1905. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
3 
FUMIGATION AND NURSERY STOCK. 
What Nurserymen and Inspectors Say. 
Do you know of any cases in your experience, where 
fumigation with hydrocyanic acid gas has injured fruit 
trees so as to damage them? There is some debate as to the 
value of fumigation, but this matter of injury has not been 
made prominent. If a tree lias started its buds fumigation 
might injure it. Would the proper strength of gas hurt it 
otherwise? 
We have never known of any injury to trees by fumi¬ 
gating. If properly done we do not think any damage 
will result from it. edwin hoyt. 
Connecticut. 
I have never tested trees that have been treated with 
hydrocyanic acid gas after they have come into leaf, but 
I understand from those who have, that they have 
planted the trees and they suffered no injury. This 
was done for test purposes, but 1 cannot believe any 
injury has ever been done to trees that were dormant 
unless there was something wrong in the preparation 
of the gas. s. d. willard. 
New York. 
I have never noticed any serious result from fumi¬ 
gating fruit trees, and I have fumigated peach trees 
with full strength after the buds were slightly started. 
However, I would not advocate the practice of doing 
this, and would not fumigate trees for others after 
the buds had swollen. The case in question was some 
trees treated for my own planting as a matter of ex¬ 
periment. h. s. WILEY. 
New York. 
We do not believe fumigation is injurious to dor¬ 
mant trees. We have fumigated all stock for the past 
five years, and have transplanted a great deal of it to 
satisfy ourselves that there was no harm in the treat¬ 
ment. The past Spring we probably had 1,000 trees of 
different kinds put out here on our grounds. 
These had been subjected to fumigation,- 
and we scarcely had a failure as to their 
living. We have, however, had some com¬ 
plaints in regard to stock which has been 
shipped into other States, where complain¬ 
ants believed fumigation is injurious. We, 
however, doubt it. the r. g. chase, co. 
New York. 
I once saw some budding sticks that were 
ruined by fumigation. The wood was red¬ 
dened and had the appearance of being 
“cooked.” I have heard of damage to trees, 
hut from my own experience I have never 
yet seen any injury. We have been fumi¬ 
gating more or less for several years, and 
I am sure that if the work is properly done, 
and the trees are in fit condition, no serious 
harm will result. If the contrary were true, 
it would seem to be impossible that we 
should not have discovered it long before 
this. I imagine that in the cases where 
damage has been reported, some part of the 
work was faulty. At least, I can reach no 
other conclusion after having seen stock 
fumigated without any apparent injury. 
New York. geo. a. sweet. 
We do not know personally of any damage that has 
been done in fumigating trees that were dormant when 
fumigated. We have heard of several instances of 
trees being damaged, especially peach, that were claimed 
to have been fumigated after they were well ripened up, 
but have had no experience of that kind ourselves. We 
think there is no question, however, that trees dug in 
early Fall before well ripened or dug in the Spring after 
buds start, if fumigated with the charge recommended 
by the experiment stations, would he damaged. 
Ohio. THE STORRS * HARRISON CO. 
I know of no instance under my personal observa¬ 
tion where fumigation has injured fruit trees, hut I 
have heard of instances where the gas has been so 
strong and powerful as to injure and in some cases 
destroy the trees. It seems reasonable to suppose that 
if the buds of the trees have started growth they would 
he injured. chas. a. green. 
New York. 
We have been fumigating with hydrocyanic acid gas 
for a number of years, and where the stock was per¬ 
fectly dormant we know of only one case where injury 
resulted. In this case we think the chemicals were 
misrepresented. However, it has been our experience 
that stock not perfectly dormant is quite easily injured, 
and we have also been informed by authorities that 
stock should not be fumigated while wet. We have not 
tested the matter sufficiently with wet stock to fully 
determine that point. As to the value of fumigation, 
we believe it has been too highly extolled. It has 
been looked upon by many as sure death to any insects 
on the trees at the time; while, of course, this is true 
of any living insect, yet those that pass the Winter in 
the pupa or egg stage are not affected. As an eradi- 
cator for San Jose scale on nursery stock it is probably 
all right, but as a remedy for Woolly aphis, borers, 
etc., it is a glittering failure. We have fumigated trees 
infested with Woolly aphis, and one month afterward 
found them again thick on the roots, even though the 
trees had not been in the ground, but stored in a warm 
cellar. We have seen peach trees thoroughly fumigated, 
and immediately after dug live borers out of them. We 
think entirely too much has been claimed for the hydro¬ 
cyanic acid gas treatment. stark Bros. & co. 
Missouri. 
Yes, we know of many cases where the fumigating of 
trees injured them, and we know further that the 
nurseryman is the loser, because he has to replace the 
stock that fails to grow from this cause. If the trees 
are in a perfectly dormant condition, it will be all right 
to fumigate them, hut when trees are being handled 
for shipment, not many of them are in a suitable 
condition for fumigation. Early last Fall we had an 
order from a wholesale firm wanting trees shipped 
September 16, consisting of two carloads of peach 
trees. If these trees had been fumigated full strength, 
which is recommended, we would have lost the whole 
order, although we did not get the order off before 
the first of October. We have had such bad experience 
in fumigation that we have nothing to recommend. I 
have very little faith in fumigation, since we have 
sustained such heavy losses in such work, and I 
believe it would he far better for every nurseryman, 
during the Winter months, to spray his entire nursery 
or orchards, or any trees, with the salt, lime and sul¬ 
phur mixture, then spray again during the Summer 
months, with the whale-oil soap. After the trees are 
cleaned up well and sprayed in this manner, I believe 
we can give our customers better trees, and I believe 
the trees can he kept freer from insects and other dis¬ 
eases in this way than any other system. On the other 
hand fumigation detracts from the tree’s vitality, and 
the spraying of the salt, lime and sulphur will add to the 
vitality; so will the whale oil soap, by practical ex¬ 
perience. When the trees are two years old, wash the 
bodies with the whale-oil soap, strong enough to kill 
any insect. You will find a great many who differ 
from me and prefer fumigation. This fumigating busi¬ 
ness has been more like a red-tape affair than you 
can imagine, and there have been several fumigation 
houses built simply to refer to, or to look at, more than 
they have been actually used. 
Maryland. j. g. harrison & sons. 
“ABANDONED FARMS " IN NEW ENGLAND 
Another Side of the Matter. 
Over a large portion of rural New England can be 
found farms in many cases with good farm buildings 
now going to decay, the land growing up to brush or 
forest. On these former residents lived and supported 
large families; facts, I think, no one will deny, and so 
the gushy and fluent hack writers tell us much about 
abandoned farms. Others, equally gushy and unre¬ 
liable, tell us they are fast being taken up. But neither 
mentions the abandoned shop and mill sites, which in 
many towns far outnumber the abandoned farms. The 
old mills and small manufactories will never be 
rebuilt. Modern methods of transportation and manu¬ 
facture have made that impossible; yet when it comes 
to those old farmhouses, built to fit conditions now out 
of date, sentiment takes the place of reason. States as 
well as men take up the cry, for some one to come and 
buy our abandoned farms, and fail even to tell we have 
water power by the thousands going to waste in our 
rivers. If a good reason, based upon business prin¬ 
ciples can be given why men should go back upon many 
of these farms and try to dig a living from the soil, 
1 have never heard it. The land is not going to waste, 
for nature will provide a covering of forest growth, 
valuable both to its owner and the country. That it 
is better thus, I do believe. Yet New England does 
offer large opportunities to the men who have a little 
capital, are honest and are willing to work, not ’way back 
on her most unfavorable farms, but near her cities and 
towns, beside her State and other good roads (yes, be¬ 
side her trolley lines), there can be found farms 
which can be bought cheap as compared with their 
cost, or based upon an income value, in the best neigh¬ 
borhoods, near churches, schools, and free libraries. 
I here he has a large choice in what he shall raise, be 
it hens, the dairy, fruit, or produce, or even a little 
of everything, and the best of markets at his door. 
I here he can make a living and enjoy the comforts of 
life so far in advance of the farmer of “wayback,” he 
it in New England or on the Western plains. The two 
are not to be compared. Yes, there are other op¬ 
portunities in New England beside her abandoned farms 
to him who loves farm life and uses good business judg¬ 
ment in choosing a location for himself. Having lived 
all my life upon a New England farm I have no sym¬ 
pathy with inducing men to go back on farms where only 
loss and disappointment will result. New England agri¬ 
culture will take care of itself; so will its farmers if 
given a fair chance. 
One word in regard to our so-called educators who 
are so anxious to tcacli farm boys and girls to love the 
farm. Yes, take them from home and parents, put 
them into “kid wagons,” cart them a few miles, dump 
them into a village school with children who wear bet¬ 
ter clothes and have more leisure, who despise work 
and farm life, and there educate them to love the farm 
and farm life. As long as the public pays the bills, may 
our children on the farm or in the city be 
taught that which will bring out the best 
that is in them; then will our country boys 
and girls show that they can choose and 
choose wisely what their future shall be. 
Massachusetts. h. o. mead. 
THE MANURE CROP. 
Among the many valuable articles in the 
December 10 number of The R. N.-Y. I find 
that by A. B. Rogers on caring for the manure 
crop of especial interest. I hope the time 
will soon come when the farmers of our coun¬ 
try will look upon the manure pile as one 
of the principal resources of the farm; when 
it will, in great measure, be considered a 
guide to the productive capacity of the farm. 
Many manufacturing concerns are, to-day, 
realizing a profit from some by-product of 
their operations, which formerly was allowed 
to waste, or possibly was considered a nui¬ 
sance to be got rid of at the least possible 
expense. The manure pile, a by-product of 
the farm, is, in my judgment, capable of being 
turned into one of the greatest sources of rev¬ 
enue. 1 he farmer is a manufacturer. His 
workship is as broad as nature. His re¬ 
sources are the raw material from her hands; 
his products are the finished materials of food and 
clothing, which are in demand by all the people, and 
in every climate. But, with his broad resources, and 
grand opportunities, he must still be prepared to main¬ 
tain his working capital. This working capital is of 
course the amount of available plant food in his soil. 
The manure crop as a means for conserving this, be¬ 
comes of great value. 
I desire to commend the idea of Mr. Rogers in ques¬ 
tioning the wisdom of using kainit, acid phosphate, etc., 
for absorbents. In our experience sawdust, either from 
soft or hard wood, after being piled up and allowed 
to heat and dry out, more nearly fills the bill than any 
other material used as an absorbent. It is light and 
clean to handle; has great absorbent capacity, and cuts 
the manure nicely. When it is judiciously used, and the 
resultant manure kept from heating by tramping with 
animals or moistening with water, there will be no 
need of using any special material for fixing the nitro¬ 
gen. For several years all ashes made in the home have 
been scattered on the manure, and we think well of the 
practice. There is one point made in Mr. Rogers’s 
article with which I can hardly agree. I would have no 
fermentation in the manure pile, and cannot see how 
fermentation can increase the fertilizing constituents 
of the manure. It would, of course, make these con¬ 
stituents more quickly available, but I should think 
this availability would be obtained at a loss in the total 
amount of plant food. b. Walter mckeen. 
Maine. _ 
A PERSEVERING FARMER.—The Maine farmer, 
shown in Fig. 5, drawing evergreen boughs for mulch¬ 
ing, shows plenty of energy and perseverance. It is not 
every man who would take his place between the shafts 
with equal cheerfulness. The work he has on hand is 
often delayed by press of Fall operations. If the first 
snowfall puts it entirely out of mind, the neglect will he 
lamented later on, when alternate freezing and thawing 
works havoc with the roots. 
