we'll to purchase the materials
already made up; where a large or
chard IS to be SPRAYED. home made
mixtures are the cheaper.
| have plenty of the lime Sulphur
wash on hand, and will let anyone
have it at cost and will aid all can
In using this mixture.
| have made arrangements for you
farmers to get the barrel SPRAYS al
Turner q Dorsett of Leakesville; YOU
can order from most any hardware
COMPANY but don't buv ANYTHING ex-