30 BIENNIAL REPORT 



vigor while if it is allowed to rot on the ground they often grow and bear 

 as well as where cultivated. I find that in many instances, too late and 

 thorough cultivation of old orchards has resulted in much worse injury 

 from winter's cold, than where they have been forced into a too tender 

 growth. 



This season there is a large crop of apples in Ravalli county, but on many 

 trees the fruit is small and inferior owing to overbearing of trees that lack 

 vigor because of the injury of the winter of 1898-99. 



But the bulk of the fruit is of good size and firm in appearance and 

 quality. In some neighborhoods the fruit is much specked and injured by 

 hail which was unusually severe and wide spread the past summer. 



From the winter's injury of a year ago most trees are recovering wonder- 

 fully and all trace of it will be covered up in another year except where 

 the interior is exposed by a broken limb. This interior is universally black 

 hearted and in some cases half rotten. 



This improved condition is especially noted in young trees, all of 

 which are making a vigorous growth. 



The hardiness of the different varieties was put to the test and as a 

 result many kinds have been eliminated from the list of those desirable to 

 plant. In the list of those not safe to plant except in very favorable loca- 

 tions are Baldwin, Haas Jonathan Cooper's Market, Early June, King of 

 Tompkins Gounty, Rhode Island Greening, Newtown Pippin, Rox Russet, 

 Spitzenberg, Geniton, Mann, Wine Sap, Rambo, and many others of the 

 sorts most grown in the eastern states. 



The sorts found most hardy were Duchess, Wealthy, Alexander, Yellow 

 Transparent, Red Astrachan, Gano, Ben Davis, N. W. Greening, Longfield, 

 Peter, Edison, Antonooka and several others, mostly Russian. 



The most desirable varieties yet found in tree and fruit are early or 

 autumn kinds. If we had a winter Duchess, Wealthy or Alexander, we would 

 be more than satisfied. 



Except the green aphis no insect or fungus pest has been found of a 

 serious nature. Some web worm was found in the northern part of the 

 county, but it is so easily destroyed it can become no serious menace. No 

 codling moth or San Jose scale was found. The few cases of oyster shell 

 scale found last year had been destroyed by burning the trees. Some pear 

 trees showed something similar to leaf blister mite but as the trees were 

 vigorous and bearing full crops of good fruit I do not consider it a serious 

 matter, especially as it can be kept under control by spraying. 



The green aphis is a serious pest to our orchards, and one that is uni- 

 versally distributed, not only here but everywhere where fruit is grown. 



Its total eradication has been found impossible, but it may be kept under 

 control by constant spraying. I do not think the Board should try to enforce 

 any ironclad rules against It, as extermination is impossible and it would be 

 hard to draw the lines between the allowable few, and the prohibited many. 



