The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1920-05-13
FARM NOTES BY
THE COUNTY AGENT

From observation made in our trav-
els over the county, we are convinced
that the most serious ailment of the
hogs in the county at this time is
mango. Probably half the hogs on
the farms and in the woods are suffer
ing from this trouble. In many herds
it has caused considerable loss of the
animals and has checked the growth
of all those that have been affected.
In our opinion farmers do not realize
what losses they really sustain from
this source. Many of them attribute
the death of those animals that sue
cumb to cholera and consider that
vermin are responsible for the nm
thrifty condition of those that suffer
for long time with an irritated con-
dition of the skin and finally recover.
It seems that some fail to see that the
loss from those recoveries may be
nearly as great as from those that
die, due to the amount of feed con-
sumed while the hogs are affected
and the extra amount of feed required
after recovery to overcome the stunt
ed condition caused by the sickness.
Mango is parasitic disease of the
skin, and can be easily prevented, or
controlled, by the liberal use of the
heavy oils. or coal tar products. The
simplest, easiest and least expensive
way to handle the herd is to make
sand wallow and put shed over it to
provide shade and to turn the rain
water. The sand should be thrown up
into bed and boxed in with boards
or cement curbing so that the rain
water cannot run in. Pour crude oil
(petroleum) literally on the sand IN
til the bed is thoroughly saturated.
Allow the hogs free access to this
wallow and they will soon learn to
like it about as we'll as they do a wa
ter hole, and you will have nothing
mere to do but to keep the sand sat
urated with the oil.
The most destructive insect to cit
which now infests nearly all the
groves of the state and is known to all
citrus growers. 1t lives on the under
side of the leaves and draws heavily
on the sap of the tree, checking its
growth and that of the fruit. On
badly infested trees, the fruit is al
ways less and of an inferior quality.
Besides, the insect throws off a sweet
substance known as honey dew, which
falls on the leaves and fruit and in
which grows a black fungus called
"sooty mold" This mold is favorable
to the increase of the scale insects and
is nearly always responsible for a
heavier infestation of the purple
scale. In addition, it makes necessary
the washing of the fruit before it can
be marketed to an advantage.
| Fortunately for the grove owner,
this pest can be held in check by both
| artificial and natural means. In the
| spring and late fall a spray of oil
emulsion can be used and during the
rainy season of summer the benefit of
the parasitic fungi can be taken ad-
vantage of, By proper and opportune
combination of these means in the
control of the white fly the output cf
the citrus grove can be improved both
in quantity and quality.
The spring application of oil spray
should be made this year from May
Is to May 80. The usual time is from
May to 20th, but this spring the
white fly is backward with the season
and more than week late. The sooner
the treatment is made now the more
effective it is likely to be, but the
young fruit is not yet as much as
th1ee-quarters of an inch in diameter
it will pay to wait until the last of the
month. Oil emulsion will cause
young, tender fruit to drop and it is