254 STATE rOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



pieces of tin about the tree. 'J'hcse liavc a joint by Avliich the tin may be put 

 around the tree. When they are locked togetlier, the lower edge of the tin is 

 pressed a little into tlio soil, and the rest, like a bottomless cup. projects two 

 or three inches above the jrround. These tins are used about all young trees. 

 The worms cannot climb the tin and they do not know enough to dig under. 

 The trunks look very clean and healthy. There are a few borers which are 

 hunted witli a wire and knife ; they are cut out or punched to death. To keep 

 away the curculios he picks up and destroys all the fallen fruit, lie has tried 

 the Ivansom-chip process, but does Jiot think it worth using on his place. He 

 runs a hopper-shaped canvas under the trees — the canvas is attached to a frame 

 which is on a sort of wheclI)arrow, having two wheels. He does not pound the 

 trees even with the ball of his hand, as he says it will loosen the bark and 

 injure the tree, neither docs he saw off a limb or drive a spike into the tree to 

 pound with a hammer. He places a crotched stick against the larger limbs in 

 several different ])laces about tlie tree, and jars as quickly as he can by his 

 hands, which hold the stick. Tiie jarring is begun as soon as he finds insects, 

 and continued as long as he finds cnougii to amount to any thing. He has 

 generally only jarred once in three days, but he lives in a new country, and 

 no one near him has any plum trees. He thinks that next year tho curculio 

 may be kept down by simply picking up the stung fruit. 



AVe may say here that at Soutli Haven they find it a great advantage to use 

 chips or blocks in taking the curculio. Here we may also add that Mr. Bryant 

 of South Haven has jarred his trees for a number of years with a mallet 

 padded with India rubber. We saw no signs of any injury to any tree from 

 this cause. The insects work the worst on the thin-skinned plums, but would 

 doubtless destroy all alike if there was no chance for a choice. Of varieties he 

 has most of Washington and likes it best; next comes Jefferson. His other 

 sorts are Imperial Gage. Smith's Orleans, Lawrence's Favorite, McLaflin, 

 Bradshaw, Lombard, Pond's Seedling, Fellemburgh, Yellow Egg, Green Gage, 

 Monroe Egg, Bavay's Green Gage. For a hundred trees he would now choose 

 twenty Washington, twenty Jefferson, ten Lawrence's Favorite, seventeen 

 Bradsliaw, seventeen Smith's Orleans, sixteen Lombard, thus selecting about 

 equal quantities of yellow and of purple varieties. 



From the 200 oldest trees he took three years ago, about 50 bushels of plums ; 

 the next year, 75 bushels; this year the estimate was 150 bushels on these 200 

 trees. The average price at Traverse city has been four dollars a bushel. For 

 shipping to a distant market, he nails in close boxes, 10x10x22.1 inches. The 

 plums are closely pressed into the box to prevent motion. 



The soil is generally sand and gravel, somewhat uneven on account of tiie 

 hills and rolling surface. This sand abounds in small particles of lime ; even 

 the gravel contains a large per cent of limestone i)ebbles. Near one of the 

 best trees, we dug down four feet and found a reddish sand soon after leaving 

 the surface. It is generally thought that clay, or rather heavy soil, is best for 

 plums. Perhaps in the Traverse country, with a climate so congenial to the 

 plum, a heavy soil is not so important. Time alone will tell whether trees will 

 thrive and bear to a good old age in this soil. There is certainly now every 

 indication of health and pro})cr growth, such as wo should look for in trees 

 cxi)ected to la-t for many years. 



(Jn another farm near old mission we saw three sound and healthy {)lum trees, 

 which we were told had been standing seventeen years. During part of this 

 time, however, they had borne no fruit, as the owners did not understand 

 catching the curculio. 



