Fruit Growing 67 



order to allow proper methods of cultivation to be practiced, and I am 

 in doubt as to the zvisdoni of doing this during the rise of sap. 



The best time to remove large limbs to secure rapid growth of 

 bark from the sides of the cut, is just at the time the sap is rising. 

 There will be some outflow of sap, but of no particular loss to the 

 tree. As soon as the large wounds have dried sufficiently, the ex- 

 posed surface should be painted to prevent cracking of the wood. 



Eastern or California Black Walnuts? 



/ am told that the Eastern black ivalnut is a more suitable root for 

 the low lands in California than the California black. Is this true? 



There has been no demonstration that the Eastern black walnut 

 is more suitable to low moist lands than the California black walnut. 

 Our grandest California black walnut trees are situated on low moist 

 lands. Walnut Grove is on the edge of the Sacramento river with 

 immense trees growing almost on the water's edge. Walnut Creek 

 in Contra Costa county is also named from large walnut trees on 

 the creek bank land. We have very few Eastern black walnut trees 

 in California and although they do show appreciation of moist land, 

 they are not in any respect better than the Californian. 



Ripening of Walnuts. 



/ send you two zvalnuts. I am in doubt if they will mature. 



The nuts are well grown, the kernel fully formed in every re- 

 spect. Whether they will attain perfect maturity must be determined 

 by an observation of the fact and cannot be theoretically predicated. 

 Where trees are in such an ever-growing climate as you seem to 

 have, they must apparently take a suggestion that the time has ar- 

 rived for maturity from the drying of the soil. The roots should 

 know that it is time for them to stop working so that the foliage 

 may yellow and the nuts mature. It is possible that stopping culti- 

 vation a little earlier in the season may be necessary to accomplish 

 this purpose. 



Cutting Below Dead Wood. 



/ have some seedling English ivalnut trees zvhich are tivo years old, 

 but they are not coming out in bud this year. They are about three feet 

 high, and from the top dozvn to about 10 inches of the ground the limbs 

 are dark brozvn, and below that they are a nice green. I cut the top off of 

 one of them to see what is the matter that they do not leaf out, and I 

 found that there is a round hole right dozvn through the center of the 

 tree down to the green part. The hole is about thrce-si.vteenths of an 

 inch in diameter. The pith of the limbs has been eaten azuay by some 

 kind of a worm from the inside. Would it be better to cut the tree dozvn 

 to the green part, or let them alone? 



It is the work of a borer. Cut down to live wood and paint over 

 the wound or wax it. Protect the pith until the bark grows over it 



