840 EXPEEIMEN-T STATION" RECORD. 



nature of the information required in making tree measurements and describes 

 the methods adopted by the British Board of Agriculture in making tree meas- 

 urements. 



Lumber and its uses, R. S. Kellogg (Chicago, 1914, PP- 352, pis. 39, figs. 12; 

 rev. in Engin. Rec, 10 (1914), No. 1, p. 26). — This is a compilation of general 

 information on the subject. Beginning with the structure and physical proper- 

 ties of tlie wood, the author proceeds to lumber grades, standard sizes of lum- 

 ber, and shipping weights. A discussion of structural timbers includes stand- 

 ard definitions and Forest Service rules. Chapters follow on seasoning of tim- 

 ber, wood preservation, paints and stains, wood paving blocks, hardwood floor- 

 ing and fire resistance, and lumber prices. Under the two headings " the uses 

 of lumber " and " commercial woods " is given a somewhat long and detailed 

 discussion of the uses to which each kind of lumber is put and the kinds of 

 wood which supply the material for a large number of wooden commodities. 

 Statistics as to forest products and the timber supply, and a section giving 

 sources of information about lumber, are also included. 



Vocabulary of forest terms, compiled by W. A. A. Reinhardt (Harrishurg, 

 Pa., 1909, pp. 24). — This comprises a vocabulary of terms in silviculture, forest 

 protection, and forest utilization found in Schwappach's Forestry ( Forstwissen- 

 schaft) (E. S. R., 16, p. 1083). 



DISEASES OF PLANTS. 



[Investigations in plant diseases] (Wisconsin Sta. Bui. 240 (1914), pp. 47- 

 53, 54, 55, figs. 8). — A summary is given of recent investigations on plant dis- 

 eases carried on under the direction of L. R. Jones, R. E. Vaughan, and others, 

 the principal investigations being on onion smut, pea blight, disease-resisting 

 cabbage, barley seed disinfecton, root rot of tobacco, black rot of tobacco, and 

 false blossom of cranberries. 



The experiments for the control of onion smut demonstrated that formalin 

 solution applied to the seed disinfected both seed and surrounding soil, and 

 not only greatly reduced the amount of smut, but nearly doubled the yield. 



In the pea blight investigations, which have been carried on for several years, 

 the methods of control previously reported (E. S. R., 28, p. 844) have been 

 tried under field conditions. Definite benefits were obtained by plowing and 

 harrowing immediately after the removal of the crop, repeating these operations 

 three times before freezing. The use of clean seed and a strict rotation of 

 crops, together with plowing immediately after crop i-emoval will greatly reduce 

 loss from this disease. It has been previously shown that the spores of the 

 fungus are carried over by the straw or stubble, and in connection with some 

 of the new canning plants In the State, silos have been constructed by which 

 the pea vines are utilized, the process of fermentation destroying the fungus. 



Continued success is being met with in the experiments for the breeding of 

 cabbage resistant to yellows, and sufficient seed of the second generation was 

 obtained in 1913 for distribution and demonstration trials during 1914. 



In experiments with the modified hot-water treatment of grain, A. G. John- 

 son found that soaking the grain for six hours in cold water, then for fifteen 

 minutes in water heated to 126° F., completely eliminated the smut and reduced 

 the barley stripe disease from 20 per cent to less than 1 per cent in treated 

 plats. 



In reporting upon the root rot and the black rot of tobacco. J. Johnson points 

 out that serious loss in Wisconsin and Ontario, as well as elsewhere, is due to 

 the presence of the root rot fungus (Thielavia basicola). This may be largely 

 controlled by proper sterilization of the seed bed, as much of the disease origl- 



