21 



affect the upper side of the large branches in older trees. It is caused 

 by the action of the hot sun on the trunk and branches in the early 

 spring. The first indication is an unhealthy appearance of the bark on 

 the south and southwest sides of trunk and upper side of large branches, 

 the affected parts soon turn brown, then black, and finally die. 



In districts where sunscald is apt to occur, it is well to head the 

 trees low and incline the stem slightly to the southwest. In this way 

 the branches afford some shade to the trunk. Anything which will shade 

 the trunk in early spring will prevent the injury. For this purpose the 

 most convenient of the following materials may be used : cornstalks, 

 birchbark, building paper, or a veneer of thin wood, such as is used in 

 basket making. The large branches of old trees should receive natural 

 protection from the small branches and twigs of the top. For this rea- 

 son severe pruning of the top is not advisable in northern districts. 



When trees are badly affected they usually die, but where the injury 

 is slight, and is noticed soon after it occurs, treatment is practicable. 

 Cut away the injured parts, and cover the wound with grafting wax or 

 some material which will keep the wood from drying out. If the tree 

 is healthy and vigorous, the annual growth spreading in from the sound 

 parts soon repairs the injury. 



Protection From Mice. 



During the past two or three years, mice have become a serious men-« 

 ace to young orchards. The rapid increase in numbers may be largely 

 accounted for by the indiscriminate destruction of the farmer's best 

 friends, the hawks, that feed largely on mice by day, and the owls, which 

 take up the work by night. By carefully protecting the hawks and 

 owls for a few years, their numbers will again increase, so that the equi^ 

 librium of nature may be restored. In the meantime something must 

 be done to protect the trees against the rodents. 



Mice seldom harbor in a green crop, and on clean fields they find no 

 protection. They are found chiefly along the fence lines and in old mea- 

 dows. As there is usually some shelter afforded the mice near orchards, 

 it is advisable to guard against their depredations. In localities where 

 the snow falls early and remains on the ground all winter, the simplest 

 means of protecting the trees is to tramp the snow firmly about the base 

 of each tree early in the winter. Where the ground is not continuously 

 covered with snow during the winter, a mound of earth about the tree 

 is sometimes all that is required to divert the runways of the mice. 

 Building paper cut into strips which will reach about one foot high when 

 tied about the trunk of the tree in autumn has been found to be both a 

 cheap and an effective preventive. 



