By Dionne Rose, Staff ReporterAFTER MORE than a year, the Ministry of Agriculture is yet to secure funding to import another ladybird beetle to help fight the ensign scale pest, which has been wreaking havoc on ornamental plants across the island.
This, after another beetle, which was imported two years ago from the Eastern Caribbean, failed to eliminate the pest that is particularly resistant to chemical treatment because of its protective scales.
The ladybird is a natural predator of the scale insect and will attack the pest, which is a small white insect that sucks the sap from ornamental plants such as crotons and bougainvilleas, and some vegetable plants, causing the leaves to dry up and fall off, eventually killing the plant.
BEETLES A FAILURE
Michelle Sherwood, plant protection officer at the Bodles Research Station in St. Catherine, told The Gleaner yesterday that the Ministry had imported 500 of the beetles that were reared locally in laboratories at Bodles but after the release of some 3,000 of the beetles, they failed to have any effect on the pest.
"The last results showed that there was no impact. We are basically back to square one," she said.
Mrs. Sherwood said the Ministry was in the process of securing funding to import another species of the ladybird beetle from Africa or South America to fight the pest.
"We have sent out to several agencies," she told The Gleaner, but said that they had received no response. The plant protection officer also refused to state how much it would cost the Government to import the beetles.
PEST SPREADING
Carlton Williams, plant protection specialist at the eastern zone of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), revealed that the pest was spreading and was affecting several parishes, including Kingston and St. Andrew which have the heaviest infestation St. Thomas, Portmore in St. Catherine and Clarendon.
"A large number of plants have been affected by it up to 20 different types," he disclosed.
Chemicals that have proven to be effective against the pest are Actara and Admire.
The Agriculture Ministry is asking residents who suspect that their plants may be infested with ensign scale to seek advice from RADA parish offices or to call Bodles, St. Catherine at 983-2267/983-2281. In the meantime, residents are being advised to prune infested trees and to burn or bury the material, which, if left unattended, could cause the ensign scale to spread to other trees.
