I first noticed the infestation about 2 weeks ago. I was mortified, wondering what all the black barnacles were doing on my pomegranate plant. I couldn't even bear to look at the plant after that because seeing those things on there made my skin crawl.

It took me a few days of internet sleuthing to figure out what it was and then even a few more days to figure out how to get rid of it. I did not want to resort to chemical control.

So today I spent a good hour hand-picking each scale off. It was definitely one of the grossest things I've ever done in my life. I also pruned about half of the plant off.

At this point, I don't know if the plant will make a comeback. I think this method was better than completely hacking it to the ground or throwing it away, though, so the plant should be thanking me.

Eek. I just got goosebumps from remembering the scale picking I did earlier.