No. 12. 



Diseases of Fruit Trees. 



381 



cooked piece of I}unaf beef, or ham, or some 

 similar substantial article of food in the 

 house, that I might be provided for a similar 

 occurrence. 



" The recollection of what I underwent 

 while buying- my experience, makes me anx- 

 ious to spare you, my dear Annie, the pain 

 of a similar ordeal; particularly as it is 

 more disagreeable for a young newly mar- 

 ried woman to feel in housekeeping difficul- 

 ties, than a single one; as it makes you fear 

 your husband had a higher opinion of you 

 than you deserve. In your situation the 

 difficulty is increased by your husband not 

 having lived at the Manor House since the 

 death of his parents, when he was only ten 

 years old ; so that he can have no idea of the 

 petty troubles you will be exposed to. Un 

 der these circumstances I will do my best to 

 clear the path that lies before yon, and to 

 teach you how to enjoy rationally a country 

 life." — Ilorlicullural Magazine. 



For the Farmers' Cabinet. 



Diseases of Fruit Trees. 



Mr. Editor, — I am gratified to find that 

 fruit raisers throughout the country, are real- 

 izing the importance of the alkalies in pre- 

 venting many of the diseases of fruit trees. 

 Almost every newspaper that I pick up, con- 

 tains a narrative of the experience of some 

 fortunate horticulturist, who has applied the 

 alkalies — lime, potash, soda, or magnesia 

 with a happy effect. 



Many however, use the remedy in such a 

 costly form, that I am inclined to enter my 

 protest against it. There is no need of using 

 soda in the form of salt or potash, as it is in 

 soap or ley, or lime in whitewash. I say 

 there is no necessity for using these alkalies 

 in these forms. They may be applied in the 

 form of ashes or lime. Nor is there a neces- 

 sity, in most cases, of applying them with a 

 brush to the body of the tree. If the tree 

 be a valuable one, and very much diseased, 

 or infested with insects, such extra labor 

 may be warranted, but in the majority of 

 instances, lime and ashes — even anthracite 

 or bituminous coal ashes, scattered on the 

 ground or slightly dug or ploughed in, for a 

 short distance around the tree, will be just 

 as effective in keeping the tree free from 

 insects and disease, as the more laborious 

 and expensive process of scrubbing the tree 

 with brine or ley, or whitewashing it with a 

 solution of lime. I do not approve of the 

 use of such substances as common salt, gu- 

 ano, nitrate of potash and other highly con- 

 centrated manures, when the more common 

 and cheap forms of alkaline substances will. 



answer the same purpose just as well. It is 

 a waste of means, which might be profitably 

 applied in other ways. Besides, lime and 

 ashes are more safe applications than salt, 

 guano, &c., there is not so much danger of 

 killing the trees by an excessive use of 

 them. 



I attribute many of the diseases of fruit 

 trees to the same cause which produces the 

 " potatoe rot," viz. a superabundance of car- 

 bonic acid. This extra carbonic acid gives to 

 the sap of the tree that peculiar quality which 

 renders it the proper nutriment of the cryp- 

 togamic* plants, the seeds of some of those 

 cryptogamic plants are present and finding 

 their proper nutriment, they take root and 

 grow, producing the mossy appearance on 

 the trunks and branches. If an alkaline 

 substance be given to the tree, the sap takes 

 it up and it is thereby rendered fit for the 

 tree, and unfit for the cryptogamic plant, 

 and the consequence is the cryptogamic 

 plant dies, and the trunk of the tree becomes 

 clean, and the tree itself assumes a healthy 

 and vigorous appearance. When the sap is 

 unhealthy it becomes by means of the sac- 

 charine fermentation, perhaps, sweet and 

 pleasant to the taste; it is then the favorite 

 food of many insects, and they are not slow 

 in availing themselves of it — but when the 

 alkali gets into the sap, it becomes insipid, 

 and the insects turn from it with disgust; 

 while the tree, which before was sickly, now 

 assumes the lively and fresh appearance of 

 health. 



I may be mistaken in these views, Mr. Edi- 

 tor, but I think I am not — at all events, there 

 is abundant evidence in in our newspapers 

 that alkaline manures have been effective in 

 ridding the trees of disease and insects. I 

 could quote numerous testimonials, but per- 

 haps it is unnecessary. Yours, &c., 



Chemico. 



Wilksbarre, June 8th, 1846. 



End of Human Glory. — A late English 

 paper says there arrived not long since at 

 Hull, a Dutch vessel navigated by a man, 

 his wife and four daughters, loaded with 

 bones gathered from the battle field of Na- 

 poleon, to be sold by the bushel, and used 

 for manuring turnips. 



Hen Houses. — Keep them clean and well 

 white washed. Supply the nests frequently 

 with fresh hay, straw or leaves. This will 

 prevent the accumulation of lice, those great 

 pests to poultry. 



* The principal orders of plants of the cryptogamic 

 class are ferns, mosses, hepaticts, lichens, alga and 

 fungi. 



