204 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pal). Doc. 



that the results were decisive in favor of the economy of hot 

 water. 



Following this, an experiment has been commenced to test 

 the comparative merits of overhead and underbench piping. 

 These two systems were under comparative trial during last 

 winter, but the results were not decisive, and the experiment 

 is to be continued. 



The discovery of a method of protecting young fruit trees 

 from mice by painting in late fall with a mixture of cement 

 and Paris green (one tablespoonful of the latter to four 

 quarts of a rather thick paste of cement and water) is a 

 valuable result of Professor Maynard's work. 



The careful testing of various solutions and preparations 

 recommended for spraying fruit trees and vines, as well as 

 some of our garden crops, for the prevention of disease and 

 the destruction of insects, and the trial of apparatus devised 

 for such work, occupies a large share of attention. This 

 work is extensively carried on upon our own grounds, and 

 to some extent upon the grounds of prominent fruit growers 

 in different parts of the State, under the general charge of 

 the officers of the station. As one prominent result of such 

 work, Professor Maynard concludes that grape-vine mildew 

 can be entirely prevented, apple scab may be largely pre- 

 vented, the coddling moth may be held in check, and 

 black-knot he hopes to be able to prevent. Potato rot 

 also can apparently be largely prevented by spraying the 

 vines with the Bordeaux mixture. 



The woi'k in the agricultural department began one year 

 later than that in others, on account of the vacancy in the 

 chair of agriculture during the greater part of the first year 

 of the station's existence ; and it has been further im})eded 

 by the destruction by fire of the barn devoted to its work in 

 the spring of 1891. This has now been rebuiH, l)ut is not 

 yet completely fitted up for the work which is in contem})la- 

 tion. A large share of the funds available in this depart- 

 ment, as well as of the energies of its officers, has been 

 expended in carrying out soil tests with fertilizers in diircr- 

 cnt counties in the State. These experiments were com- 

 menced in 1H89, and have been continued every year. 

 Altogether, we have carried out thirty-eight such experi- 



