September io, 1890.] 



Garden and Forest. 



447 



forests on level orgentlyrollingground. Many hundred square 

 miles of so-called swamps are covered with Larch, White Ce- 

 dar {Thuja occidentalis), or Spruce and Balsam. Beneath low 

 trees lie thick, damp cushions of moss, in which Vaccinium 

 macrocarpum, Andromeda and other shrubs find a home. 

 These kinds of growth owe their existence to the presence of 

 (his moss in the swampy places, because they can strike their 

 roots in the decaying cushions above the surface of the stag- 

 nant water, if such swamps should he stripped of their trees, 

 the cushion of moss would disappear under the influence of 

 light, increased warmth, and thedrierair; thelight-lovingswamp 

 plants, Arundo, Typha and Carex, and nut-bearing shrubs, 

 would then step into their place. Finally the soil would be- 

 come sour, and be rendered unfit for use. Already many a 

 resident in these new states can recall that this or that flag- 

 swamp or grass-swamp, now impassable, was once covered 

 with a forest, even if of little value. Such facts suggest 

 to me the dark picture of the future of these rapidly develop- 

 ing states. 



Correspondence. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir. — Will you tell me what to plant in a dry, gravelly spot 

 on the south side of a close fence as a screen? Hydrangea pa- 

 niculata has nourished there during the two wet seasons just 

 past. This year the shrubs are completely burned up and 

 must come out. 



Providence, R. I. -"• 



[Privet is one of the shrubs which will grow in a very 

 hungry soil, although it will grow much better in a deep 

 rich one. Some* species of Ekeagnus, preferably E. 

 horlensis, will grow on open gravelly banks, and so will 

 the common Barberry if it is encouraged to start by placing 

 some good soil about its roots. The American Beech will 

 grow in poor, dry soil and will endure cutting well, and if 

 held down to shrub size by the knife a Beech screen would 

 have considerable beauty. But if the space is not very large, 

 why not fill it in to the depth of a foot or two with good 

 loam ? Any one of a hundred shrubs could then be safely 

 chosen. — Ed.] - 



Recent Publications. 



Dreamthorp. A book of essays written in the country. By 

 Alexander Smith. Rochester: George P. Humphrey. 



The publisher of this dainty little volume has done a genuine 

 service to a generation which rarely makes mention of the 

 name of Alexander Smith. A few nervous lines from his 

 earlier poems still linger in the memory of persons now past 

 middle age, but even they have forgotten that after the chilling 

 reception of "Edwin of Deira" Mr. Smith left off making 

 verses and began to write essays. The series now published 

 here was written from a sleepy, moss-grown town, where time 

 ought to have been measured, as the author well says, by the 

 silent dial rather than the tickingof a clock. Very pleasant bits 

 of criticism of men of letters such as Montaigne and Lamb and 

 Chaucer can be found in these pages, and much sound phi- 

 losophy very pleasantly disguised in the form of light and con- 

 fidential talk. But the book is noticed here chiefly on account 

 of the fresh and delicate touches with which the scenery of 

 this slumberous region is presented to the reader. 



We do not know whether Dreamthorp was a real village or 

 whether the garden from which and about which our author 

 discourses had any existence outside of his imagination ; but 

 it would be hard to find a more pleasant description of a quiet 

 inland country or of the thoughts which such scenery brings 

 to the mind of a man of leisure in a contemplative mood. 



Periodical Literature. 



A Bulletin just issued by the Agricultural Experiment Sta- 

 tion of Cornell University attempts to give some reasons 

 for the almost total failure of the fruit crop in western New 

 York the present year. All fruit-trees gave a wonderful pro- 

 fusion of bloom, and since the apple crop had been light last 

 season a great harvest was expected this year. Heavy rains 

 fell while the orchards were in bloom, and soon after the blos- 

 soms withered and the leaves of Apples, Pears and Quinces 

 began to blight. The rain;; were sua ceded by a severe 

 drought, so that Apple orchards over thousands of acres 

 seemed to be dying, while Quince orchards appealed to be 

 scorched. It has been supposed that a cold rain in blooming- 

 time will prevent fertilization of the (lowers, but there is no 



reason, it is said, for accepting this as generally true. As an 

 evidence to the contrary it is stated that two Seckel Pear-trees 

 of the same age and equally exposed, standing but a rod apart, 

 were in bloom at the same time; one of these lias no fruit now, 

 while the other is loaded. In most cases this year the apples 

 had set, and were as large as small peas when they withered 

 and fell. At the same time the young leaves began to blight, 

 and many other facts show that there was some intimate con- 

 nection between the death of the flowers or young fruit and 

 the blighting of the foliage. This blight is caused by the Apple 

 Scab Fungus, which may have attacked the young fruits, or it 

 may have impaired the vitality of the trees so far as to cause 

 the fruit to fall. Some mycologists believe that this infection 

 of the fruit takes place very early, but the blight of the leal in 

 many cases seems sufficient reason for the failure of the fruit. 

 This Fungus, Fusicladium dendriticum, which destroys the 

 foliage, is the same which causes the scab on the fruit. It has 

 always been to some extent prevalent in New York-, although 

 of late years it has increased rapidly. The wet spring afforded 

 a good condition for rapid growth. A closely related species 

 {Fusicladium pyrinnm), and by some regarded as identical with 

 the other, attacks the Pear, and has no doubt caused much of 

 the failure in the crop this year. 



Upon the Quince a specific leaf blight (Entomosporium ma- 

 culatnin) has been very serious this year. It also attacks the 

 fruit of Quince and Pear, causing them to crack. It is the same 

 Fungus which preys upon the stocks of Pear and Quince in the 

 nursery and renders their cultivation precarious. The trouble 

 has become so serious in some places that Quince-growers 

 are preparing to cut down their orchards. This leaf blight is 

 not to be confounded with the well known and deadly Pear 

 blight which sometimes attacks the Quince, but which is less 

 prevalent this year than usual. 



The injury to Apples, Pears and Quinces by the Scab Fungus 

 is not vital, although it check's the growth of trees. As a rule 

 the effect of leaf blight in western New York will probably be 

 to develop a large crop of fruit-buds. Heavy crops have fol- 

 lowed the failure from blight informer years, but if next spring 

 should be wet and cool the Fungus may probably spread again 

 as it has this year. Carbonate of copper is a sure remedy for 

 tin's Fungus, and it is probably best to begin with it before the 

 flowers open and to make from four to six applications before 

 the 1st of August. Three should be made at any rate, one 

 before the blossoms open and just after they fall and another 

 three or four weeks later. Some of the Fungus can probably 

 be destroyed by spraying even in August, but it is doubtful 

 whether such application would pay. The Bordeaux mixture, 

 the formula for which has often been given in these columns, 

 is the best application for the Quince leaf Wight. 



The principal cause of the loss of the Peach crop this year is 

 the curl-leaf, a Fungus disease. Nearly all the leaves crumpled 

 and fell from Peach-trees last spring over a large extent of 

 country, and the loss of foliage caused the death of the young 

 fruit. New leaves soon appear and in strong trees little injury 

 follows. No remedy is known for this affection, and it would 

 be difficult to apply one, as the disease is so uncertain in its 

 attacks. Whatever fruits escaped from the curl-leaf were 

 attacked by the curculio, which is becoming very abundant, 

 and which must be persistently fought if Peaches are to be 

 grown in western New York. The old remedy of jarring the 

 trees holds it in check, and Paris Green, at the rate of one pound 

 to 350 gallons of water, applied early and often will be found 

 useful. The worst enemy to Peach-growing in New York 

 generally is the Yellows, a mysterious disease which can only 

 be held in check by cutting out every affected tree. There is 

 a law which compels Peach-growers to destroy trees affected 

 with this disease, but it is not enforced vigorously. It is a 

 constitutional disease, progresses slowly and is distinguished 

 by premature fruits which bear well defined reddish spots 

 which extend in the flesh. When (he tree is not bearing, the 

 first symptom is the appearance of yellowish, small-leaved, 

 short shoots on the body and larger branches ; afterward they 

 appear in bunches. The tree soon becomes weak and yellow- 

 ish throughout, the leaves are small and it dies in about three 

 years. Yellows must not be confounded with yellowness. 

 The first is a specific disease, the latter may be caused by 

 anything which lowers the tree's vitality. 



The most serious trouble with small fruits this year was the 

 anthracnose or cane-rust of Raspberries and Blackberries. The 

 growing canes became pitted with brownish black blotches, and 

 on the weakened canes the berries dry up as if from drought. 

 On the Station plantations the Shaffer plants especially were 

 badly diseased. It is important in the treatment ol this disease 

 to keep the plants strong and healthy. They should be culti- 

 vated lisfhtlv once or twice a week until the berries begin to 



