214 NUT GROWING 



sitica and the entire species may disappear unless 

 resistant individual trees are found or unless the 

 blight loses virulence. We may anticipate, however, 

 that such may be the case and here and there a tree 

 is now being reported as blight resistant. Bleaching 

 stark skeletons, however, of the formerly beautiful 

 chestnut trees now fill the forest which such a short 

 time ago gladdened the early July landscape with 

 their heavy masses of sweet scented flowers and in 

 autumn tempted children, both young and full 

 grown, into the woods for the delicious nuts. On 

 my own property at Merribrooke there was one 

 chestnut tree which bore particularly large nuts of 

 high quality and the nut had a peculiar beauty be- 

 cause of its coloring, alternate stripes of light and 

 dark chestnut color. This particular tree was one 

 of the first to go down with the blight, but I have 

 now kept it going for ten years by grafting it upon 

 chinkapin stocks, hoping to hold on to the variety 

 until the blight loses its vital energy or is attacked 

 by some parasite of its own. The grafted tops of 

 this "Merribrooke" variety blight and die back, but 

 by making new grafts every year I am still in pos- 

 session of this particular chestnut. Here and there 

 about the country are isolated groups of American 

 chestnuts growing out of their indigenous range, and 

 these trees may preserve the species for many years 

 if blight does not reach them by way of nursery 

 stock planted in the vicinity. 



