NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



425 



For the New England farmer. 

 THE OAK PRUNBR. 



Simon Brown, Esq. : — Dear Sir, — The ground 

 beneath black and white oaks is often observed to 

 be strewn with small branches, neatly severed 

 from the trees as if cut off with a saw. Upon 

 splitting open the cut end of the fallen branch, 

 there will be found a longitudinal perforation, con- 

 taining a whitish grub, which is the author of the 

 mischief. This grub subsequently becomes a chry- 

 salis within its burrow, and finally is transformed 

 to a slender, brownish beetle, covered with a close 

 gray nap. The history of this insect was first 

 made public in the year 1819, by Professor Peck, 

 in the fifth volume of the Massachusetts Agricul- 

 tural Repository and Journal, where the beetle is 

 figured. There is a figure of it also in Emerson's 

 edition of Johnson's Farmer's Encyclopedia, plate 

 16, No. 1. The scientific name of this oak pruner 

 is Sfenocorus (E/aphidion) pu/ator. 



The amount of mischief done by the oak pruner 

 is often very considerable. Branches five or sis 

 feet in length and an inch in diameter are some- 

 times cut off by it. The branch which you sent 

 to me is only three-quarters of an inch in diameter 

 at the cut end. The worm within it is undoubt- 

 edly the same as the oak pruner above named. — 

 la yonr note to me, you inquire whether this in- 

 sect be the common apple-tree borer, and you re- 

 mark that you have seen branches of apple trees 

 cut off in the same manner. This last fact is en-: 

 tirely new to me. It suggests the importance of 

 examining the cut ends of the fallen apple-tree 

 branches, in order to see whether they are perfor- 

 ated, and whether they contain grubs like the oak 

 pruner. The latter is correctly classed anion* 

 borers ; but it is not the same in kind as the com 

 mon apple-tree borer, differing remarkably there 

 from, not only in size, form, and color in the beetle 

 state, but also entirely in its habits. Though ap 

 pie trees may require jwuning at this time of* year, 

 and some of the branches may bear shortening a 

 little very well, most people would prefer to do 

 their own pruning rather than to leave it to the in- 

 discriminate labors of an insect, which would con- 

 sult its own taste and wants instead of the judg- 

 ment of an experienced workman. The insect, it 

 is true, displays no little skill in its performance ; 

 a skill without intelligence, however ; a kind of 

 mechanical "second nature," wherewith it is ad- 

 mirably and wisely endowed for its own well-being. 

 This is made manifest in every stage of the insect's 

 life. In June or July the parent beetle lays her eggs, 

 dep 'siting them singly close to a leaf, a spur, or a 

 little twig. The grub hatched from the egg, bores 

 at the spot, directly into the branch, and penetrates 

 to the pith, and then makes in the latter a longi- 

 tudinal burrow several inches in length. Having 

 come to its full size in the course of the summer, 

 the grub then proceeds to cut off the branch trans- 

 versely by gnawing away the wood from within, 

 but leaving the bark untouched. Then retiring 

 into the bottom of its burrow, it awaits the fall of 

 the limb, which yields to the force of the wind, 

 and is borne to the ground, loaded with leaves that 

 break the shock of its fall. The grub remaining 

 unhurt and secure in its burrow, survives the win- 

 ter, and is not transformed to a beetle till the fol- 

 lowing spring. This beetle is about half an inch 

 long, and is provided with two long and taper 

 horns or antennae. For a more particular descrip- 



tion of it, Prof. Peck's account, on the 81st page 

 of my treatise on insects injurious to vegetation, 

 may be consulted. In order to lessen the mischief 

 occasioned by this kind of insect, the fallen branches 

 should be gathered seasonably, and the perforated 

 ends, containing the grubs, should be cut off and 

 burned. This will, at least, prevent the grubs 

 from being transformed to beetles, and will thus 

 check the future propagation of the race. 



Yours, respectfully, T. W. Harris. 



Cambridge, July 3, 1852. 



SAVE THE BEST SEEDS. 



The season has arrived when some of the seeds 

 are ripe, and a little care is necessary in their 

 preservation, not only to secure them from waste, 

 but to preserve only the best for future sowing. 

 Farmers never think of raising a puny, badly- 

 formed calf, pig or lamb to be kept as a breeder, 

 but make all animals pass the scrutiny of a se- 

 vere judgment before they decide to propagate 

 from them. The preservation of early, large and 

 perfect seeds for continuing crops is no less impor- 

 tant, than that of retaining the most thrifty and 

 best-formed animals. 



A gentleman in Maryland gathered the earliest 

 and largest heads of wheat from a field and sowed 

 them, gathering the best and earliest of their pro- 

 duce and sowing again, and continued the process 

 three or four years. In a recent visit to that 

 State we collected some heads which are now hang- 

 ing by us, and measure, beard and all, 10 inches 

 in length ; the grain heads being 5 inches. 



This wheat is known by the name of the Code 

 Wheat, taking the name of the gentleman who 

 had by his pains increased the quantity and qual- 

 ity so much. We cut the samples before us from 

 the farm of Thomas Blagden, Esq., of Washing- 

 ton, one of the best cultivators in that region, and 

 who is setting the Marylanders a fine example. 



A gentleman in Essex county went through a 

 similar process with onion seed, until seed of his 

 raising readily sold for four dollars a pound, while 

 common seed was selling at fifty cents. The great 

 improvement in the crop from these seeds justified 

 the cultivator in paying this great price. 



In our farm stock there are always some who 

 grow up rapidly and strong, taking the lead in 

 health and vigor from the first. It is so with 

 plants. A proper consideration has not been giv- 

 en to this fact. 



There will be a succession of seeds coming to 

 maturity until the Indian corn harvest is over, and 

 we are confident that more attention to this point 

 will give us better crops hereafter. 



Errata. — In the monthly Farmer for August, 

 page 348, article "Lusus Natura3," read "Nerivm 

 splcndens,' 1 ' 1 for Neriuse splendeur On page 305, 

 in the quotation at the top of the page, read 



"Of some great admiral" 



intsead of "some great amorial." 



