202 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



bird because it eats many cherries, and many have been killed 

 because of this habit, but probably the waxwing is much more 

 beneficial than injurious. 



IJinns, Insects and Fkuit. 



Mr. J. Warren Jacobs of Waynesburg, Pa., sends me a 

 photograph showing some samples of apples raised on his 

 estate. He does not spray his trees, but puts up l)ird houses 

 and attracts martins ajid other birds, with the result that he 

 has a large number of martins in several large bird houses, 

 and many other birds breeding about the place, and the birds 

 protect his fruit from insect attacks. 



]\Iartins are great eaters of flying insects, and they destroy 

 many pernicious pests. Mr. Jacobs tells in his ^' American 

 Bird House Journal " of the remains of small beetles which 

 were foimd in the nest rooms in his martin boxes after the 

 young birds had taken flight. Tn 1911 he found similar 

 beetles in the bark of a young apple tree. He sent some to 

 Prof. H. A. Surface, State zoologist of Pennsylvania, who 

 replied that the insects were fruit tree bark beetles. These 

 are deadly tree pests for which there is no good remedy. 

 ]\rr. Jacobs says that in the midst of a triangle formed by the 

 location of three martin houses on his place is a fine summer 

 rambo apple tree planted in 18S7. For twelve years this 

 tree has borne heavily ; the apples are large and delicious. 

 The best apples were produced in 1009 when many single 

 apples weighed 13 or 14 ounces. In 1911 many of the apples 

 weighed 9 to 10 ounces each. Onc-liaU" bushel of select speci- 

 mens, numbering 41, weighed 21 pounds, averaging half a 

 pound each. More than one-half of the apples taken from 

 this tree were of this size and quality. Only a few yards 

 from two of the martin houses were two " fall pippin trees." 

 One is not a heavy bloomer, but in August, 1911, it had a 

 good showing of fine large fruit untouched by insects. On 

 August 28 the other tree was bending full of fine apples. 

 Not far away were three plum trees ; one of these, a peach 

 plum, had borne so much fruit that all its branches drooped 

 like a weeping willow. The other two trees were thickly set 



