124 TRANSACTIONS OF THE ILLINOIS 



to judge of the correctness of my opinions as applied to many parts of the coimty. 

 Taking up the topics suggested by our Secretary in their order : 



" First — ' The effects of the past winter upon trees, shrubs and vines ' : I should 

 amend this heading so as to read : ' The cumulative effect of the extremes of heat and 

 drought in 1870, 1871 and 1872, supplemented by the extreme cold of Januaiy, 1873.' ^ 

 do not think our trees would have been much injured, even by the severe cold of last 

 January, which was the coldest on record in our county, had they not been, as a rule, 

 in an enfeebled condition from excessive bearing and inadequate moisture in 1 872, which 

 excessive bearing was itself the result of the excessive fruit bud development of 1 87 1, 

 caused again by prolonged drought and insufficiency of growth. The effects of these two 

 or three seasons, as I regard it, have been disastrous and to many discouraging. 



"Apple trees, where old and enfeebled, have died outright in considerable numbers. 

 I have a great many Rawles' Janet trees, of thirty years' growth, that are now chiefly 

 valuable for firewood. Newtown Pippins, planted the same year, bore more apples than 

 any other variety I have, whether young or old. Young and apparently vigorous trees, 

 of many varieties, either shovi^ed no bloom or failed to set fruit when they did. The 

 variety that I have noticed as most injured in young trees is Fallawater. The foliage on 

 all Apple trees this year has seemed sickly, and the growth has been small unless under 

 "special cultivation or in rich soils. In the American Bottom I have seen some orchards 

 pretty full of fruit. In nearly all cases the fruit has been attacked by an immense num- 

 ber of insect enemies, that were grown in great quantities last year, and found but little 

 on which to spend their energies this year. The curculio, codling moth, and another 

 insect which I have not before seen much of, and whose habit answers somewhat to the 

 description of the apple maggot, were noticeably the worst. 



" Pear trees, when of some age, escaped the worst influences of drought, apparently, 

 which I attribute to their deeper rooting. Several of my old trees, whilst younger trees 

 of the same variety were quite bare, bore good crops of tolerable, though not first rate, 

 fruit. Blight has not appeared to any great extent. 



" Peach trees of ten or twelve years of age, that bore heavy crops of fruit in 1872, 

 are generally dead or so far gone as to be not worth saving. But younger trees, espe- 

 cially when cultivated, although injured, give promise of recovery and future usefulness. 



"Apricot trees, planted in 1862, seem less injured than Peach trees. No fruit. 



" Cherry trees were badly injured in many cases and bore no fruit worth men- 

 tioning. 



"In all cases that I have noticed, good cultivation in 1872, or its equivalent in 

 richness of soil or manure, had the effect to counteract, to a greater or less extent, the 

 effects of drought. 



" Forest trees, that by accident were grown in places where their roots could not 

 strike deeply, or that were otherwise enfeebled, seemed to die more than usual. 



" Of small fruits the Kittatinny Blackberry wintered pretty well and bore some 

 fruit, under poor cultivation. The Lawton bore no fruit ; in fact, the canes were nearly 

 all killed. Purple Cane and the Doolittle and Miami Black Cap Raspberries were 

 hardy, but the Philadelphia not so much so. Strawberries gave only a small crop. 



"As a rule, every thing gave evidence of exhausted vitality; shown in death, feeble 

 growth, dropping of bloom, paleness and lack of color in the blossom in flowering plants, 

 and in the dropping and late maturing of fruit. The Newtown Pippin, which in most 

 seasons is ready to fall from the tree inconveniently early — by the middle of September 

 — was hard to gather, from its persistence this year, nearly a month later. 



" Second — ' The influence of adjacent or surrounding groves or belts of timber 

 upon orchards or vineyards,' I have not observed to have any effect whatever during 

 the year just past. I believe it is in some years beneficial and in others injurious, in this 

 latitude. 



" I have nothing new to offer on the other topics. 



" MoRO, III." W. C. FLAGG." 



