LUTHER BURBANK 



The tender seedlings may be destroyed by a 

 cold dry wind, or by too much moisture and too 

 little air. They should be protected for a day or 

 two if a dry wind comes up, and the soil about 

 them should not be soaked with water, although 

 kept in a moist condition. 



RUNNING THE GAUNTLET 



There are numerous fungoid and insect pests 

 that threaten the seedling during its infancy. 

 Little patches of fungus may appear in a box of 

 seedlings, and this may spread rapidly until the 

 entire company is destroyed. 



A sprinkling of sulphur over the plants, or of 

 coarse dry sand or gravel about their roots, may 

 prevent the fungus from spreading. It will be 

 well to place the box in a cold dry atmosphere so 

 that the excessive moisture is evaporated. The 

 fungus pests are most likely to attack the seed- 

 lings if they have been kept in too close and damp 

 an atmosphere. 



After the plants are in the field they should 

 quickly develop a hardiness that makes them im- 

 mune to the attacks of fungoid pests. Mr. Bur- 

 bank has all along made a very particular point 

 of the development of hardy races of plants. He 

 at once removes and destroys any seedlings that 

 show susceptibility to the fungus or bacterial 

 pests. In this way he develops races that are 

 immune, and he never finds it necessary to use 

 germicidal sprays in his orchards and gardens. 



[54] 



