126 The Pocket Gopher 



freed from the pest and the surface subsequently leveled, they 

 had better be used for pasture, as it is almost impossible to cut 

 the grass for hay. 



Orchards and Nurseries. Young trees in nurseries and 

 orchards or in belts planted for shade, ornament and shelter 

 sometimes suffer seriously from attacks upon their root sys- 

 tem. The gopher may gnaw off so many of the roots that the 

 tree readily topples over ; or at least it damages the system to 

 the extent that the health of the tree is impaired and its 

 growth stunted. The animal has the habit of following the 

 young hedge or nursery row for some distance, taking every- 

 thing as it goes. It may then cross over and follow another 

 row in the same manner. Fortunately for the interests of 

 the nurseryman, the gopher never gets the foothold in planta- 

 tions of young trees that it secures in alfalfa fields, by reason 

 of the fact that the former are cultivated frequently and the 

 ground plowed up every three or four years after the growing 

 stock has been cleaned off. The following are extracts from 

 letters received recently from prominent nurserymen and 

 orchardists of the state : 



"There has never been a year since we have planted apple-trees here, 

 thirteen years ago, that we have not been troubled with gophers. They 

 eat the roots of the large trees. Have never noticed that they went 

 straight down the rows." E. E. YAGGY, Hutchinson. 



"Once I had a large Austrian pine (seven feet) gnawed off at the 

 surface, and in a few hours afterwards the tree fell. I shot the gopher 

 and planted another pine in its place." H. F. CECIL, Topeka. 



"The gophers have been a serious pest to nurseries or trees near grass 

 or clover. They will sometimes go a long way through the trees if not 

 checked. They eat any kind of wood, even the hard Osage hedge. I do 

 not remember that they have ever eaten any grape-vines for me, but 

 probably because they are not where they could get to them freely. "- 

 A. H. GRIESA, Lawrence. 



"Will say, in regard to the pocket gopher, that we are not troubled as 

 much now as we were a number of years ago. When we first com- 

 menced planting trees in this locality we had considerable loss from 

 them. They do not seem to be particular as to the kind of tree. As we 

 grew more apple-trees than anything else, our loss was heavy in that 

 line. We found that the best manner of ridding ourselves of the gopher 

 was to poison them." J. H. SKINNER, Topeka. 



"We have had considerable trouble with the pocket gopher and a great 

 deal of loss. They seem to be worst with our young cherry. They some- 

 times run along the row for a few trees and then cross over into another 



