ORCHARD PROTECTION. 65 



pile of soil about a foot high around them will often be very 

 helpful in holding them in place. In staking, the method of 

 tying the tree so that it will not be scraped by the stake is 

 very important. It would be better not to use stakes at all than 

 not to tie the tree to them properly. It is generally Lest to tie 

 trees to two stakes, using one on each opposite side. 



Mice and rabbits. — Mice and rabbits eat the bark off the 

 trees and where this injury is not more than three or four inch- 

 es wide and only extends around a portion of the tree, it will 

 often heal over in one or two seasons. But it will be greatly 

 hastened in healing by covering the wound with grafting wax or, 

 better yet, piling up the soil over it if near the ground. When 

 the injury extends completely around the tree and is wide, the 

 tree may be saved by setting some cions in the live bark, above 

 and below the wound, which will carry over the sap until the 

 wound is covered. In such a case, however, the wound 

 should be entirely covered with grafting wax or clay after the 

 cions are put in. 



Cultivation injuries. — Cultivation is frequently done in such 

 a rough way that it results in serious injuries. These can be 

 largely prevented by the use of narrower singletrees and by 

 protecting the ends with leather, or, better yet, using leather 

 traces that go completely around the end of the singletree, so 

 that when a tree is struck it is not injured. The best way of 

 treating wounds of this kind is by covering them with grafting 

 wax or grafting clay and then covering the whole with burlap. 



Root galls result from the presence of low forms of life 

 known as Nematodes and possibly also from a bacterial disease. 

 Their life history is not well known. They are often exceedingly 

 injurious but some of them do little harm. Prevention is bet- 

 ter than cure and it is a good plan to refuse to receive nursery 

 stock having such blemishes. They are sometimes prevented 

 by using stocks that are resistant to such injuries. 



Winter killing may be confined to the twigs and roots or 

 flower buds of fruit trees. Any of these injuries may occur in 

 deep valleys, when comparative immunity is secured on the 

 higher land. 



Winter injury to twigs and trunks, — This is due to the use of 



