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Fothergilla gardenii Witch Alder
Fothergilla gardenii (Witch Alder). Photo © Mary Free
You are here: Home / Master Gardener Virtual Classroom / Scale Control: Crape Myrtle, Holly and More – New in 2023!

Scale Control: Crape Myrtle, Holly and More – New in 2023!

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Scale insects are among the most injurious and most common insect pests in our landscape. Join Kirsten Conrad, Extension Agent for Arlington County and City of Alexandria, to learn about these sap sucking insects, their particular host plants, their life cycles, and optimal timing and methods for controlling them. Find out how you can work with and encourage natural predators to keep your landscape plants healthy and free of these pests. 

Zoom session, recorded March 3, 2023

Chapter Breaks

Additional Resources

Types of Scale Insects

Brown Scale and Fern Scale

Soft scale adults and immature crawlers
Soft scale adults and immature crawlers – Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org

Obscure Scale

Adult female obscure scales with protective covers removed, exposing their eggs and hatched crawlers
Adult female obscure scales with protective covers removed, exposing their eggs and hatched crawlers (Lorraine Graney, Bartlett Tree Experts,
Bugwood.org).


Cottony Camellia Scale

Cottony camellia scale on yew.
Cottony camellia scale on yew. Photo: Dawn Dailey O’Brien, Cornell University, Bugwood.org


Rose Scale

Rose scale (US National Collection Scale Insects Photographs, USDA ARS, Bugwood.org)
Rose scale (US National Collection Scale
Insects Photographs, USDA ARS, Bugwood.org)


Cottony Maple Scale 

A side profile view of a female cottony maple scale and her popcorn-like egg sac.
A side profile view of a female cottony maple scale and her popcorn-like egg sac. (Photo by Jim Kalisch, University of Nebraska-Lincoln)


Terrapin Scale & European Fruit Lecanium Scale

Terrapin scale females on sycamore
Terrapin scale females on sycamore (Joe Boggs, OSU Extension)
Close-Up of European Fruit Lecanium Scale
Close-Up of European Fruit Lecanium Scale (Author-Dan Potter, University of Kentucky).


Crapemyrtle Bark Scale

Active crape myrtle bark scale crawlers.
Active crape myrtle bark scale crawlers. University of Md.


Tea Scale
(not common but coming to a Camellia near you!)

Crawlers (yellow), immature males (white) and immature females (dark) of the tea scale,
Tea scale crawlers (yellow), immature males (white) and immature females (dark) (Photo © University of Florida.


Euonymus Scale 

Heavy infestation of euonymus scale on twig
Heavy infestation of euonymus scale on twig (Clemson University: USDA Cooperative Extension Slide Series, Bugwood.org).


Wax Scale

Cameo stage of young wax scale
Cameo stage of young wax scale (US National Collection of Scale Insects Photographs, USDA ARS, Bugwood.org).


Gloomy Scale

High population of Gloomy Scale on a Red Maple branch.
High population of Gloomy Scale on a Red Maple branch.
Photo: Adam Dale, North Carolina State University


White Peach Scale  (Not yet common)

Adults and immatures of the white peach scale
Adults and immatures of the white peach scale Photo © Lyle J. Buss, University of Florida.


Juniper and Cryptomeria Scale

Juniper scale
Juniper scale (US National Collection of Scale Insects, USDA ARS, Bugwood.org
Cryptomeria scale
Cryptomeria scale (Eric Day, Virginia Tech)


White Prunicola Scale

Clusters of white prunicola scale on a branch
Clusters of white prunicola scale on a branch Photo: Brian Kunkel, University of Delaware


Magnolia Soft Scale

While older growth can harbor the scale, young twigs are where infestations typically begin
Young twigs are where infestations typically begin
Photo: Brian Kunkel, University of Delaware