Scale infestation- it's on her CAR!

Philadelphia, PA(Zone 7a)

I'm trying to help a customer, and I went to her house to take photos- it's on EVERYTHING, including her car. I've included a slew of pics.

Funny thing is that it's mainly on perennials (save one berberis and a pieris), and it's on the leaves, not the stems.

I've dealt with tropical scale for over seven years now, but I've little experience with temperate varieties. Help?

I'd like an I.D. if possible, but more so, I just want to be able to tell her whether she can use a product such as Sevin or if she needs to call someone in with a license.

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Philadelphia, PA(Zone 7a)

on the car

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Philadelphia, PA(Zone 7a)

more on car

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Philadelphia, PA(Zone 7a)

One last photo- I forgot the close-up

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Sinks Grove, WV

Check the area of these 'scales' for the presence of chipped/shredded wood mulch or similar substances - these might be the spores of a fungus in the genus Sphaerobolus, commonly known as artillery or shotgun fungus - see http://tinyurl.com/dlt2pw for details. We had a problem with these at our house before we got rid of the mulch that served as a food substrate for them.

Philadelphia, PA(Zone 7a)

That makes a lot of sense- I've checked out the link and have done some more research and forwarded to the customer. Articles say that it is really prevalent in Pennsylvania- I just moved here from Buffalo, and that would explain things.

Those pictures have stumped two people who have been in the business of horticulture for a combined 60 years!

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