NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



47 



THE APHIS ON TREES. 



AIessrs. Editors : Havin:^ a small, young orchard, 

 of about sixty trees, of the best cultivated varieties, 

 I was greatly tried on finding that the above insect 

 was doing great injury to the new growth. The 

 leaves were curled up and blackened, the young 

 shoots retarded in their growth, and in some in- 

 stances entirely killed. Jly quince and seedling 

 .apple-trees of the second year's growth were in a 

 still worse condition ; many of the tops being so 

 completely covered that they were destroyed. 



My first remedy wa'5 a strong infusion of tobacco 



— say four ounces to six quarts of boiling water. 

 This was placed in a suitable vessel, which v.'as held 

 by another perrfon, whilst I carefully bent down the 

 limbs, one or two at a time, and irarxiersed the ends 

 of them in the infusion. A few trees were treated 

 in this manner. The insects were killed by the 

 tobacco infusion ; but I thought the effect on the 

 young shoots and tender leaves rather injurious. 



While reflecting on the subject, I remembered 

 having read that the biiier jrrrnciple was destructive 

 to insects. I seized the idea, and resolved to try it. 

 Tho bitter selected was the common quassia of the 

 shops, as being cheap and inten.icly bitter. Ilalf a 

 pound of the quassia chips were Ijoilcd for a few 

 minutes in six quarts of water. "When the decoc- 

 tion was cold, it was used in the same way as the 

 tobacco infusion, witli complete success, ancf without 

 any apparent injury to the leaves or new growth. 

 All the insects that Avcre wet with the liqiiid were 

 killed. 



Man}' of my young seedling applc-trces, that 

 looked so miserably three weeks ago, arc now send- 

 ing out a thrifty growth, which contrasts pleasantly 

 with the blackened and emled foliage below, which 

 was nearly destroyed bj' the wood-louse. 



Would strong bitter infusions destroy lice on cattle 

 and stock ? It is cheap and perfectly safe — safer, in 

 my opinion, than unguentum or tobacco. 



E. G. MYGATT. 



Richmond, McTIenry Co., III., .!«//?. 21, 1843. 



— Prairie Farmer. 



V/OODEN RAILROADS. 



Mr. Clowes, of Sullivan county, N. Y., has pub- 

 lished some essays showing the advantages and 

 economy of building railroads altogether of wood 

 — wooden rails and wooden sleepers. The opinions 



of Mr. Clowes are good and worthy of attention. 

 Where timber is so abundant and cheap, as it is in 

 our country, we think that railroads of this kuid 

 would not only be of great benefit, especially to our 

 farmers in the rural districts, but would be of great 

 benefit to our mechanics and merchants, who dwell 

 in our cities and villages also. The roads in our 

 agricultural districts are not good, although the tim- 

 ber is abundant. Now, just let some main tracks of 

 strong, deep, and broad wooden rails be laid through 

 the most central and densely-populated parts of the 

 country, as auxiliaries to the main lines of the iron 

 tracks, and let broad- wheeled locomotives, built 

 upon the plan of Mr. Sellers, bo placed upon the 

 wooden tracks, so as to carry at a cheap rate the 

 agricultural products of our farmers to market, and 

 gi-eat benefits would thus be conferred both upon 

 our rural and municipal population. It frequently 

 costs more to bring agricultural products to market 

 than the original price at the farmer's dwelling. 

 Every improvement, therefore, that cheapens transit, 

 is certainly a benefit to every cla.?s of our citizens. 

 — Scientific American. 



EFFECT OF ETHER ON PLANTS. 



At a meeting of the New York Farmers' Club, 

 July 18, the following was read : The Mimosa 

 pudica being placed under a glass vase with cotton 

 wet with the ether, in t\\cnty minutes the plant lost 

 all its sensibility, and could not be made to move by 

 touching it with a pin. At its nio?t susceptible 

 parts, some change in its color was perceptible. The 

 plant was ten minutes insensible, and then gradually 

 recovered. This experiment was often repeated, and 

 always with the same results. The experiment was 

 tried on the Oxalis sensitiva, which is less irritable 

 than the first named, and it did not lose its suscepti- 

 bility in less than twenty-five minutes, and recovered 

 slowly. The plant Dioncca micscipula, after twenty 

 minutes, began to close up its young leaves gradually, 

 and then lost all its sensibility. 



EFFECT OF DOMESTiCATIOrJ OW BIRDS. 



Professor Low, in speaking of the effect of do- 

 mestication on birds, says, "They lose the power of 

 flight by the increase of size of their abdomen, and 

 the diminished power of their pectoral muscles and 

 other parts of their body are altered to suit this con- 

 formation. AU their habits change ; tliey lose the 

 caution and sense of danger, which, in their native 

 state, they possessed. The male no longer retires 

 with a single female to breed, but becomes polyga- 

 mous, and his progeny lose the power and the -will 

 to regain the freedom of their race." 



AGRICULTURAL SCHOOLS !N FRANCE. 



At a recent ses3ion of the National Assembly of 

 France, the principal part of the day was devoted to 

 the bill relative to the agricultural schools. It was 

 resolved that one of these institutions should be 

 founded and maintained in each department at the 

 public expense, and further, that the country should 

 be divided into agricultural districts, not exceeding 

 twenty, in each of which a government school is to 

 be established. 



" Busi:>'i:ss vs. Lounging. — Call upon a busmess 

 man in business hours, on business only ; transact 

 the business, and then go about your biLsiness, that 

 he may have time to fini-jh his." 



