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Mr. Conrad Vollertsen : Ladies and gentlemen : My paper 

 this morning will necessarily be very short as the subject assigned to 

 me is one of which I so far have not had any practical experience 

 and therefore am unable to say much about. 



According to our program I have been assigned to make a few 

 remarks on " The Blight-proof Propagated Filbert," a subject I think 

 rather hard to discuss as we have so far no positive proof that blight, 

 if it at all exists on the improved filbert, will not eventually appear 

 on varieties we are now growing. I therefore believe the subject, 

 " Blight-proof Propagated Filbert," should have been worded some 

 what differently, as we have no assurance when blight may appear, 

 nor any guarantee against its appearance. It may fall on our plants 

 over night or at any time. That we can not prevent nor control. 



In the nursery of improved European filberts which we have 

 maintained for ten years, blight is so far not known and has never 

 made its appearance. We know of other filbert plants, several vari- 

 eties, all of German origin, in this, our home city, from thirty to 

 forty years old, never affected by blight, bearing nuts today. But all 

 this will not guarantee the improved propagated filbert to be blight- 

 proof. We certainly do not claim our propagated improved filbert 

 plants are blight-proof. In fact to our knowledge there is no such 

 thing as blight-proof filberts no more than there are blight-proof 

 pears, quinces or other fruits. But we do claim that our improved 

 filbert varieties, imported from Germany, will stand our climatic 

 changes very much better and will resist the attack of blight to a 

 greater extent than any other variety imported from France ogr Italy. 



We really do not fear blight. We have heard very much about 

 it and have so far seen nothing of it. But should it eventually appear 

 in our nursery I am fully convinced we can easily control it and pre- 

 vent its spreading by cutting the affected parts thoroughly away, 

 removing the diseased twigs or branches so low as to make the cut 

 in entirely sound wood. Through such an operation I am fully con- 

 vinced the disease can be completely eliminated in a comparatively 

 short time, should it ever appear. 



We have been repeatedly told blight will not only attack small 

 parts or branches of the improved filberts but will kill them entirely. 

 Such a thought I can never entertain, not for a moment. I have 

 had too many years' practical experience with the growing and culti- 

 vating of improved hazel or filbert plants, and have never seen any- 

 thing of the kind. It would be very interesting if members of this 

 association who have observed blight on the improved hazels and 

 seen plants actually killed by that disease would relate their experi- 

 ences and the real facts so as to enlighten the public on the subject. 

 For instance : 



Where did it happen that blight killed the plants entirely? 



What varieties were attacked and killed ? 



And was it genuine blight that killed them ? 



