R-USIT 



10/28/31 



forage, cmd grain, ajid other crops, and tuljcrs, and small fruits, and 

 flov7cring olojits, and shrubbery ai.iounts to mill ions of dollars a year. 

 And the man rho h.'\s raised orchard trees to tho ago of "bearing,- ♦ onl;' to 

 sec them vrithcr n.nd die under the ravages bf field mice can't sjTnpathize 

 nith tho views of the kind-hoartod plo^v-bby poot V/ho rcfr.scd to s'.rat a 

 field mouse v?hcn ho liad a chance* 



In this broad land of cur's, there arc a great number of 

 different kinds of closely related field or meadow mice. Their numbers 

 go up and do":oi S'-ddenly and often seemingly without notice, owing to the 

 varying birth rate, the effect of disease, the abundance of food, end 

 the extent to which they are preyed u-pon by their enemies among wild 

 animals, and birds and snalies. If there are any around, they are a 

 constant menace i.. tho orchard. 



As a rtile, they do the big/-,-est damage to trees in the winter 

 ■under cover of snow. Damage from meadow mice is usually more severe 

 during a lia,rd '".Inter with deep snow thaii during a mild onc^ But tliat 

 is one of those general statements, you can't be sure will apply in 

 your fruit trees. There is one record of 5,noo trees girdled in a 

 Kansas ore ard before the middle of December during a mild open winter, 

 1,300 trees were killed in one orange grove in Calif ornio., by mice 

 during r. dry fall. But as a general rule, winter damage is worse. 



fUce seem to prefer apple trees to some extent, but they are 

 not very Darticular, They killed 3,000 pear trees in one Connecticut 

 orchard one year aiid. 500 young peach trees. They prefer the juicy bark 

 of young trees '"'hen they can get it, but no tree is immune '.■/hen food 

 is scarce. 



liice completely girdled $10,000 worth of trees in an orcliard 

 near Few York Cit]"-, iiicluding a number of 50-j'-ear-old trees. Trees doii't 

 grow too old to be daraaged by mice when corjiitions are favorable for 

 mouse davia;;e. 



But louse Control in Field and Orchard" is explained in 

 Farmers' Bulletin ITq. 1397-?. In tho eastern half of the country, besides 

 the meadow nice there are the little stmr^y- tailed pine nice. It is 

 important to distinguish betwcc:^ these tv/o, because methods of control 

 that will work for mea.dow mice won't work for pine mice. Pine mice you 

 see work underground and attack the roots, whereas the meadow mouse, 

 although it nrkes use of shallo'.7 tun-nels and imderground nests feeds 

 mostly at the surface, B^t these differences are all pointed out in 

 Farmers' Bulletin Fo. 1397-F on "Mouse Control in Field and Orchard." 

 In making plcns for permanent control of field mice, romemjcr to protect 

 their natvjral encMies, Owls, and hawks, and g-ulls, and magpies, and 

 foxes, olrcnl:E, raccoons, opossums, weasels, and shrews are included in the 

 o»«mies of field nice. Also such snalcos, as kingsnalces, biill sneJrcs, .and 

 blacksnakes, 



>:: A 4i >^ It! 1(1 1^ k'c « link 



AIT^WJCSSITT: You can get Farracrs Bulletin ITo. 1397-F, on "'.louse Control in 

 Field and Orcliard," by -.Triting cither direct to the United States Department 

 of Agriculture at TTashington, D.C, or in care of this Station. Leaflet 

 Ho, 60-L, on "Porcupine Control in the TJestern States," can be obtained in 

 the sajne way. Thoso publications arc free as long as the supply lasts. 



