30 TRANSACTIONS OF THE ILLINOIS 



Francis — I prefer 2° or 3° below freezing for keeping. 



Hilliard — The main thing is soundness; keep cool; but every- 

 thing is bad this year. 



Earle — Buckingham has been kept from August to May, in cool 

 dry cellar, on shelves, singly. 



Wier — Putting up in barrels makes too large a bulk, and they 

 heat. 



Adjourned to 7 o'clock P. M. 



FIRST DAY — EVENING SESSION. 



Dr. E. S. Hull, of Alton, made the following report from the com- 

 mittee, ad interim : 



Mb. President — It would be very agreeable to belong to a committee, were it the duty of 

 some other member rather than one's self, to record the joint observations; but to be obliged to 

 state one's impressions of the various modes of cultivation, pruning, training, and of diseases and 

 the depred itions of insects, etc., etc., is altogether a different tbing, and bad it been my good for- 

 tune to have been present at our last annual meeting, the making of this report would have de- 

 volved on some one better qualified tban myself. 



In the early part of last summer, in connection with the Ad interim Committee, we made an 

 examination of the Centralia orchards, and were greatly puzzled to account for the want of health 

 in many of the trees. Subsequent examinations of similar trees found elsewhere led us to con- 

 clude that the sickly appearance of some trees, both at Centralia and Du Quoin, was due to the 

 retentive nature of the sub-soil. During my last visit to Centralia, which was in October last, 

 we stated to the horticulturists of that city, that if an examination of the roots of their trees was 

 made, those roots that penetrated deep into the sub soil would be found to be diseased and in a 

 state of decay. Mr. B. Pullen, a leading horticulturist of Centralia, kindly proffered his services, 

 and has informed us by letter of the result of his investigation. We extract the following: 

 "After a careful examination of the Pear roots, I could discover nothing the matter with them 

 whatever, but not so with the Peach roots. I commenced to take up a peach tree, but had not 

 gone far until I found plenty of deud roots, mostly small roots of half an inch in diameter and less. 

 The main roots did not seem to be affected, and yet the dead roots seemed to strike out from the 

 main or tap root. I left this tr:e and went to another tree, and found the same condition of 

 things. These were so located * * * that the wator did not get off readily, notwithstanding it is 

 on my highest ground. * * * I then examined two other trees differently located and in a 

 healthy condition apparently, but still showing much of the little dead wood that you observed 

 while here. The water here could escape readily. I could find no dead roots; all seemed to be 

 perfectly healthy. We by no means assert that the loss of the small interior branches indicates an 

 excess of moisture in the sub-soil. These dead twigs in the interior of the trees are always to be 

 found in the heads of trees where crowding of the small limbs or twigs is allowed. On the other 

 hand, we do consider that trees on which terminal branches are found to be dead or dying, point 

 to a diseased condition of the roots. In the Centralia district these diseased tops are frequently 

 met with, and, to our mind, result from excess of moisture in the sub-soil. At Princeton, Jack- 

 sonville, Champaign, and at other points, the excess of moisture in the sub-soil was known, and 

 cultivators provide partial drainage by ridging up to their trees. 



