ORNAMENTAL AND SHADE TREES 



545 



BALL OF EARTH ON TREE BEIN'G MOVED 



In moving trees to widen a boulevard at Houston, Texas, particular care was 

 taken to keep each in as large a ball of earth as possible, and, as a result, the 

 transfer was most successful. 



to move them, but to date only three have died from 

 the effects. 



Many of the trees are putting out sprouts and with 

 plenty of water should live and do well. A ball of earth 

 weighing from two to ten tons was moved with each tree. 



NEWS ITEMS 



A special meeting of the American Academy of Arbor-, 

 ists was held recently at the Zoological Park, New York 

 City. The meeting was full of interest and enthusiasm, 

 with plenty of field observation and discussions of recent 

 important problems in arboriculture. Papers were pre- 

 sented by Messrs. Maxwell, Smith and Robson, and a very 

 profitable trip was taken along the Bronx Parkway which 

 is now in course of construction. Mr. Merkel, chief 

 forester and designer of the parkway, surprised the mem- 

 bers with the enormous and intricate problems of the 

 undertaking. The next annual meeting will be held in 

 August, 1917, at Washington, D. C. 



ADVICE FOR SEPTEMBER 



1. Prune all dead branches of importance. Do not 

 prune unnecessarily; prune as little of the live wood as 

 possible ; make all cuts close to the trunk or main limb and 

 cover all wounds with coal tar. 



2. Remove and destroy egg-masses of the tussock 

 moth and similar leaf-eating insects. 



3. Mark for removal in winter, all hopelessly infested 

 and dead trees. You can discern these trees with greater 

 definiteness before the leaves drop, but you can cut them 

 down to greatest advantage in winter. 



4. Plant evergreens during the latter part of August 

 and early September. Move them with a ball of soil. 



QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



Q. Is there anything further to be done for five clumps of 

 apparently thriving pin-oak forest trees, in a Jersey suburb? The 

 soil is clay. Shall be glad of any suggestions. 



H. W. C, Montclair, N. J. 



A. Pin oaks will readily respond to heavy fertilization with 

 well-rotted manure and leaf mold. You will do them a lot of 

 good if you will, in November, dig in some of this fertilizer, and, 

 in the meantime, see that all old wounds are freed from decayed 

 wood and properly covered with coal tar. 



Q. Can you advise me as to what trees to plant on a piece 

 of ground 67 acres I have just bought with the object of mak- 

 ing a summer home. We are located in central West Virginia 

 and the land is all sloping hillsides, sandy soil. I want some quick 

 growing trees for near the house and some ornamental and 

 nut trees. Would oriental sycamores be good for this location 

 for quick growing shade? 



C. C. J., Clarksburg, W. Va. 



A. Oriental sycamore trees are very desirable for your 

 purpose, around the house. The American and European lindens, 

 the red and pin oaks, the Ginkgo, sweet gum and tulip tree are 

 a few others of the shade trees. The English walnut, pecan and 

 " Sober Paragon " chestnut will be suitable for nut trees, and 

 the white pine and hemlock for groves of evergreens. 



Q. The honey bees have been attacking my catalpa trees 

 severely. They seem to get on the main part of the leaf and suck 

 all the sap out of the leaf till it falls to the ground. Can you 

 tell me what to do? 



M. A. C, Cranford, N. J. 



A. We have never heard of honey bees doing what you 

 say, but there is a little green fly which, during the month of 

 July, feeds on the under side of catalpa and Norway maple 

 leaves, causing them to drop prematurely. These flies produce 



a glossy, sticky honey-dew, and perhaps you have that in mind. 

 Spraying the affected leaves with whale-oil soap, one pound to 

 ten gallons of water, will destroy the insects. 



Q. On my camp, here in the Adirondacks, I have a very 

 fine white birch, which, about ten feet up on the trunk, has a 

 large open break. I believe such trees can be doctored. Can 

 you kindly refer me to a place where I can get the stuff which 

 is put into such trees? 



J. C. F., Long Lake, N. Y. 



A. I am sorry to hear of the condition of your white birch. 

 It seems to me that the first thing to do would be to secure the 

 break at its upper and lower ends by bolts. The bolts should be 

 provided with nuts and washers embedded in a groove under the 

 bark. When the split is thus bolted, it may be left open, and so 

 cut that the water will drain off. The interior of the break should 

 be thoroughly covered with creosote and tar in mixture. A filling 

 of cement will then not be necessary and an " open wound " will 

 serve the purpose better. If you prefer to close it, however, ordi- 

 nary stone or brick in mixture would answer for this purpose. 

 I enclose a little leaflet which will give you full instructions. 



Q. On a pink horse-chestnut tree, seven feet high, planted 

 two years ago, the leaves suddenly turned brown and the fourth 

 day fell off the tree. I sent for the horticultural expert, who 

 dug to the root, found it mildewed and partly rotted, lifted up 

 the tree and threw it away. An oriental plane tree nearby, nine 

 feet high, showed the same condition, was pulled up and thrown 

 away ; the plane tree had not properly leaved out. Could not 

 these trees have been treated and saved? 



H. J. W., Los Angeles, Calif. 



A. It is a little hard to tell, without seeing the specimens, 

 whether those trees really had no more chance for life, or 

 whether their buds were still intact and capable of development. 

 Perhaps the roots, as a result of poor planting, stagnant water or 



