40 STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



injurious to trees. I have watched them. The}- appear as though 

 thev were sucking the sap. I have noticed them in the fall, as a 

 general thing. 



Mr. Sawyer. Is it not, in fact, in the fall and winter that you 

 see them most frequently? 



Mr. SwEETSicR. I think so. 



Miss Foster. I have seen young trees where the woodpeckers 

 have bored into them so as to stop the sap from flowing. 



L. F. Abuott. In regard to the time that the woodpeckers come, 

 r should say in October. I have seen them on trees at that season. 

 One fine tree that I had, about four inches in diameter, was entirely 

 spoiled by them. That was done in October. 



J. M. Carpenter. Do you understand that the number of trees 

 in this State that are destroyed in this way is very large? It appears 

 to me that if we have no worse enemies to contend with than this 

 one,, we should get along well enough. I have yet to learn that 

 much damage is done by them. 



I would say in regard to the matter of di-ains, that a member of 

 our family came into possession of a larm where the drain was 

 choked that ran from the cellar through the orchard ; it was made 

 of logs. Soon after, we found it choked, we dug down to relieve the 

 cellar from the water, and we found the very place where the roots 

 of the trees had gone into the drain and had blocked it up entirely, 

 so that it was a curiosity. We had to cut them awa}' with axes. 

 It proves that the tendency of roots is to go towards the water, and 

 I should think it would be an unwise thing to do. to put trees on top 

 of a drain. I am sure I should put the trees between the drains, 

 rather than upon them. 



Mr. Briggs. I want to say, in regard to planting trees in out of 

 the wa}- places, that I believe in taking the best land on the farm 

 and nearest the buildings. While land is cheap, it would be well 

 enough to set trees forty or fifty feet apart, in out of the way places ; 

 but where land is in good condition, put them closer. I have set 

 ray orchard too thick ; one small orchard has one tree to the square 

 rod, but from twenty-three to twenty-five feet apart is better. 



There is another point I want to speak of, in regard to trees 

 cracking in the spring, after the sap begins to flow. I cannot think 

 of any reason but the expansion of the wood by freezing. I would 

 like to know if any other orchardists experience the same trouble. 



