504 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



them, and the best step oii finding evidence of the Shot Hole Borer 

 in a branch is to cut it otf and burn it at once. They may often 

 attack large branches or one particular branch in a tree without 

 attacking the rest of the tree. If they be not destroyed thev are 

 liable to spread to other trees and aid in their rapid decline. Thev 

 should be killed by promptly cutting and burning all infested trees 

 * * * The last group of beetles to be mentioned at this time 

 are the Curculios or Snout Beetles, v.iiich injure leaves in the earlv 

 spring by eating small holes in them while they are yet very small 

 and quite undeveloped, and consequently making decided and con 

 spicuous injury-, but particularly effect much damage by puncturing 

 the fruits of our cultivated trees, especially plum and cherry, and 

 laying therein eggs from which hatch larvae that becomes '"woniis" 

 of wormy fruit of such variety. The life history of the curculio of 

 peach, plum, and cherry is as follows: A hole is made in the fruit 

 within a few weeks from the time the blossoms fall, and a small 

 white egg is placed therein by the Snout Beetle or Curculio. From 

 this egg hatches a larva which feeds within the fruit until it reaches 

 maturity, and either drops with the fallen fruit or otherwise falls 

 to the ground, just beneath the surface of which it pupates or be- 

 comes a chrysalis, there remaining during the winter to appear 

 again in the early spring as an adult or mature insect. 



THE OECHARL), ADAPTATION OF SOIL TO VARIETY. 



Bv Prof. Henry J. Wildbk. Bureau of Soils. DeiMrtment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 



Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen: I want to talk to you a 

 few minutes about one of the factors in fruit growing which, very, 

 strangely, has received little attention until recently. In planting an 

 apple orchard, the first subject for consideration is its situation with 

 respect to drainage of both air and water, then exposure, and re- 

 gional or climatic adaptation to variet}'. These factors may readily 

 be determined by superficial observation, and very, often are the only 

 ones considered, as many think the character of the soil makes little 

 or no difference if the other conditions are right. But the fact is 

 already well established that after these factors have been decided 

 upon, the consideration of the kind of soil is of utmost importance, 

 not only as to its general adaptation to orcharding in that it is 

 "•deep and well drained'' — often the only factors considered — but 

 particularly with a view to planting each variety in the kind of 

 soil where it will produce the most of the best variety of that par- 

 ticular variety of fruit, for there is no longer any doubt that certain 

 varieties at^least have a very decided preference for soils of cer- 

 tain characters and that such varieties should be planted commer- 

 cially on those soils only, which produce them to the best advantage. 

 For it needs little argument to sho\Y tbat ^ given variety grown 



