440 
HICKORY BARK-BEETLE; NUT TREES. 
A conference to consider methods of con¬ 
trol of the hickory bark-beetle tvas held 
at the State Department of Agriculture, 
Albany, February 24. By invitation of 
Commissioner Huson, representatives of the 
New York City Park Commissions, Tree 
Planting and Nut Growers’ Associations, 
etc., and the various State agencies inter¬ 
ested in different phases of the subject, 
were present. 
This beetle is native, and does more or 
less damage in many sections of the State 
yearly, but during the last#four years has 
become very destructive around New York 
City, in Westchester County and on Dong 
Island, and the indications are that hick¬ 
ory trees in that section soon will be prac¬ 
tically all killed, as were the chestnuts 
by the blight, unless concerted action is 
taken to check the pest. The insect passes 
the Winter, jn both larval and mature 
stages, in or under the bark of the tree, 
and is comparatively easily controlled by 
cutting the badly infested trees during the 
Winter or early Spring months and burn¬ 
ing the bark and branches. The mature 
insect appears during June, feeds upon 
the leaf stalks and eventually enters the 
bark, disappearing around New York usu¬ 
ally by mid-August. That the above method 
will control the pest has been demonstrated 
in at least three instances on a large scale 
—in New Orleans, Detroit, and Prospect 
Park, Brooklyn. In Prospect Park six or 
seven hundred badly infested trees were 
cut a few years ago. The treatment was 
radical, but effective; and the trouble has 
not been noticeable since. This in part 
may be due to the fact that the park is 
isolated and re-infestation therefore would 
be slower than in exposed woodlands. 
Dr. Felt, State Entomologist, reported 
some encouragement from the application 
of an oily material to trees about the mid¬ 
dle of August, the theory being that the 
material entered the burrows and killed 
the young grubs or the bettles before 
eggs were laid. This treatment prob¬ 
ably would be practicable only in efforts 
to save a tree, or a few trees, particu¬ 
larly valuable because of individuality of 
location. The Hickory bark-beetle is 
closely related to the borers which do so 
much damage to fruit trees. Our main de¬ 
pendence in keeping insects in general 
check, the birds, unfortunately cannot be 
THE KUKAb 
relied on in the case of the Hickory beetle, 
for the reason that it is abroad but little, 
and during the greater part of the year 
is safe under the hard and thick bark of 
the tree. 
The conference adopted a resolution ask¬ 
ing the Commissioner of Agriculture to take 
the necessary steps to bring about en¬ 
forcement of the provisions of the law 
relative to insect pests, with particular 
reference to control of the Hickory bark- 
beetle, and thanking him for his interest 
and the calling of the conference, ltepre- 
sentatives of the department have been 
sent to New York to investigate. The 
section (304) of the agricultural law which 
the conference felt justified in asking the 
commissioner to invoke in attempting to 
control the outbreak around New York 
reads in part as follows: 
“* * * Nor shall any person know¬ 
ingly or willfully keep any trees, plants or 
vines affected or infested with the con¬ 
tagious disease or fungus known as black 
knot or with any other dangerously in¬ 
jurious fungous growth, or any tree, shrub, 
plant or vine infested or infected with or 
by the San Jose scale, or other insect pest 
or fungous disease dangerously injurious 
to or destructive of the trees, shrubs or 
other plants; every such tree, shrub, plant 
or vine shall be a public nuisance, and as 
such shall be abated and no damage shall 
be awarded for entering upon premises upon 
which there are trees, shrubs, plants or 
vines which may be infected with yellows, 
little peach or black knot or infested with 
San Jose scale or other insect pest, for 
the purpose of legally inspecting the same, 
nor shall any damage be awai'ded for the 
destruction by the Commissioner of Agri¬ 
culture dr his duly authorized agents, or 
representatives of such trees, shrubs, plants 
or vines if necessary or proper to suppress 
such disease or pest, if done in accordance 
with the provisions of this article, except 
as otherwise herein provided. * * •*” 
The Northern Nut Growers’ Association 
was represented at the conference by its 
secretary, W. C. Deming, Westchester, N. Y. 
The object of this organization is to en¬ 
courage the planting and cultivation of 
nut trees, especially our natives, and to 
seek out the best types or individual trees 
and propagate by grafting. Some of the 
members are engaged in cross-breeding, 
with the hope and good prospect of pro¬ 
ducing new and improved varieties, trees 
which will bear larger nuts, nuts of better 
flavor and cracking qualities, etc. The 
Persian walnut is under test in New York 
and other Eastern States, on its own roots 
and grafted on the Black walnut, and at¬ 
tempts are being made to find or breed 
pecans which will thrive in the Northern 
States. These are but hints of a wide field 
NEW-YORKER 
for progressive and creative work, and al¬ 
ready in the association’s and other litera¬ 
ture there is much to inspire and guide the 
beginner. 
Perhaps the importance of nuts as food 
and nut trees as timber is not generally 
realized. The hickories and Black walnuts 
are among our most valuable woods, and I 
believe all native nut trees are useful com¬ 
mercially. The United States census re¬ 
ports the 1909 crop of nuts as 62,328,000 
pounds, about 58 per cent, larger than in 
1899. Since it is stated that almonds, 
pecans and Persian walnuts comprise about 
nine-tenths of the crop, it is apparent that 
a large part of the production of wild nuts 
—such as those gathered and consumed on 
farms, is not included ; in other words, the 
census figures probably cover only nuts 
which reach the market. In addition, in 
1911 we imported nuts to the value of 
more than 814,000,000, and importations 
are increasing at the rate of a million dol¬ 
lars a year in spite of increased production 
of cultivated almonds and Persian (Com¬ 
monly called English) walnuts in California 
and pecans in the South. 
The planting of nut trees should appeal 
to all. How much of wealth and beauty 
would be gained by setting edible nut trees 
about the home and farm and in parks 
and other public grounds, in place of use¬ 
less and unattractive species that too often 
are allowed or even encouraged to grow. 
Such trees in time would have a very ma¬ 
terial value. Meat is sure to become 
scarcer and higher-priced as population iu- 
creases and the open ranges disappear; and 
nuts are a natural, and by many con¬ 
sidered the best substitute. Vegetarians 
regard them as even better than meat in 
the diet. U. S. Department of Agriculture 
farmers’ bulletins 332. “Nuts and their 
Uses as Food,” and 142, “Principles of 
Nutrition and Nutritive Value of Food,” 
contain full information on this subject. 
In reforesting, why should not the States 
include a considerable proportion of nut 
trees, which have a double usefulness, in¬ 
stead of confining plantings, as does the 
New York Conservation Commission, to 
trees valuable only for wood? If you 
argue that they are slow of growth, 1 
answer that if the State can wait 20 to 
50 years for lumber species, it well can 
afford, for instance, to plant Black walnuts, 
which after the age of 10 to 20 years (ac¬ 
cording to location and the soil 'in which 
planted) will bear nuts year after year 
while growing into merchantable timber. 
An objection is the cost of seed nuts for 
extensive plantings, but this would disap¬ 
pear after the State had a grove or two 
of bearing age. Nor is the fact that some 
of the nut trees are slower in maturing 
than species more generally planted for 
March 22, 
shade, ornament or woodlands always a 
valid argument for their neglect by indivi¬ 
duals. The number of “permanent farm¬ 
ers"—men who expect to stay on the farm, 
and their families after them, and manage 
accordingly—is increasing; and it is well 
for the country that those who robbed the 
soil and denuded the woodlands are giv¬ 
ing way to men who rationally cultivate 
and conserve both. The young and middle- 
aged can reasonably expect to harvest of 
their own planting; the elders may derive 
satisfaction from their legacy to posterity. 
We gather the fruits of trees planted or 
spared by our forefathers—and mothers. 
As we value our heritage, let us not fail 
to provide generously for the future. 
“Freely ye have received, freely give— 
good measure, pressed down and shaken to¬ 
gether, and running over.” 
CHAKLES B. LOOMIS. 
“New Ideas.” —Many of us have* read 
about the great changes that are taking 
place among the people of Japan and China. 
One would think to read reports that the 
great majority of the people in these coun¬ 
tries are taking up modern or foreign ideas 
of dress or food. The facts about this are 
stated by Consul Dorsey of Shanghai: 
“In Japan at the seaports one frequently 
finds native men dressed in foreign fashion, 
occasionally a woman so attired, and for¬ 
eign-style food is served in some eating es¬ 
tablishments and private houses. Last 
Summer the writer went for a walking tour 
in the interior of the country and day 
after day rarely saw a foreign garment ex¬ 
cept those worn by some chance European. 
Food was entirely Japanese and as of old, 
was consumed seated on the floor, with the 
aid of chop sticks. Japan has been ab¬ 
sorbing and practicing foreign ideas for 
many years, but only a few of the inhabi¬ 
tants have to any extent been influenced 
In their diet or manner of dress. The de¬ 
gree of household change will probably be 
no greater in China than in Japan, and 
one should not, therefore, look for a largely 
increased demand for foreign foodstuffs and 
kindred products.” Now in a different way 
much the same idea might be developed 
about the way some of our American city 
people regard farmers and country people. 
Take a man born and raised in the city— 
with no real knowledge of farm conditions. 
He lives about the most narrow life one can 
think of—following a little round of toil 
with little reading except a daily paper and 
no original thought whatever. We find men 
of this type saying that farmers must be 
all getting rich and with more conveniences 
than they know what to do with. There 
is only one cure for such people—put 
them out on a farm and let them try to 
make a living at farm work. 
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