202 



HOETICULTUKE 



August 14, 1915 



SEED TRADE 



AMERICAN SEED TRADE ASSOCIATION 



Officers — President, J- M. Lupton, 

 Mattituck, L. I., N. Y. ; First Vice-Presi- 

 dent, Kirby B. White, Detroit, Mich.; 

 Second Vice-President, F. W. Bolglano, 

 WasliinKton, D. C: Secretary-Treasurer, 

 C. E. Kendel, Cleveland, O. ; Assistant 

 Secretary, 8. F. Wlllard, Jr., Cleveland, 

 O. Cincinnati, O., next meetine place. 



Crimson Clover Seed 

 There is apparently a larger supply 

 of crimson clover seed on hand at the 

 present time than in any previous 

 year and much of it is of poor quality, 

 according to specialists of the U. S. 

 Department of Agriculture. While this 

 would indicate that the price should 

 be normal or less than normal it is 

 rapidly advancing. 



The greater part of the crimson 

 clover seed sowed in the United States 

 is normally imported from France and 

 Austria. In the fall of 1914 conditions 

 of trade with Europe were such that 

 there appeared to be danger of a short 

 supply of seed for this summer's plant- 

 ing. The desire of the seed trade to 

 secure as much seed as possible, to- 

 gether with the improvement in trade 

 facilities with France during the win- 

 ter and spring, resulted in the impor- 

 tation of 12,000,000 pounds during the 

 year ending June 30, 1915, as com- 

 pared with 7,500,000 pounds the year 

 previous and 1,500,000 pounds in 1910. 

 During May and June much seed of 

 poor quality has been imported, more 

 than 1.000,000 pounds made up of sev- 

 eral lots, germinating from 29 per 

 cent, to 62 per cent. Buyers should 

 therefore be sure of the quality of the 

 seed they buy. Crimson clover seed 

 of a bright greenish yellow color usu- 

 ally germinates well, while a brownish 

 color indicates poor germination. All 

 lots containing brownish or brown 

 seeds should be carefully tested for 

 germination to determine the propor- 

 tion that may be expected to grow in 

 the field under favorable conditions 

 and the rate of seeding should be ad- 

 justed accordingly. 



Crop Damage in Massachusetts. 



Damage amounting to several mil- 

 lions of dollars has been done to the 

 crops of Massachusetts as the result 

 of the extraordinary rainfall of the 

 last few weeks, according to Secre- 

 tary Wheeler of the Massachusetts 

 State Board of Agriculture. 



Mr. Wheeler, who has just returned 

 from a trip about the State, declared 

 that the agricultural situation has not 

 been so bad since 1817, which was 

 known as the "starvation" year. He 

 declared that the State's annual $12.- 

 000,000 hay crop will be cut in half 

 this year, that the potato crop has 

 been virtually destroyed and that the 

 squash, cranberry, onion and tobacco 

 crops have been unusually hard hit. 

 The outlook for the onion and tobacco 

 crops in the Connecticut valley, he de- 

 clared, is particularly discouraging. 

 He stated that he saw farms of five 



acres that were planted with potatoes 

 where not a leaf was showing. Hay 

 is selling now for $12 a ton, or higher, 

 he said, than at any time since the 

 Civil war. 



Mr. Wheeler said that the situation 

 might be helped if September is fine. 

 To date, he stated, the fruit growers 

 have not suffered a great deal, but 

 that they will if the rain continues. 



He accounted for the low price of 

 garden truck by the light season in 

 the hotel business. The weather, he 

 asserted, has kept people away from 

 the beach hotels, which ordinarily re- 

 quire tremendous quantities of vege- 

 tables to support them. 



Notes. 



NO QUARINTINE OF CHESTNUT 

 NURSERY STOCK. 



Following a public hearing on the 

 subject, the Federal Horticultural 

 Board has determined not to quaran- 

 tine chestnut nursery stock for the 

 purpose of preventing the distribution 

 of the chestnut bark disease. The 

 board announced that the disease 

 spreads slowly and opportunity has al- 

 ready existed for several years for the 

 distribution of this disease in small 

 quantities to areas where extensive 

 new plantings of chestnut are being 

 inaugurated. Recommendation is made 

 that plantings of chestnut stock be 

 carefully inspected for the presence of 

 the disease. 



D. F. Lomason, of the D. M. Ferry 

 Co., of Detroit, Mich., was in St. Louis 

 last week attending to his yearly col- 

 lection of unsold seeds. 



NEW CORPORATIONS. 



Pittsburgh, Pa. — Elliott Nursery Co. 

 Incorporators: J. Wilkinson Elliott, 

 Thos. M. and Rhea F. Elliott. 



The value of imports of horticul- 

 tural material at the port of New York 

 for the week ending July 31, 1915. is 

 given as follows: Manure salt, $2,327; 

 sulphate of potash. $3,701; fertilizer, 

 $216; clover seed, $6,256; grass seed, 

 $1,690; palm seed. $2,646; trees and 

 plants, $5,576. 



Rochester, N. Y. — Howe-Campbell 

 Nursery Co. Capital stock $1,000. In- 

 corporators: Cora M. Graham, John 

 M. Campbell and T. H. Howe. 



Oswego, N. Y. — The Fenfold Green- 

 houses have been purchased by C. A. 

 Tanner. 



CONVENTION 

 :: NUMBER :: 



'T'HOUSANDS will be interested 

 to know what has been going on in 

 San Francisco. The full story of 

 the Convention Proceedings will ap- 

 pear in Horticulture's Convention 

 Number, August 21st. It will be 

 read from cover to cover. If your 

 advertisement is there it will get its 

 share of attention. If you have not 

 done so already send advertising copy 

 by Tuesday 17th, and it will be a 



winner. 



