SECRETARY'S PORTFOLIO. 529 



in which the percentage of the fruits of each quality are given for the syr- 

 inged and unsyringed part of the tree. The weight of 100 fruits in each 

 quality is also given in ounces as an indication of the amount of injury 

 wrought by the fungus : 



Qualities. 



First quality... 

 Second quality 

 Third quality.. 



It appears that in the syringed part of the tree the per cent of uninjured 

 fruit was double that in the unsyringed part, Avhile the per cent of the third 

 quality, or much injured fruit, was one-half less. It also appears that all of 

 the fruits on the syringed part averaged larger in size than those on the 

 unsyringed part. It was also noted that the number of decayed fruits was 

 much greater on the unsyringed part of the tree. This year I repeated the 

 experiment on the same tree with more striking results. A fair crop of 

 fruit has matured on the syringed part, while on the part not syringed hangs 

 only here and there a fruit, and all fruits on this part of the tree are totally 

 ruined by the fungus. 



I also applied the same solution to a part of a Seckel pear tree of which 

 the fruit has been much injured in the past seasons by the scab. The appli- 

 cation was made at three different times, and of the same strength as above 

 noted. I assorted the fruit into two qualities. In the syringed part 60 per 

 cent were of first quality, with forty per cent in the second, while in the 

 unsyringed part 54 per cent were in the first quality and 4<J in the second. 

 The second quality from the syringed part averaged rather better than from 

 the other part. 



I purpose repeating the experiment next season upon trees of the Virgalieu 

 pear to see if the scabbing and cracking of the fruit may not be, in part at 

 least, prevented. Hyposulphite of soda is a very cheap substance, which 

 may be purchased or ordered at any drug store. It is very readily soluble in 

 water, and is scarcely, if at all, poisonous. In syringing trees for the codling 

 moth this substance may be dissolved in the water that contains the Paris 

 green, and thus the expense of a special application may be avoided. 



Yellows on Peaches. — Mr. Eli Minch of Farm and Garden, says: I do 

 not believe that seeds from trees having the yellows will produce unhealthy 

 trees, and from such seeds I agree to grow fine healthy seedlings, and I 

 deem the man who contends that the yellows is a contagious disease a dan- 

 gerous character. There is no trouble if the soil and climate are favorable 

 — that is, if the latter is not too severe and the former not too wet for grow- 

 ing healthy peach seedlings from seeds of trees affected with the yellows. 

 The use of sufficient potash and bone will grow healthy trees in all cases, as 

 I know from a thorough trial in growing the peach. So much is said about 

 the contagious nature of the yellows, without any foundation, and so many 



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