Key Plant, Key Pests: Holly (Ilex sp.)

This series of Key Plant, Key Pests publications are designed for Florida gardeners, horticulturalists, and landscape professionals to help identify common pests associated with common Florida flora. This publication, the eighth in the Key Plant, Key Pests series, helps identify the most common pests found on Holly (Ilex sp.). This publication provides information and general management recommendations for Florida wax scale, tea scale, Cylindrocladium leaf spot, dieback, Sphaeropsis gall, root knot nematodes, and magnesium deficiency. This five-page document was written by Juanita Popenoe, Caroline R. Warwick, Jacqueline Bourdon, and Liz Felter and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Environmental Horticulture. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ep566

Susceptibility of Ilex Species, Hybrids and Cultivars to Florida Wax Scale (Ceroplastes floridensis Comstock)

Susceptibility of 231 holly species, hybrids and cultivars to Florida wax scale (Ceroplastes floridensis Comstock) were evaluated on field grown plants in Tifton, Georgia. Florida wax scale have two generations/year in this region. Population ratings on different parental lines were grouped as either low populations (<10 scales/60 second count), moderate populations (11–20 scales/60 second count), high populations (21–40 scales/60 second count) and very high populations (>40 scales/60 second count). Taxa from the study rated as being least preferred (low populations) by the Florida wax scale included those with I. crenata, I. buergeri, I. glabra, I. myrtifolia, I. verticillata and I. vomitoria within parental lines. Those prone to heavy infestations were I. aquifolium, I. × attenuata, I. cassine, I. ciliospinosa, I. cornuta, I. × koehneana, I. latifolia, I. × meserveae, I. opaca, I. purpurea, I. rugosa and I. serrata. Other scale insects noted on the hollies included: Barnacle wax scale (Ceroplastes cirripediformis Comstock), Indian wax scale (Ceroplastes ceriferus (Fabricius)), European fruit lecanium (Parthenolecanium corni Bouche), Brown soft scale (Coccus hesperidum Linneaus), Tea scale (Fiornia theae Green), Latania scale (Hemiberlesia lataniae (Sign.)), and a pit scale (Asterolecanium puteanum Russell).