April, '22] Mc laine: European nursery conditions 165 



Spraying of all boxwoods during the winter months. A so-called "spray- 

 ing brigade" has been organized to take care of the work on the smaller 

 holdings. 



Serious outbreaks of the brown tail moth are reported as unusual in 

 Holland, although they do occur occasionally in the Limburg district. 

 The gypsy moth is reported as rare. 



Belgium 



The great greenhouse district in Belgium centres around Ghent and 

 Melle. Before the war this was a very prosperous community, with 

 fine ranges of greenhouses, good packing sheds, etc., but as this area 

 was occupied by the Germans from the summer of 1914 until 1918 

 business was practically at a standstill. During the occupation many 

 firms were unable to obtain any coal for their greenhouses, whereas, 

 others could secure only a sufficient quantity to maintain a temperature 

 of between two and four degrees centigrade in their houses during the 

 coldest weather, consequently many lost heavily. The growers in this 

 area devote their attention almost entirely to the propagation of azaleas, 

 palms, araucarias, aspidistras and rhododendrons. 



Great care is taken in the preparation of the soil for the propagation 

 of azaleas. The soil in which they are grown is of a heavy peaty nature, 

 and brewers or malt grains are used as fertilizer. The slips are planted 

 in pots in the spring, and grafted in August. The plants are kept in 

 greenhouses during the winter, placed outside in May and returned to 

 the greenhouses in September. While outside they are often covered 

 with mats or frames to form partial shade. The plants are examined 

 several times during the season and packed for export in the nursery 

 rows. The larger firms propagate from twenty to fifty thousand azaleas 

 a year. The majority of growers in this district do not export but sell 

 their products to the larger firms. 



Belgian Inspection Service. The inspection service is organized 

 on a similar basis to the corresponding service in Holland, and was started 

 in 1912 as a result of the United States quarantine brought into effect that 

 year. The Chief Inspector is stationed at Ghent and has a number of 

 inspectors associated with him. The nurseries are inspected at least 

 twice each year and a report as to their condition is submitted to the 

 Chief Inspector. If this is satisfactory, the nurseryman is furnished with 

 a "general certificate," without which he may not dispose of his stock, 

 even locally. The "general certificate" must be produced before an ex- 

 port certificate is issued. The stock is then re-examined at the time of 

 shipment and if found clean the shipper is furnished with the export 

 certificate. 



