f>22 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



with a tribute to his judgment and integrity, and to the personal qualities which 

 endeared him to a wide circle of friends. 



In a paper on The Part Taken by Teleutospores and vEcidia in the Distribution 

 of Maize and Cereal Rusts, J. C. Arthur pointed out that corn rust is exceptionally 

 well fitted for studying the spread of rusts on cultivated crops. He showed that 

 this rust is spread chiefly by uredospores, starting in the spring largely from uredo- 

 spores blown in successive stages from warm regions of the South. It occasionally 

 begins still earlier and more vigorously by the germination of overwintered teleuto- 

 spores, first producing a crop of secidial spores on wild plants of the Oxalis genus, 

 which in turn infect the corn plant. The appearance of rust on a plant does not 

 imply that the source of infection is near by, for spores of some species of rust, 

 notably those of cultivated crops, may be blown long distances without losing vitality. 



F. M. Webster traced The Early History of the Hessian Fly in America. He recalled 

 that the name was applied to it because of its supposed introduction into this country 

 in straw which the Hessian 'troops brought over from their native country in 1776 

 and 1777, although there was said to be no proof that at that time the Hessian fly 

 inhabited Hesse or any part of Germany. The writer considered it improbable that 

 the fly was introduced through the Hessians, since records show that within a few 

 years after that date the insect was present in sufficient numbers to devastate the 

 wheat fields. Proof of the actual existence of the Hessian fly in America prior to 

 1776 was said to be lacking, although frequent references to depredations of "the 

 fly " were cited. The writer leaned to the belief that the Hessian rly was acciden- 

 tally introduced into America from Southern Europe at some time prior to 1776, 

 making its appearance first on Long Island and Staten Island in the vicinity of New 

 York, and that it first became a pest in that locality in 1779, receiving its present 

 name about that time. 



Regarding the subsequent diffusion of the Hessian fly over the United States, "all 

 that can be safely said is that the pest has followed closely in the wake of wheat 

 culture across the country from east to west, appearing in a community even before 

 wheat growing became an important industry," and remaining unobserved until it 

 became a serious pest. Like many other insects, it is carried comparatively long 

 distances by the winds and may in this way be spread beyond its supposed area of 

 distribution. For this reason the exact date of the appearance of the insect in a 

 particular locality can not be substantiated. 



Economic Methods of Restocking White Pine Forests was the subject of a paper 

 by F. W. Rane. He described an experiment in restocking a piece of land at the 

 New Hampshire Agricultural College, using seedlings which were dug up in various 

 localities about Durham. Twenty-two thousand of these seedlings were transplanted. 

 The cost of digging the 3-year-old seedlings is estimated at about 75 cents per thousand. 

 It was found that two men could set on an average about 400 seedlings an hour, at 

 a cost when set 8 by 8 feet apart of approximately 50 cents per acre for transplanting, 

 thus making the total expense of digging and transplanting approximately $1.25 a 

 thousand. This is regarded as cheaper than nursery stock, and to place beyond 

 question the economical restocking of lands adapted to the growth of white pine. 



In a paper on The Vitality of Seeds, W. J. Beal gave the results of experiments 

 begun nearly 25 years ago on the length of time which seeds of some common plants 

 would remain dormant in the soil and yet germinate when exposed to favorable con- 

 ditions. Samples containing 50 seeds of each of 22 different kinds of plants were 

 mixed with moderately moist sand taken from 3 feet below the surface, placed in 

 bottles, and buried with the mouths of the bottles uncorked, and slanting downward 

 in a sandy knoll. At the end of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years tests were made of the 

 vitality of these seeds, the results of which were detailed. Eight out of 22 kinds of 

 seed tested failed to germinate at either trial, while of the other 14 species 10 germi- 

 nated after they had been buried 25 years. Differences were noticeable in the readi- 

 ness with which equally sound seeds of the same species germinated. 



