PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION, 



THE first edition of this manual was published late 

 in 1889, and the second early in 1892, both by the 

 Rural Publishing Company. When the first edition 

 was compiled, the modern or current methods of 

 dealing with insect and fungous pests upon large 

 and commercial plantations were in their first experi- 

 mental stage. The volume, therefore, recorded the 

 inexact knowledge of the time. It is only within 

 the last two years that the methods of meeting these 

 troubles have come to be generally accepted by horti- 

 culturists, and that experimenters have felt that they 

 could give confident advice respecting the many mix- 

 tures, appliances, and operations which have been 

 recommended in all quarters. It is time, therefore, 

 that a third and complete edition of this handbook 

 should be issued, to record and advise those practices 

 which have been approved by experiment and experi- 

 ence. The contents of the volume have been gleaned 

 from many sources, and whilst the compiler cannot 

 assume the responsibility of the value of the many 

 recipes and recommendations, he has exercised everv 

 care to select only those which he considers to be 



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