52 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
in fall, and suffered severely from blight. In these cases 
names and dates are given. Another case was that of 
Mr. White, a nurseryman near Mooresville, Morgan 
County, la., in an orchard of from 150 to 200 trees, who 
had not a single case of the blight in the year 1844 ; al¬ 
though all around him its ravages were felt. What were 
the facts in this case? His orchard is planted on a mound¬ 
like piece of ground; is high, of a sandy, gravelly soil; 
earlier by a week than nursery soils in this county; and 
in the summer of 1843 his trees grew through the sum¬ 
mer,—wound up and shed their leaves in the fall, and 
during the warm spell made no second growth .” 
In another place, he says, “ Sometimes the bark bursts, 
the sap exudes, and runs down, turning black; and its 
acridity will destroy vegetation, on which it may drop; 
and shoots at a distance from the trunk, upon which the 
rain washes this ichor, will soon perish.” This must be 
a case of unusual virulence, as we have never witnessed it. 
The author of the paper points out the distinction be¬ 
tween blight, and mere winter killing which destroys the 
tree at once. 
He recommends, to prevent the evil, to select warm, 
dry soils, so as to ensure early, well ripened growth; 
to select such varieties as ripen their wood early; and to 
prevent late growth where necessary by root pruning. 
When blight has actually taken place, excision is recom¬ 
mended as a matter of eourse. 
This theory, which accords with the views we have 
favorably regarded and frequently expressed for the last 
ten years, so far as most of the cases in Western New 
York are concerned, is supported by too many facts to 
be easily overthrown. In case of apricot trees, vve have 
often noticed the dried and dead portions, caused evidently 
by severe weather on that tender tree, and the subsequent 
heat of the sun, while the branches above were in a state 
of rapid growth. But this rapid growth soon needed a 
larger supply of sap than the drying stem below could 
furnish, and sudden withering and death followed. We 
have also witnessed cases of the poisoning quality of such 
diseased sap, in the peach tree: For the sake of experi¬ 
ment, some buds were started after being set in summer, 
and made a very succulent, unripened growth of several 
inches. Next spring they commenced growing, but 
soon died suddenly, evidently from the effect of the win¬ 
ter on the tender and unripened wood, and the branch 
itself not only died, but the poison ran down to the very 
roots, wh'(b in every case of this experiment turned 
brown to heir extremeties, showing the cii-culation of 
the poisonous fermented sap. The Madeleine pear, which 
is remarkably thrifty in its growth, as well as succulent 
in its texture, is peculiarly liable to blight, nearly all the 
cases which have occurred under our own immediate no¬ 
tice, being on this variety; while after the most rigid 
examinations we have never found the insect. The 
Seckel, a very hardy slow-growing variety, is rarely if 
ever affected. We have often seen discolored, diseased, 
or dead strips on the branches extending gradually down¬ 
wards, until large portions of the tree were dead. Hence 
the importance of cutting off the affected limbs without 
a moment’s delay, and also some distance below any in¬ 
dications of disease,—as the poison may have passed 
downwards, and not as yet produced any visible effect. 
With this care, we have never known the remedy to 
fail, if vigorously applied. 
Against this theory, the following facts are stated by 
P. Barry in the last number of the N. G. Farmer. “In 
t'ne Mt. Hope Nurseries, there are several thousand pear 
trees of various ages, from 1 to 8 years old, and highly 
susceptible of blight from this new cause, yet there has 
never appeared the slightest indication of it, while the 
disease has been committing serious depredations in the 
immediate vicinity on large trees, much less likely to 
suffer, because less excited to growth by high cultiva¬ 
tion. We have seen many trees killed by this disease, 
that had not grown a foot in two or three years.” Per¬ 
haps the cases of early and late ripening already given, 
may throw some light on this subject. Good, healthy, 
and vigorous trees, in the well cultivated nursery, may 
mature their wood early; others, though growing more 
slowly, may not as in case of the transplanted trees, which 
commenced growing in autumn. But it must be remem¬ 
bered that blight is death; girdle a limb, and it will with¬ 
er and turn black, just as in fire-blight; and no one theo¬ 
ry, nor no two, may explain truly all the cases or classes 
of casps which occur. In the nursery of the writer, the 
tops of several thrifty young pear trees, in a low, warm 
place, were observed to be dying last summer when in 
leaf; what the result would have been is unknown, as 
they were all immedietely cut off and burned, and the 
disaster no more appeared. Why the blight should in 
some cases destroy the whole tree; in others only a 
branch and proceed no further, maybe hard to explain; 
but may possibly depend on different degrees of virulence 
of the poisoned sap, or various states of hax-diness and 
vigor, on peculiarities of soil, or of seasons, or on all 
these more or less combined. Killing the tops of young 
peach trees by cold, does not usually destroy the whole 
tree, but this is sometimes done, as in the budded trees 
before mentioned. Further and accurate observations 
are needed. 
# SENECA CO. AG. SOCIETY. 
We are indebted to John Delafield, Esq’r, of Ge¬ 
neva, for a copy of his address before this Society. It is 
a spirited and interesting production, containing many 
valuable historical remarks, as well as agricultural facts. 
He informs us that in 1780, the soil of Seneca county, 
was first trodden by the white man! That fifty years 
ago, the county contained only seventy-five inhabitants, 
exclusive of the red-men—and that probably at that time, 
not more than twenty acres of land were cultivated. 
“ What a contrast,” he remarks, “ with the present day! 
Then, a sun-beam scarce broke the forest’s gloom, nor 
did a Woodman’s axe disturb the awful solitude of na¬ 
ture. What a contrast with the present hour and place! 
The land now pouring forth its wealth to bless and re¬ 
ward the farmer’s toil—children and children’s children, 
as the polished corners of the temple, gladdening his 
heart and leading him with happiness, and gratitude in 
every heart, toward the end of his most useful and vir 
tuous life.” 
In relation to the errors of cultivation, Mr. D. re¬ 
marks— 
“ We divide our labor over too many acres to afford 
sufficient culture to each—and we neglect the aid of sci¬ 
ence, which teaches us to concentrate the varied means 
always within our control, and their economical and ap¬ 
propriate application. This will perhaps be admitted, 
when we notice the small average produce of wheat per 
acre, of any section of our country, and compare it, with 
the products of wheat readily obtained from well culti¬ 
vated fields.” 
The benefits of agricultural papers, in giving to far¬ 
mers the results of each others’ experience, are thus 
strikingly shown:—“ The agricultural periodicals of this 
country, bring to the fire side, and leisure hour of ev¬ 
ery farmer, the tried results of experiments throughout 
the world—they give to him the practice of every sec¬ 
tion of our country—they open to him the science of his 
profession—making clear and intelligible all that hereto¬ 
fore has been deemed chance.” 
Mr. Lawrence’s Address, before the Yates County 
Agricultural Society. The main object of this address, 
appears to be to induce farmers to qualify themselves for 
taking that share in the direction of political affairs, 
which, from their numbers and the proportion they con¬ 
tribute for the support of goverment, justly belongs to 
them. We give an extract: 
“The time has arrived when farmers as a class should 
understand their true position, and should arise in their 
might to vindicate the dignity of their profession. We 
often hear farmers complaining that their class is not fair¬ 
ly represented in our national councils, and these com¬ 
plaints are often well founded, and who are to blame but 
themselves, for it is through their ignorance and apathy 
that they are made the tools and dupes of demagogues and 
politicians.” 
Erratum.—O n the second column of page 327 of last 
year’s volume, for “ Musk,” read Musch, the name of the 
city from which this variety of the Apricot was called. 
