306 
Ruralisms 
A Great Tree-planting Project.— 
The royal commission that has been 
charged with the consideration of the 
afforestation of the waste lands of 
Great Britain as a means of relieving 
the great and growing evil of unem¬ 
ployment in that country, has recom¬ 
mended the planting to desirable forest 
trees of at least 9,000,000 acres of land 
in all parts of the kingdom, the work 
to extend over 60 years at the rate of 
150,000 acres each year. The estimated 
cost would average $10,000,000 annu¬ 
ally. It is thought that about $1,000,000 
a year only will be needed at first, 
but that the expenditure will rise to 
over $15,000,000 annually by the fortieth 
year. It is, however, expected that the 
forests will begin to be self-supporting 
from the sale of timber and products 
at 40 years from planting, and that 
from the sixtieth year onward to the 
eightieth the profits would rise until an 
annual revenue of something like $350,- 
000,000, representing the great total val¬ 
uation of $2,800,000,000, might be real¬ 
ized, and this with substantial and 
possibly permanent relief of the alarm¬ 
ing pauperism that now afflicts the 
country. The idea is to finance this 
gigantic scheme by a popular loan, the 
interest to be paid by taxation until 
it is self-supporting. Great Britain now 
imports timber annually to the value of 
$160,000,000, over 20 varieties of which 
could be grown in the country. Great 
attention would be paid to spruce, fir 
and larch, as the most useful woods for 
paper-making. The wood-pulp mills of 
bin rope use the product of vast forest 
areas every year, only a fraction of 
which is replaced by new plantings. 
Forestry Soon a World-wide Indus¬ 
try. —Whether this imposing British 
scheme materializes or not, forestry, 
or the cultivation of timber trees, is 
soon to be recognized as an industry 
of world-wide importance. It is most 
advanced in Central Europe, notably 
Germany, France and Switzerland, 
where planting programmes have been 
mapped out for 200 years in the fu¬ 
ture. It is known in the Orient in 
progressive Japan, and soon will be a 
pressing problem in China and the 
sparsely-wooded portions of Africa and 
South America. In the Un'ied States 
forestry is being rapidly developed un¬ 
der the fostering care of the National 
Department of Agriculture, taking the 
form of caring for existing forest areas 
rather than of making new plantings. 
Some of the States, however, contem¬ 
plate the afforestation of considerable 
tracts of otherwise useless land and 
the conversion of cut-over and aban¬ 
doned commercial timber tracts into 
State forests. Certain great railroad 
and industrial corporations are planting 
for their own use many thousands of 
acres with the more durable timber 
trees, such as locust and Catalpa; Cal¬ 
ifornia planters are going largely into 
Eucalyptus, and experiments are being 
tried throughout the East by individ¬ 
uals, with various promising conifers 
and hardwoods. Altogether, forestry 
is a growing industry, worthy the at¬ 
tention of ambitious young persons in 
many localities. 
Burbank Incorporated. — Press re¬ 
ports are current that a trio of specu¬ 
lative millionaires have incorporated for 
the purpose of exploiting the horticul¬ 
tural novelties of Luther Burbank, the 
well-known California plant breeder. 
As the head-line writers picturesquely 
phrase it: “Burbank’s brains and genius 
are incorporated.” That Burbank pos¬ 
sesses brains and genius of no light 
order is evident by the enormous pub¬ 
licity his reputed achievement's have at¬ 
tained. Nothing like it has ever been 
known in gardening literature, and it 
is likely that he will find it difficult 
to “make good” even a fraction of the 
expectations promoted by his exploiters. 
While some of his productions have 
recognized value for Pacific coast. South 
African and similar climates, few in¬ 
deed have proved of commercial util¬ 
ity throughout any considerable portion 
of the United States or temperate 
Europe, and much money has been 
burned up by those who can i'll afford 
it in trying out bis sensationally ad¬ 
vertised “creations.” Burbank is. with¬ 
out doubt, an earnest and tireless 
worker, and with the very generous sup¬ 
port allowed him bv the Carnegie In¬ 
stitution would be likely to breed new 
plants of general worth if he were lo¬ 
cated in an average and not an excep¬ 
tional climate, as measured by the great 
horticultural interests of the country. 
His experiments are now on a great 
scale, and high-keyed announcements 
are to be expected from time, to time. 
If the new company, which is said to 
THE 
RURAL 
NEW-YORKER 
March 20, 
be capitalized for millions, will take 
the precaution carefully to test in ad¬ 
vance the Burbank products in the lo¬ 
calities in which they are to be of¬ 
fered for sale, and abide by the results, 
little harm and much good may ensue, 
but if they are to be boomed without 
reserve and foisted on the public with¬ 
out local trial, it behooves buyers to 
be rather more careful than usual. While 
making due allowance for the “hot air” 
to be looked for in these far western 
press bulletins, it is probable that a syn¬ 
dicated effort will be made to market 
the Burbank novelties as they appear. 
It is presumable, in the absence of 
specific disclaimer, that the incorpora¬ 
tors go into the speculation mainly for 
gain, and expect to realize by the usual 
methods of selling securities or products 
for the highest prices that can be read¬ 
ily obtained. It is for our readers to 
judge whether investments in such of¬ 
ferings are worth while. 
A Remarkable February. — The 
month just closed has, in general, been 
unusually warm, exceeding the annual 
average temperature by something over 
200 degrees. There was a cold snap 
or two, but the duration was brief and 
unseasonable warmth soon followed. 
There was considerable dull weather 
and several storms, but on the whole a 
fair allotment of sunlight. As a whole 
the month resembled the average April 
except in the shorter days and chillier 
nights. Vegetation, as might be ex¬ 
pected, has been strongly influenced. 
Snowdrop blossoms appeared in shel¬ 
tered places early in the month and 
developed to an unusual size under the 
favoring conditions. An old bed of 
yellow Crocuses on the Rural Grounds 
was a blaze of golden glory as early 
as February 17—we never before had 
blooms earlier than Washington Day— 
while tulip, Narcissus and Erythronium 
foliage appeared above the soil, and an 
occasional Winter Aconite showed 
color. Fruit tree buds, especially apri¬ 
cots and hybrid Japan plums swelled 
to the point of showing color. Peaches 
are less forward, and the pome fruits 
are still safely dormant. The early 
shrubs, such as Japan quinces, Spiraeas 
and bush .honeysuckles, are strongly 
excited, the buds of the Tartarian 
honeysuckle being almost ready to open. 
Lawns and meadows have perceptibly 
greened, while Crimson clover, perennial 
coyer crops, rye and wheat fields, show 
evidences of continued growth, especi¬ 
ally as regards root spreading. There 
was little snow and scarcely any pen¬ 
etrating frost at any time during the 
month in our locality. There is natur¬ 
ally dread that belated cold waves may 
greatly injure advanced vegetation. An 
able-bodied blizzard, with temperatures 
12 or more degrees below the freezing 
point, has already signalized the ad¬ 
vent of March, but is likely to benefit, 
rather than harm, most plants by re¬ 
tarding unseasonable growth. It is 
needless to add that February was 
physically the most comfortable month 
of the season that has been experienced 
for many years. w. v. F. 
Write Fop Special Low 
Price On This Complete 
Spraying 
Outfit 
Barrel, pump, extension pipe, 
nozzle agitator, hose, everything 
complete and oC the best. Just 
fill barrel and go to work. Fit¬ 
tings oi brass, hemp packing. 
Sprays hot, cold or any caustic 
solution perfectly. Equal to largest 
operations in orchard or field. 
Develops greatest power with 
least labor. Pump sets inside bar¬ 
rel, keeping it steady. Others are 
top-heavy and tip over. Write for 
catalog describing this and our 
complete line of spraying tools 
and insecticides. 
BOSS BROS. CO., Worcester, Mags, 
CPRAY 
ij do white' 
Your Fruits, Crc 
Poultry Houses, £ 
whitewashing with 1 
AUTO-SPRAY. Factory pi 
and guaranteed to satisfy. Fitted n 
Auto-Fop Nozzle does the work of tli 
ordinary sprayers. Used by Experim 
Stations and 300,000 others. We mi 
many styles and sizes. Spraying Gu 
Free. Write for book, prices and Age; 
OUer. ij^g c. B rown Co. 
28 Jay Street, Rochester, N, 
I hi) VO k ad great success with your PAPER 
■ nave POTS and the crop I raised last year 
was something immense, for early tomatoes. They 
certainly are the thing for the market gardener 
Yours respectfully, S. I. COOK, N. Y. 
Send for circular. 
P. B. CROSBY & SON, Catonsville, Md. 
HURST 
COMBINATION 
SPRAYER 
—sprays 
potatoes, 
strawberries, truck, etc., 4 rows at a 
time. Also a first-class orchard and 
vineyard sprayer. Handiest sprayer 
made. Pushes easy as is well-balanced. 
Develops high pressure from big wheel. 
Cheap in price, light, 
strong and durable. 
Brass ball-valves. 
Brass plunger, strain¬ 
er, etc.. Vapor spray 
prevents blight, scab, 
rot and bugs from 
cutting your crop in half and doubles 
your crop. The extra profit of "one 
acre” will more than pay for it the first 
season. The HURST Horse-Power 
Sprayer (shown below) is the sprayer 
for the large^growers of potatoes, fruit, 
I vineyards, etc. “No tree 
too high, no field too 
f big for this king of 
sprayers.” Simple 
in construction, 
powerful pressure, 
easy on man and 
H.L. HURST NIFG. 
ON “FREE TRIAL” 
NO BANK DEPOSIT 
Pay as out of the “extra profit” 
—when you sell your crop. 
horse. Is 
made for 
hard service. One-piece, heavy-an¬ 
gle-iron frame, cypress wood tank 60 
to 100 gallon, metal wheels, nozzles 
adjusted to rows by the feet of the ope¬ 
rator as the machine moves along. 
All HURST Spray- 
e r s-GUARANTEED 
FOR FIVE YEARS. 
Shipped on “free 
trial” without-a- 
cent-in- advance, 
no-bank - deposit, 
and “no strings” to OUR free-trial 
offer. Shipped direct to you at dealer’s 
wholesale prices. You are under no 
obligations whatever to keep our ma¬ 
chines if not fully satisfied. Write to¬ 
day for Spraying-Guide. Catalog and 
Special Free Offer to “first” in 
each locality this season. Be 
first to write and save money. 
Don’t pnt it off bat write now^ 
and save money. All our ma¬ 
chines are sold subject to the 
same liberal offer. 
CO., 46 North St., Canton, Ohio 
SPRAYER 
Tlie simplest, strongest and most powerful sprayer. Can be changed 
from horse to hand power without any trouble. Easy to work. W 7 ill 
spray upper and under side of leaf; mixture can be di¬ 
rected at any angle. Send for our new book— FREE— 
and see how you can increase your profits 25 to 50 per 
cent.—how you can spray thirty acres of potatoes, 
cotton or vegetables in a day. 
THOMAS PEPPLER, Box 45, Hlghtstown, N. J. 
Empire King. 
He who attempts to grow fruits without a Sprayer is handi¬ 
capped. Blight and bugs, rot and rust, mold and mildew, all 
conspire to damage the crop, and in all cases succeed if the farmer docs 
not spray. This is theonlyhand pump having automatic agitator and brush for clean- 
ing strainer. Valuable book of instruction free. FIELD FORCE PUMP CO., 2 llTH ST- EtAIIRA. N. Y. 
Niagara Potato Planter 
The only Successful potato planter requiring but one 
man to operate; that does not puncture or bruise the 
seed. Sold with or without fertilizer attachment. 
Write for NIAGARA POTATO MACHINE CO. 
Circular. New tune, N. Y. 
GET THE BEST 
A Good Spray Pump 'earns 
big profits and lasts lor years. 
THE ECLIPSE 
is a good pump. As 
_ . j practical fruit ^rovv- 
j *| ers we were using common 
‘ sprayers in our own orchards, 
i —found their defects and 
j invented the Eclipse. Its 
)i success forced us to manu¬ 
facturing on a large scale. 
You take no chances. We 
have done all the experi¬ 
menting. Large fully illustrated Catalog 
and Treatise on spraying FREE. 
MORRILL & MORLEY, Benton Harbor, Mich. 
HOT-BEDS 
AND COLD FRAMES 
Sunlight Double-Glass Sash Company 
*29E.,tiWw.y LOUISVILLE, KY. 
The double layer of glass 
. — ■ — does it 
Lets in the light always. 
Never has to be covered or un¬ 
covered; no boards or mats 
needed. 
Retains the heat, excludes the cold. 
Makes stronger and earlier plants. 
Class slips in; no putty; cannot 
work loose; easily repaired. 
Ask for catalog O • It tells all 
about Sunlight sash. 
Special catalog for greenhouse material- 
,.,„s«sCALECIDE 
JJWILL POSITIVELY 
DESTROY 
SAN JOSE SCALE 
and all soft bodied sucking insects without injury to the tree. Simple, more effective and cheaper than Lime Sulphur. Not an experiment. 
Write for FREE sample and endorsements of leading fruit growers and entomologists who have used it for years. 
“POCKET DIARY WITH SPRAY CALENDAR FREE IF YOU MENTION THIS PAPER.” 
PRICES: 50 gal. bbl. $25.00; 30 gal. tin $15.00; lO gal. can $6.00; 5 gal. can $3.25; 1 gal. can $1.00 f. o. b. New York. 
One gaUon makes 16 to 20 gallons spray by simply adding; water. Order now; spring spraying your last chance. 
B. Gr. Pratt Co., Mfg. Chemists, Dept. 3NT, 50 Church St. Wew Yorli City 
