1896 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
673 
die in five minutes. It is not at all uncommon for 
insects to live for days after being 1 impaled upon pins. 
I know of no more successful method of controlling 
under-ground insects than frequent cultivation and a 
short rotation of crops. The tomato leaf did not 
reach me, so I cannot diagnose the trouble. 
White Grubs in Strawberries. 
B. T. W., Rochester, Mass.—I send a box containing a couple of 
grubs or worms that I would like to have named. They eat off 
the roots of strawberry plants. For some weeks, I have noticed 
them frequently, and now I find them putting in their work on 
fancy strawberry plants set a month ago, and doing well except 
for them. Will you name them and tell me what to do to destroy 
them? Of course, when I find a plant wilting, I dig down, find 
and destroy them. 
The grubs found eating the strawberry roots were 
genuine White Grubs. As we have so often stated in 
The R. N.-Y. for the past year, White Grubs are the 
young or the larvte of the large brown beetles which 
fly into our rooms at night about June 1, and buzz 
around near the ceiling—we call them May Beetles or 
“ June Bugs ”. I have discussed their life history, so 
far as it is known, in several answers within a year. 
I know of no application that may be made on or in 
the soil that will kill White Grubs, and not, at the 
same time, kill all vegetation thereon. Hand-picking 
and frequent cultivation and rotation, are the best 
suggestions I can give for controlling them in straw¬ 
berry beds. An important preventive is never to set 
a strawberry bed on recently plowed sod, for such 
lands are the natural haunts of the grubs, and when 
the grass is plowed under, they are forced to eat the 
strawberry roots. Always prepare land for a straw¬ 
berry bed by growing thereon, for two or more years, 
some crop, like corn or potatoes, that needs thorough 
and frequent cultivation. 
Pear Blight and Plum Rots. 
H. J. W., Cheltenham, Ont.—l. What is the remedy for the pear 
blight which affects pear trees this year? 2. Is there any pre¬ 
ventive for the rot in my New Imperial tomatoes ? I have noticed 
that the rot is worst where the most cow manure was applied 
last fall. 3- What causes our plums to rot when they should begin 
to ripen ? They are on rich ground. 
ANSWERED BY M. Y. 8 LINGERLAND. 
I. Pear Blight, or “ fire blight,” also attacks apple, 
quince, Siberian crab apple, wild crab apple, the 
mountain ash, service berry, and all the species of 
hawthorns. It is a contagious, bacterial disease, the 
microbes being carried from tree to tree by the in¬ 
sects which visit the flowers. A few of the germs 
survive the winter in some of the blighted branches, 
and these few are the source of contagion for the 
succeeding season. The only sure method of check¬ 
ing and exterminating the disease, is to cut out and 
burn the affected parts, and the best time to do this 
is just before the leaves fall in autumn ; never cut 
through a diseased part and then use the same knife 
in cutting healthy wood, for a few germs will adhere 
to the blade, and these may inoculate the healthy 
wood. No spray of any kind can check the disease. 
2. The first indications of tomato rot appear as a 
small, black spot on the blossom end of the half-grown 
fruit. This spot quickly increases in size, until often, 
half of the tomato is involved. Warm, moist weather 
appears to be particularly favorable to the develop¬ 
ment of the disease. It is thought that bacteria may 
be the first cause of the rot, but a fungous disease is 
also largely concerned in the decay. Prof. Bailey 
says that this rot “ can be kept in check by spraying 
with Bordeaux Mixture or ammoniacal carbonate of 
copper ; but it is difficult to apply the material to un¬ 
trained plants, especially upon rich soil, where there 
may be a thick growth. Plants which are trained to 
stakes and pruned, admit of thorough treatment. The 
rot appears to be less, as a rule, if the plants are so 
trained that the fruits and vines dry off quickly after 
rains and dews. In single-stem training out-of-doors, 
rot was greatly reduced. Straw placed underneath 
the vines appears to increase the tendency to rot, and 
the same appears to be true of heavy dressings of 
stable manure. The less improved varieties of toma¬ 
toes, like many of the old angular sorts, and the 
cherry and plum varieties, are almost exempt from 
attack.” 
3. The rotting of plums, peaches and cherries is due 
to a fungous disease known as the Brown Rot (Monilia 
fructigena). It is the most destructive fungous 
enemy of the stone fruits, and is very prevalent in the 
eastern fruit-growing sections. A microscopic spore 
or seed falls upon the green fruit in early summer, 
and, under favorable moisture conditions, grows by 
sending out a little rootlet into the fruit. The 
branches of the rootlet rapidly push their way all 
through the pulp, with the result that the tissues be¬ 
come rotten. One or two small brown spots first ap¬ 
pear on an affected fruit, and these enlarge until they 
take in the whole fruit which becomes covered with a 
velvety coating consisting of millions of microscopic 
spores or seeds. The wind dislodges and blows the 
spores on to other unaffected fruits, and starts the 
disease anew. The rotten fruits often continue hang¬ 
ing on the tree, gradually shriveling up, until, finally, 
they become dry and hard, forming the well-known 
“mummied” fruits often seen on the trees in the 
winter. Much danger lurks in these wintering 
“mummies”. A few dormant spores still adhere to 
some of them, and their interior is filled with the 
dormant roots of the fungus, and these start into 
growth and produce a new crop of seeds during the 
first warm, damp spell in early spring. These spores 
are scattered everywhere, and many of them develop 
in the blossoms, and often occasion serious loss in this 
manner. 
The fruit may be attacked at almost any stage in 
its growth, but the disease is most destructive about 
the time of ripening. The appearance of brown spots 
on the fruit is the first visible sign of the disease. 
The conditions are, sometimes, so favorable that it 
increases with astonishing rapidity, and a whole crop 
may “ rot” in a few days. When the disease reaches 
the point where it can be seen with the eye, it is 
usually too late to check it with a spray ; the spore or 
seed has its rootlets too well established in the tissues 
of the fruit. Remedial work against the disease must 
thus be begun early. Pick off and burn the danger¬ 
ous “mummy” fruits before growth begins in the 
spring. It would, also, help much if all the rotting 
fruits which drop in the summer and fall were burned 
or fed. The disease has been greatly checked by 
spraying thoroughly with the Bordeaux Mixture soon 
after the fruit has set; then follow this with applica¬ 
tions of the ammoniacal carbonate of copper solution, 
using one ounce of copper carbonate to 12 gallons of 
water, beginning about two or three weeks after the 
first spraying with the Bordeaux, and repeating the 
application every week or 10 days until the fruit is 
harvested. The ammoniacal solution does not stain 
the fruit as would the Bordeaux, during the ripening 
period. The disease is a very difficult one to contend 
with, and only thorough work will bring results. 
Combine the burning of rotting and “ mummy ” fruit 
with thorough spraying. 
Starting a Maryland Orchard. 
F. B. R., Cumberland, Md. —I have just bought 30 acres of land 
that 1 wish to plant to fruit just as soon as the land can be made 
sufficiently fertile. The soil is what I would call loam—clay, 
with a slate subsoil. During the last seven or eight years, it has 
been run down. What is the quickest way possible to restore it 
and fit it for apples, pears, peaches, cherries, etc. ? I suppose that 
it would be best to improve the land before planting the trees. 
Ans. —It always pays to get ready before you start, 
and, especially, when such an important thing as 
planting an orchard is to be done. By all means, get 
the land in good shape the first thing. It should be 
sown to Crimson clover at once (if not too late when 
this is read), and have an application of not less than 
500 pounds of muriate of potash per acre, sown broad¬ 
cast, and the same of dissolved bone or phosphate 
rock. If a good crop of clover be grown and turned 
under next year, there should be sufficient humus in 
the soil to give it life and looseness, and the potash 
and phosphoric acid will make trees or almost any¬ 
thing grow. See what your neighbors are doing who 
raise good fruit crops in Maryland. h. e. v. d. 
The Bose Pear; Sheathing Paper. 
E. G., Coxsackie, N. Y .— What are the merits and demerits of 
the Bose pear tree ? Why would not sheathing paper, put around 
trees, keep borers away ? 
Ans. —The Bose pear is one of the best of the late 
fall varieties. The quality is delicious, and the tree 
bears evenly and quite regularly. Of the many varie¬ 
ties of this fruit originated by that great pomologist 
and experimenter, Van Mons, at the beginning of this 
century, this is one that has stood the test, having 
been sent out by him in 1807. This fact, alone, is 
almost enough to warrant one in planting it now. 
Sheathing trees with building paper, or any kind 
that is quite durable, will keep off the borers from 
about the base, provided it is sunken well into the 
soil and tied, so that there are no openings. Be sure 
not to use tarred paper, for it is deadly poison to 
them. This I know from sad experience in Kansas, 
as well as from the evidence of many others. A 
better material for this purpose is wood veneer, which 
may be had at the berry box factories by giving orders 
for sheets of special sizes. h. e. y. d. 
Drainage Water in Cisterns; Apple Seeds. 
V. C. R., Salt Lick, Ky.—l. I have a cistern, the plaster of which 
is porous, and allows water to filter through from the outside. 
When the cistern is nearly empty in wet weather, about a bucket¬ 
ful of water runs in daily. Is there any danger of disease germs 
coming through with the water ? 2. I read somewhere that apple 
seeds would not germinate if allowed to get dry. Is it so ? 
Ans. —1. There is danger of disease germs getting 
into the cistern it the water from the surface soil is 
allowed to filter in. Very frequently, the drainage 
from a stable or outhouse will strike a stratum of 
clay or hardpan, and will flow along and find an out¬ 
let in some well or cistern. Surface drainage should 
always be excluded. If it is found that the water 
seeps in near the top of the cistern, it may be pre¬ 
vented by elevating the surface of the ground, and 
turning the water away to prevent drainage into the 
cistern. Very frequently, a thin wash of Portland 
cement will stop up the pores and prevent drainage. 
This may be put on with a kalsomine or whitewash 
brush very rapidly. If this treatment will not stop 
the difficulty, then the cistern must be replastered, 
using Portland cement with which to make the plas¬ 
ter, and making it rich with cement. 2. Getting dry 
would not necessarily prevent apple seeds from 
germinating. It might tend to delay germination, 
but if seeds are kept in a cool, dry place, they will 
germinate. The best way to preserve them is to pack 
away in charcoal or sawdust, and keep cool. Apple 
seeds are frequently very slow in germinating after 
having become dry, and to hasten the process, they 
should be soaked in warm or tepid water for a short 
time before planting. l. a. Clinton. 
" Wire Grass ” in a Lawn. 
F. W. B., Port Chester, N. Y. —My lawn Is full of Wire or August 
grass. For three years, I dug it up in the spring, turned it under, 
and then sowed lawn grass seed on it. This year, I dug it up in 
the spring, had all the sod shaken out and removed, and sowed 
it heavily with lawn grass seed. It came up thick, and I had 
every prospect of a fine lawn until about the first part of July, 
when the Wire grass appeared, seeming to run out all of the 
grass seed. We kept it cut every week from the last of May up 
to the first of September. At this writing, it is one mass of Wire 
grass. Can you tell me of someway of getting rid of it? Will 
the grass seed sown in the spring come up next year, or is it 
killed ? 
Ans. —At the Rural Grounds, this grass, Digitaria 
or Panicum sanguinale, is the worst pest we have in 
our lawns, and it has defied all of our efforts to get 
rid of it. It is a tender annual, thriving only in the 
warm summer months, when its growth is so rank 
as to conceal or kill Blue grass aDd Red-top. Could 
we prevent it from seeding, the grass would be ex¬ 
terminated in time. But the seeds, evidently, will live 
in the soil for years, and the grass will again appear 
when the lawn is spaded up or plowed. The lawn 
mower is quite ineffective against its spread, because 
the culms are prostrate, and the spikes of flowers or 
seeds escape the knives. In so far as our experience 
goes, there is but one way to exterminate, and that 
is by plowing up or spading the lawn in the spring 
and keeping it clean by cultivation until September. 
Then sow the lawn grass seed which may be preferred. 
Apples and Berries for Northern New York. 
J. G. McN., New York.—I have about 10 acres of apples and a 
few pears near Albany, N. Y. Some of the trees are getting old- 
30 to 35 years—and breaking down. What would, probably, be 
the best marketable apple, pear and cherry for that locality, to 
put in the places of those that are dead, and gradually to cover 
22 acres ? Also, what is the best red raspberry for that climate ? 
We have quite a patch of red raspberries there, but the tops are 
likely to freeze in the winter. I do not know what kind they are, 
but when there is fruit on them, it is large, fine flavored, and 
rather darker in color than the usual berry. The decay of the 
apple trees seems to start from where a large branch has been 
cut. How may I prevent this in future ? Is 35 years a great age 
for apple and pear trees ? 
Ans. —On some soils, apple trees are at their best 
at 30 to 35 years of age, and should be vigorous and 
healthy. Evidently, these trees have suffered from 
neglect of pruning in their early growth, and the 
cutting off of large limbs later has led to premature 
decay. The remedy lies in properly pruning them in 
their early growth. As for the best varieties, it is 
generally safest to plant such as thrive best in that 
locality, but as red apples sell best, I should plant 
largely of them. The Baldwin and Ben Davis still 
hold front rank, though lacking in quality. Northern 
Spy is fine where it does well. Sutton Beauty is very 
highly spoken of, and Cooper’s Market is another of 
a similar character. I would always plant some of 
the R. I. Greening. There are many other good ones, 
yet only a few kinds are wanted for a commercial 
orchard. Of pears, for market purposes, the Bartlett 
leads, and seems to sell more readily than any other. 
The Seckel and Flemish Beauty are of the very high¬ 
est flavor, and if well grown, find ready sale. The 
Bose, Clairgeau and Anjou are all good. I would not 
want to say what cherries would succeed best in that 
locality. What is the best red raspberry for that 
locality, is hard to say. The one alluded to is, prob¬ 
ably, the Cuthbert. It is excellent in quality, but 
becomes very dark after picking, which hurts its sale. 
The best red for market that I have found, is the 
Marlboro, but it requires high culture, and must be 
covered during the winter to insure a crop the fol¬ 
lowing season. Only about one-third of the top of the 
cane need be covered. It is early, very firm and of a 
bright color and good quality if well grown. The 
Miller Red (early) and the Loudon (late) are on trial 
yet, and need more time to determine their value in 
this locality. Walter f. taber. 
The Alice Grape. 
T. I. M., Fleming County, Ky.— Can you give me any information 
about the Alice grape ? It’s said to keep through the winter. 
Ans. —We have the first vine sent out for trial by 
the originator, Ward D. Gunn. It is a medium-sized, 
red grape, of pure quality, with thick skin. It is 
among the best of keepers. 
