Re: succulents

I would only remind you that burning orchards seems to be preferred response of insectophobes to perceived problems rather than an indicator of actual seriousness. Remember the citrus canker hysteria of a few years ago? The idiots burned untold numbers of orchards, nurseries, and people's backyards to get rid of that terrible scourge. Ruined a lot of lives and livelihoods. 

On Aug 13, 2008, at 10:48 PM, David Franzman wrote:
Holy smoly Batman. Jim you and I go back a long way and I have hardly ever disagreed with you but on this one man I have to say something. Pink Mealy bug is killing huge sections of citrus both in So Cal. and Fl. I personally know several nurseries that were closed because the perscribed method of eradication is burning the plants. The glassy winged sharpshooter carries Pierce disease which can wipe out vineyards and while I don't think our Ag. dept is filled with the brightest lights but they have spent millions to keep it out of Sonoma/Napa area as well as most of Nor Cal. Two more examples are the Apple Moth, a new transplant from Australia or New Zealand and of course SOD or Sudden Oak Death Syndrome which is wiping out oak forests here and 
elsewhere.
Hibiscus are a trivial crop no doubt but they are passed around
all over the world but what isn't a trivial crop is cotton which hibiscus are 
related to and quite easily pass diseases from one to another.
Hey, it's a
small world and I suppose that all of this stuff will eventually circle the earth but if anybody is concerned with spreading noxious plants, pests and disease the unregulated sharing of plants in a informal and careless way will certainly hurry things right along. But you're right!! The winner in the 
short run is Monsanto!



----- Original Message ----
From: james singer
<islandjim1@comcast.net>
To: gardenchat@hort.net
Sent: Wednesday, August 13,
2008 6:56:14 PM
Subject: Re: [CHAT] succulents

I think you overstate your
case, David. The pink mealybug is only a
pest of consequence on hibiscus.
And I think we can agree that while
hibiscus is a nice plant, it's really a
trivial crop. And the biggest
problem with the glassy wing sharpshooter
seems to be that it poops on
automobiles and causes an unsightly mess. These
two scourges may
excite the chemists at Monsanto, but I fail to see why they
have any
significance at all.

On Aug 13, 2008, at 4:12 PM, David Franzman
wrote:


Hi Jim
Your good point brings up another aspect of plant


buying/selling/trading and that is that for many species of plants



(hibiscus

among them) it's illegal to trade across national/state borders
without
licenses.  Uninspected material crossing zones and regions can


spread disease

and pests that can spread to other plants with no natural

defense.

Daves
Garden and other sites unwittingly facilitate this

trafficking.  The

Pink
Mealy Bug in Florida and the Glassy Wing

Sharpshooter in California

are two
such pests that have devastated

millions in crops in the last few

years.
Worse yet are the viruses and

bacteria that are unseen that gets

shipped to
unsuspecting recipients.

If you suspect a problem with a plant you

receive
burn it without

question.

Man, am I a bummer.  Now then Andrea?  I think I
promised you a

bromeliad.  They are looking really good!

David





Never attribute to
cleverness what can easily be explained by stupidity.
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Island Jim
Willamette Valley
44.99 N 123.04 W
Elevation 148'
Hardiness Zone 8/9
Heat Zone 5
Sunset Zone 6
Minimum 0 F [-15 C]
Maximum 86 F [30 C]

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