{"id":1615,"date":"2026-09-11T18:04:53","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T18:04:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/nursery-ipm\/?page_id=1615"},"modified":"2026-09-14T17:22:47","modified_gmt":"2026-09-14T17:22:47","slug":"scale-insects","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/nursery-ipm\/scale-insects\/","title":{"rendered":"Scale Insects"},"content":{"rendered":"

Scale Insects<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Scale insects are persistent, economically damaging sap-feeding pests that are often encountered in nursery production settings. There are a number of scale species which vary in their feeding habits, life cycles, and susceptibility to chemical controls. Therefore, effective management requires correct correctly distinguishing between armored scales, soft scales, and other scale-like pests.<\/p>\n

Key Differences Between Scale Families<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Key Features\u00a0<\/strong><\/td>\nArmored Scales (Diaspididae<\/i>)\u00a0<\/strong><\/td>\nSoft Scales (Coccidae<\/i>)\u00a0<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hard Protective Cover<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nSeparate from body<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nAttached to body<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Feeding Mechanism<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nPierces individual cells<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nFeeds directly in phloem<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Primary damage<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nChlorosis, yellow stippling, leaf\/needle drop, dieback<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nStunting, overall progressive systemic decline<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Honeydew Production<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nNone<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nHigh (causing sooty mold growth)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Target Control Window<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nPeak crawler emergence only<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\nCrawlers and systemic sap stream uptake <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Quarantine Policies<\/strong><\/h5>\n