no A TREATISE ON NUT CULTURE. 



also very common, although I have counted as high as eleven. I relate these 

 facts simply to show the possibilities of Pecan culture. 



Squirrels. 



We are here confronted with the most industrious pest we have to contend 

 with. If we are as industrious in doing our work as they are in undoing it, we 

 will make the Pecan business a success. A good shot gun is the best thing to 

 dispose of them with, and the meat of Pecan-fed squirrels is excellent eating. 

 Their number is also decreased by the use of common steel traps, baited with 

 pieces of Pecan. But we cannot trust to shot guns and steel traps alone. 

 Opossoms and coons also put many Pecans out of sight; so to effectually pro- 

 hibit all intruders from going up trees, I nail a tin guard around. Old coal oil 

 cans, having tops and bottoms taken out, and one side opened, make a cheap 

 and desirable protection. If a tree is much stooped, then put an extra layer of 

 tin on the upper side. Of course notice that no other trees are near enough for 

 them to jump from on to the one so protected. Squirrels will also grabble up 

 the Pecan nuts during the first year of planting, and in whatever state they 

 find it. These they have an acute sense of smelling. In the first year's growth 

 if the nut is severed from the seedling tree it will dwindle, and sometimes die." 



PECANS A PROFITABLE CROP. 

 By /. G. Golding, Hunt Co., Texas. 



It is not generally known in the North that there are Pecan orchards and 

 groves in Texas of two hundred to four hundred acres. The nuts are used for 

 dessert and also made into cakes, candies and oil. Of all the nut family the 

 Pecan is by far the most valuable. The nuts possess a rich, oily meat, have a 

 most delicious flavor, and once tasted are always sought after. A Pecan orchard 

 is better than a gold mine or stock in any bank. From fifty to one hundred 

 trees are set per acre, which, when in full bearing, yield four to six bushels per 

 tree. The nuts sell at wholesale at $3 to $4 per bushel, and retail for a great 

 deal more. Pecan culture is certainly a bonanza, and there is nothing that will 

 give such large returns for so little labor. This paying industry has been long 

 neglected. The nuts are as salable as flour or meat, and one hundred times the 

 quantity now raised might be easily disposed of. The nuts are now generally 

 sold a year in advance. Buyers contract one year foj the next year's crop, 

 agreeing to take all the nuts of an orchard at a stated price per bushel. In the 

 Fall the nuts ripen and fall to the ground, are then raked into heaps with 

 what is called a sweep. They are then packed in boxes or barrels for market. 

 This work is often done by the buyer, and all the owner of the orchard or grove 

 has to do is to see that he gets correct measure and receives the cash. 



