108 Wisconsin State Horticultural Society. 



succeeded cold, cloudy weather, the mercury indicating 40° above 

 zero many nights in succession. As a result, apples grown on 

 ridge land were terribly scabbed and cracked, three-fourths of some 

 crops being worthless from these causes. 



Since 1SG9, we have not had so rainy a season as the past. Rust, 

 mildew and blight of the leaves nearly denuded some trees, espe- 

 cially Haas and Walbridge. In the latter part of the season, foliage 

 was better and trees matured extremely well. The first fall frosts 

 occurred in the valleys about the middle of September, and 

 on the ridges a month later, thus making a practical difference in 

 the ripening of grapes in favor of high sites. 



Insects. — Measuring worms, such as we suppose to be canker 

 worms, of three or four different styles, were very numerous. In 

 the northern part of this county (Richland) and in the western part 

 of Vernon, elm and basswood trees were almost entirely stripped of 

 leaves by them. They gave some trouble in orchards, especially 

 on young trees. 



During hot weather plant lice were very plenty; in some cases 

 injuring trees seriously. Phylloxera, the grape gall louse, we 

 found on a wild vine. We may, therefore, conclude them to be 

 *' old settlers" here. On cultivated vines, we found leaf galls on 

 one vine only, and that a Clinton, said to be quite subject to their 

 attacks. "We also ascertained that the root form of phylloxera 

 may exist on vines where none of the leaf form can be found. 

 Grasshoppers injured many young trees in clover fields, especially 

 after harvest of fields of small grains near by, when the hoppers 

 seemed to flock to the clover. For this reason we shall give up the 

 idea of seeding young orchards to clover and mulching, as we have 

 heretofore recommended. 



Fruit Crops. — Owing to severe frosts in the spring, most fruit 

 failed in the valleys, except an occasional patch of strawberries. 

 On the ridges, a small crop of most fruits were grown, and on 

 some protected sites apples were a good crop. Early in the season, 

 apples from the ridges were offered quite freely in the home mar- 

 kets; principally Duchess, Fameuse and Golden Russet. The 

 fruit decayed rapidly, and will seriously affect the reputation of 

 home grown apples. 



No grapes were grown generally, except on such sites as es- 



