334 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



Gypsy Moth and Road Work on the North Shore 

 General Purposes. 



This is the fifth season that j^our committees have been engaged in 

 preserving the forests on the North Shore. Each year the work has been 

 more and more consoUdated for tlie purpose of preserving the woods directly- 

 back of the valuable shore property, and also for the purpose of preserv- 

 ing a strip 200 feet wide on the sides of our beautiful wooded drives. 



The conditions in the woods as a whole on the North Shore are much 

 better in 1912 than they have been at any time in the past. 



The fact has been demonstrated beyond question that by thorough, 

 systematic work the forests can be preserved, and we think improved as 

 well. Half measures are merely a waste of money. The taking out of 

 the poorer trees and of the dead wood will undoubtedly in a short time 

 result in much better forests. 



Scope of the Work, 



Your committees have continued their poUcy of co-operating with 

 subscribers who are doing thorough work, by endeavoring to give them a 

 protective belt back of their estates. 



We have now cleared up, creosoted and sprayed a strip 200 feet in width 

 on the sides of all of the wood roads, — something over 30 miles, — be- 

 sides caring for the woods on the sides of the main roads. The work has 

 been done all the way from Beverly Hospital in Beverly, nearly down to 

 the line of Gloucester harbor. 



In the interior of the woods very little, if any, work has been done. 

 While in many places there is a large number of dead trees, they are mostly 

 the weaker trees, which could not stand one stripping, but it has seemed 

 to the inspectors, and to the writer, after considerable exploring, that even 

 m these woods the conditions are much better than they have been before. 



The summer residents in Magnolia contributed nearly $3,000, and we 

 secured an equal amount from the State, but this year the city of Gloucester 

 refused to contribute the $2,500 which it had been contributing for the 

 past two years. 



The work of cleaning up the whole block on the east side of Greenwood 

 Avenue is nearly completed, so that Pride's Hill, with its beautiful woods, 

 will be preserved. They were in very bad condition. 



Parasites. 



More parasites were pianted again this year, and I think the conditions 

 in the back woods indicate clearly that the parasites have been increasing. 

 We also put out a large number of diseased caterpillars and flacherie, or 

 the so-called "wilt disease." This latter was effective in many places. 



Wliile it will be several years before the parasites, that attack the moth 

 in all the stages of its growth, will be thoroughly developed, they wiU 

 certainly render substantial aid in the back woods. 



