NURSERY AND ORCHARD CONDITIONS IN MINN. IN JULY 'o6 349 



US that he had seen only two or three branches broken by thoughtless 

 boys. Apple grafts, as a rule, have made a good stand and in a 

 few places made excellent growth, though in other places the 

 superabundance of water has kept them in check. 



Spraying in nursery and orchard seems to be a fairly general 

 practice, Bordeaux mixture being the principal fungicide used. One 

 nurseryman has used dust spray for several years, he claims, with 

 excellent results. We were pleased to note one spraying outfit model- 

 ed somewhat on the lines of the tall cart which we had made by 

 this department, and which was exhibited a year or two ago at one 

 of the summer meetings of the society. 



We found leaf hoppers not so bad as they have been, though in 

 a few places they were checking the growth of the apple trees. We 

 found the locust borer severely injuring locusts in one locality, and 

 the usual quota of lice in various nurseries, but nothing serious. 

 Fire blight is bad in some places, and not seen at others. At this 

 date it is not so general as it has been in previous years. In one 

 place, however, we found Wealthy, Duchess and Transcendents al- 

 most succumbing to it, and the Transcendents, old trees, doomed to 

 be cut down on this account. 



Strawberry plants we found in many places to have suffered 

 considerably from the severe winter, and as a rule there is a poor 

 crop this season. In one place we find that the grub has been work- 

 ing upon the crown of the plants. Raspberry canes, too, were in 

 a number of places injured by the severity of the winter season. 

 One orchard was found with trees loaded with fruit, and the 

 proprietor claims he had as fine a crop last year and thinks it is due 

 to using Bordeaux every year and pruning judiciously. 



What to Feed Cutworms.— A neighbor who had lost her pansies year 

 after year decided to plant a row of castor beans near her flower beds. 

 These beans grow rapidly here and are always rice to lock at. They shaded 

 the pansy bed and conserved the moisture. The worms seemed to prefer to 

 eat the roots of the castor bean plant. In the morning she found them lying 

 on the ground dead, and the pansies were safe. Has that been the experience 

 of other Orange Judd Farmer readers? 



