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THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



prizes, and they would come many miles for 

 this purpose. An exhibit was ten bushels of 

 a kind, and usually this was sold at an ad- 

 vance of ID or 15 cents a bushel over the or- 

 dinary price for such grain. Mr. A. 

 Reynolds, of Scarboro Junction, said such a 

 fair had been conducted under the auspices 

 of the Farmers' Institute of East York for 

 ten years, and last year 6000 bushels of 

 seed grain had changed hands ! This meant 

 much for improved grain growing in this 

 locality. He was going to advocate three 

 such seed fairs in different parts of his dis- 

 trict this year. 



The McDonald Seed Grain Division at 

 Ottawa was represented by Mr. Clarke, who 

 said that prizes to schools were proposed, 

 somewhat as follows : — 



(i). To the rural schools exhibiting the 

 best collection of weeds pressed and mount- 

 ed ; and weed seeds in ounce bottles, each 

 specimen and bottle to be properly labeled, 

 ist, $50 ; 2nd, $30 ; 3rd, $20 ; 4th, $10. 



(2). For the best collection of grain and 

 foliage crop plants, showing stolons, bran- 

 ches and part of root, consisting of five 

 complete plants of each variety * * * Open 

 to farmers' sons and daughters, under eigh- 

 teen years of age — $25 ; $15 ; $10 ; $5. 



(3). To the rural school exhibiting the 

 best collection of beneficial and injurious 

 insects, mounted and properly named in 

 groups according to the fruits or grains on 

 which they attack — $50 ; $30 ; $20 ; $10. 



(4) To the rural school having the best 

 kept lawn with the most artistically arranged 

 flower beds ; said flower beds to contain 

 such varieties of plants as may be most 

 helpful in the study of botany. Competitors 

 for this prize must make application before 

 the 15th of May of each year. (The judge 

 in this competition will be the Public School 

 inspector, together with any other person 

 or persons whom the Association may see 

 fit to appoint for the purpose of visiting the 

 competing schools during the month of Sep- 

 tember. In all competitions of rural schools, 

 the work must be done and the collections 

 made by the pupils themselves under the 

 direction of the teacher. ) 



Failure in Spraying. — Mr. A. Rogers, of 

 Aylmer called at our office on the 14th 

 February. He and his son carry on a fruit 

 farm near that town with success, cultivat- 

 ing small fruits, grapes, peaches, plums, 

 &c. " How do you prevent plum rot ? " he 

 asked. " Spraying with Bordeaux mix- 

 ture," was our answer. '* It has been 

 a failure with me," said he. "I sprayed 

 six times last season, and yet the plum rot 

 was very serious in my orchard." ""How 

 did you do it ?" Well, I rode along in the 

 wagon and sprayed from that as we drove 

 past the trees." '* Did you thin your 

 fruit?" "No, they hung in great clusters 

 and we did not have time to thin them out." 



Plum Rot. — The secret of this gentleman's 

 failure to prevent the plum rot is the same 

 which explains that of many others. The 

 spraying of a tree is only effective for that 

 portion of the leaves or fruit which is covered. 

 Any part of a leaf, or fruit, left uncovered 

 with spray is subject to the attack of a fun- 

 gus disease. Fruit unthinned, or trees un- 

 pruned, are not easily covered ; especially 

 is it difficult to cover each separate plum 

 when they hang in clusters, the fruits 

 in close contact. How can a man, dashing 

 a little spray upon a tree as he rides along 

 past, cover every side of every plum on 

 such a tree ? The thing is simply im- 

 possible ! He must get out of his wagon 

 and walk about the tree and carefully spray 

 every inch of wood, leaf and fruit, and then 

 he may hope for success. 



Thinning plums or peaches, when over- 

 loaded, is absolutely necessary for success- 

 ful spraying for fruit rot, for when in con-, 

 tact the moisture is held between them that 

 favors the spread of this fungus. 



Peaches succeed very well about Aylmer, 

 though only a few have as yet entered upon 

 their cultivation. Mr. Rogers has several 

 hundred trees, including such varieties as 

 Crosby and Langhurst, because of their sup- 

 posed hardiness. " I was surprised," he 



