No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 645 



tioning. The school grounds are seldom planted in a tasteful man- 

 ner and receive little care. These conditions are not right and it is 

 hoped that the Pennsylvania Horticultural Association and all kin- 

 dred societies of the State will do their utmost for the improvement 

 of our country schools. While many other states are enacting laws 

 relating to the teaching of nature study and elementary agriculture 

 in their schools, Pennsylvania is absolutely inactive along these 

 lines. 



THE GREAT NEED OF PENNSYLVANIA HORTICULTURE. 



There is a great range of opinions covering this question and some 

 of the needs as expressed by our correspondents are as follows: 

 "Education," "better teachers in the country schools," "how to spray 

 and eradicate the San Jose" Scale," "thoroughness in horticultural 

 operations," "brains," "vim," "brains and perseverance," "intelli- 

 gent, enthusiastic men to engage in the business," "intelligence and 

 grit," "a general awakening to the fact that careful attention will 

 produce profitable results," "a suitable school curriculum." Most of 

 the correspondents believe that education is the greatest need. Mr. 

 D. C. Young, of McKean county, says the greatest need is "some 

 Moses to lead us out of the wilderness." 



R. L. WATTS, 

 Chairman General Fruit Committee. 



The following "sub reports" are submitted for publication as con- 

 taining much valuable and practical information. 



R. L. W. 



AUSTIN WRIGHT, Bedford Co.— The general outlook for exten- 

 sive orcharding has not been as good as in the past few years, partly 

 on account of the presence of scale in many localities where it was 

 not suspected to exist. Orchardists, and the home planter are 

 awakening to the destructive aspects of the future spread of scale 

 and other pests and diseases, and a general education of the people 

 by authority of the State is expected to show good results in the 

 near future. We have not had any experience in testing new fruits 

 in this county except by a very few planters who have not yet ar- 

 rived at definite conclusions as to merits or demerits of some new 

 creations. 



THEODORE DAY, Wayne Co. — One reason why we have had three 

 years of full apple crops, and in some orchards a fourth full crop, is 

 the absence of leaf-eating caterpillars and worms. I knew a disease 

 destroyed the May feeding tent caterpillars over 40 years ago, and 

 again some 20 years later, and fouud the same disease working in 

 a small orchard in Columbia county, and learned to spread it, and 

 saw the destruction of those caterpillars for miles. Fall web worms 

 that were extremely abundant there, also disappeared like magic; 

 and a trip out that way last fall showed me that a worm that built 

 the most complete and perfect tent of all, on scrub oak, had also dis- 

 appeared. I had this disease introduced in three townships in this 

 county, and in one place I placed it myself where forest space worms 

 were eating vast quantities of leaves, with the result that they too 

 have gone the same way. I saw a large colony of them the past sum- 

 mer dead and dying of the same caterpillar disease. These worms 



35—6—1905 



