THE PRICKLY PEAR.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19762, 8 October 1927, Page 9

THE PRICKLY PEAR.

COMBATING THE PEST. THE COCHINEAL PARASITE. [FROM OUR OWN correspondent.] SYDNT3Y, Sept. 21. v . The northern portion of New South Wales and vast areas in Queensland are infested with prickly pear, which has been spreading with alarming rapidity. All kinds of remedies have been tried. Recently the cochineal insect was introduced and striking reports are published as to the efficiency of this paraattA. & round of visits has just been made by the New South Wales Government Entomologist, Air. W., B, Gorney,. to various centres where the Department of Agriculture has distributed insect parasites. His observations show that in many of the areas the cochineal insect has been responsible for the collapse and reduction of the pear. It was also noticeable, the entomologist states, that succulent pear was more readily susceptible to cochineal attack, and that pear fruits, and young seedlings in the vicinity become heavily infested with the cochineal, with the result that fruiting and new growth are thereby reduced. The effect of the cochineal parasite was, more evident the furthei west that observations were made, the drier and hotter conditions there being more favourable for its development. The Department of Agriculture has distributed thousands of boxes of cochineal infested pear segments to all the pear areas of the State Arrangements are also in hand for establishing the parasite along the margins of all dense pear areas, both on Crown and private holdings, in an endeavour to check the advance of the pest. The hope is justified that, in course of time, the cochineal will rapidly spread through the largest and densest pear areas of the State, despite the fact that this insect is subject to serious inroads by the small predatory ladybird beetle, cryptolameus montrouzteri. Departmental efforts are not restricted to cochineal, as other insect parasites are being developed, and nurseries have been established of two species of Cfaelinidea bugs, also Cactoblastis moth and Melitara moth. It is expected that in the near future ihero will be a similar distribution of these parasites. Commenting upon the efforts to combat the prickly pear, Mr. Cotton, of Hornsby, Sydney, says that the pear should be regarded as an asset worth millions. He has carried out investigations for many years, and the sum total of his observations is that as fodder for stock prickly pear, properly treated, rivals green corn. While Australia is spending thousands of pounds importing oaten hay from New Zealand, he remarks, in the State of Texas there is an equally keen demand for the despised prickly, pear as fodder Twenty years ago the Texas ranches faced a problem of drought and shortage of fodder. Then they discovered the value of the pear A machine was perfected which scraped away the prickles and cut the cactus into slices, in which state it is stored. The proposition sounds feasible, but it will be very hard to convince the Australian farmer who has had any experience of the ravages of the prickly pear.