348 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



hold the moisture, which to the people of Missouri is one of the most 

 important factors in growing fruit. 



Save all your wood ashes and scatter broadcast over the ground 

 and cultivate them in if the land is close and heavy, and if you can't 

 get the ashes use lime ; it will cut the clay and tough close soil and 

 liberate the plant food. 



Turkeys are also good to eat the insects. The poultry may be shut 

 out of the fruit garden and orchard by the use of two-inch mesh wire 

 fence three feet high, which is cheap and easily constructed. 



Gather up all wormy, scabby fruit, boil in water to kill the larvte 

 of insects, then feed to hogs. 



If you have not followed the plan outlined in this article, please 

 try it and if it does not prove a success please report to your humble 

 servant. N. F. Murray, Oregon, Holt county. Mo. 



IMPOETANT WINTER ORCHARD WORK. 



Black knot may be held in check by proper treatment in the win- 

 ter. The work should not be left until growth starts, as the disease 

 may then spread to many trees. Cut off diseased branches some dis- 

 tance below the point of visible attack, as the mycelium, or vegetative 

 part of the fungus, spreads through the tissues beyond the point of 

 apparent attack. The winter spores are mature now, or approaching 

 maturity, and these, under favorable conditions, germinate and spread 

 the disease. In pruning infected trees use care that the blade of the 

 knife does not come in contact with the spores. There is no doubt 

 that this disease is frequently carried to other trees by pruning. I 

 have occasionally observed that in grafting the plum black knot makes 

 its appearance where the scion is put onto the graft. 



Bladder plum or plum pocket occurs on different species of the 

 plum, and is caused by different species of exoa€cus. It is of annual 

 reoccurrence in different species of the plum. The swollen bladder, 

 which is found on the Chickashaw and that type of plum, commonly 

 recurs on the same tree. In some cases the diseased portions were 

 very much greater than the sound. 



Cedar apple fungus and apple rust, as is; well known, is connected 

 with the rust occurring on the crab apple. By removing the kidney- 

 shaped brown galls on the red cedar in the winter, the cluster cup 

 fungus of the apple may be prevented. Of course, where the 'cedar 

 gall is very numerous, this may be quite troublesome. It is better not 

 to have the red cedar in proximity to a bearing orchard. 



