June, 1913. 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



147 



I 



The old sods offer protection against 

 birds which devour them. Therefore it 

 is not safe to plant strawberries in newly 

 plowed sod. It is better to occupy the 

 ground with some crop which requires 

 considerable hoeing and cultivation for 

 at least two years before planting to 

 strawberries. This gives the birds a 

 chance to clear the ground of this pest. 



Birds themselves are exceedingly 

 troublesome to the small grower dur- 

 ing the fruiting season, and they seem 

 to be decidedly partial to the finest 

 specimens. On the first sign of ripen- 



ing, I place pieces of newspaper under 

 the clusters to protect them from the 

 bugs in the ground and inverted straw- 

 berry boxes on top to protect them from 

 the Ijirds. In this way only could I save 

 my best berries. It means work, but 

 one always feels well repaid for the extra 

 labor which this protection involves. 



The small grower can usually supply 

 water during dry weather, and it should 

 never be withheld if it is possible to 

 apply it. A good soaking twice a week 

 in the evening is far better than a 

 sprinkling every day. 



The Roadside Problem 



Prof. E. M. Straight, Maine A. C, formerly ol Macdonald College, Que. 



I 



AI'^EW days ago I cut a fairly 

 lepresentative twig from a wild 

 cherry tree in the town of South 

 Portland, Me. It was a roadside speci- 

 men, gnarled, broken, and growing in 

 the gutter. The illustration shows that 

 the twig contained six egg masses of 

 the tent caterpillar, two nests of the 

 brown-tail moth, one fire-blight, and 

 one black-knot. Thousands of dollars 

 are being spent year by year in trying 

 to rid the orchards in the vicinity of 

 the dreaded brown-tail moth and other 

 pests. Best results here or elsewhere 

 need never be hoped for so long as the 

 foadsides are allowed to remain the 

 common breeding ground of all ene- 

 mies of the farm and garden. 



The nest to the right appeared like 

 that shown in the second illustration, 

 after being kept in the office for a few 

 days. It will be seen that there are two 

 or three hundred caterpillars crawling 

 on the outside of the nest. Egg-masses 

 of the forest-tent or the American 

 caterpillar contain two or three hundred 



eggs. We may only guess at the num- 

 l>er of spores produced by that knot and 

 blight. Certainly that twig possesses 

 mighty potentialities inimical to the best 

 interests of the orchardist this coming 

 season. 



When attempts are made to clean up 

 the roadsides, it Has amused us to note 

 the care taken to save the bush, even if 

 necessary to completely dehorn it. If 

 the axe were laid at the root of the tree 

 it would be the easiest and most satis- 

 factory form of solution. 



The caterpillar of the brown-tail moth 

 has, when young, the "spinning down" 

 habit, and is transported by vehicles 

 and pedestrians. New centres of in- 

 festation may be set up thus, many 

 miles from the original. 



Weeds in the roadside fence corners, 

 borers in the fence poles, and cater- 

 pillars on wayside bushes form a com- 

 bination not short of a menace to the 

 farm community. 



When the farmer accepts the roadside 

 problem as his own, and cleans it up he 



Roadaide Tree* Like Theie are a Menace to the Fruit Industry 



This illustration, secured by Prof, E. M. Straight, of a wild cherry tree ehows six egg ina.se«e of 

 the tent caterpillar, two neata of the brown tail moth, one fire-bligiht a.nd one bla«k knot. 



A Nest of the Tent Caterpillar 



will strike a blow at insect pests and 

 fungous diseases which will eventually 

 count for much on the cultivated areas 

 of the farm. Governments and munici- 

 palities cannot be expected to do the 

 work. It is the farmer's problem, and 

 not until the farmer accepts the road 

 passing through his farm as a part of 

 his farm will the problem be solved. 



When the winter approaches the far- 

 mer draws a long breath. He feels that 

 for a few months at least he may relax 

 his efforts. Insect injury is about over 

 for the time, but efforts toward insect 

 control should never cease. When trees 

 are bare and insects dormant much may 

 be done. Mechanical methods of kill- 

 ing insects must not be neglected. It 

 must be evident that a man can do 

 more effectual work on the twig in the 

 illustration mechanically now than by 

 waiting and applying any amount of 

 poisoned sprays later. 



An apple-twig borer may be cut out, 

 scales on a tree trunk may be scraped 

 off, and a thousand other little devices 

 attended to, which accomplish the work 

 sought quickly and effectually. 



Methods Which Have Won 

 Success 



R. S. DuncsD, B. S. A., Port Hope, Ont. 



Mr. G. H. Martyn and Son, fruit 

 growers, of Fairview Farm, Port Hope, 

 have demonstrated what can be done 

 in the way of successful farming. 

 Twelve years ago, Mr. Martyn bought 

 his present farm, which was then prac- 

 tically abandoned. The buildings were 

 almost a complete wreck. To-day the 

 farm is one of the most complete to be 

 found in Ontario, the buildings have 

 been remodelled, the land is in a high 

 state of cultivation, and eight to nine 

 acres of new orchard have been planted, 

 making a total of thirteen to fourteen 

 acres in all. Mr. Martyn attributes his 



