214 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
STANDARDIZATION IN SIZES OF NURSERY STOCK 
At the meeting of the New England Nurserymen’s As¬ 
sociation held in Providence, Rhode Island, and, later at 
the meeting of the Connecticut Nurserymen’s Association 
held in Hartford, Edward W. Breed of Clinton, Mass., 
presented a paper on the standardization in sizes of nur¬ 
sery stock. 
Standard Code 
General Rule 
All measurements in height and diameter state in feet, 
beginning with the smallest size. 
Quality state thus 
X equals light grade suitable for growing on. 
XX equals medium grade or good salable stock, 
XXX equals extra heavy and selected stock. 
Suggestions. 
With deciduous trees height of trunk to first lateral 
may be given. 
With deciduous trees, Coniferous trees and Conifer¬ 
ous shrubs the time of the last transplanting may be 
given. 
In ease of Specimens it may be stated. 
Decidous Trees. 
Height give in single feet up to eight teet. then, by two 
feet. 
Caliper take three feet from ground, and beginning at 
one inch give in one quarter inches. 
Deciduous Shrubs. 
Height give in half feet up to three feet, then, by single 
feet. 
Quality as per general rule. 
Evergreen Trees. 
Height give in half feet up to five feet, then, by single 
feet. 
Diameter at base give in half feet. 
Quality as per general rule. 
Evergreen Shrubs. 
Height give in one quarter or one-half feet up to three 
feet, then by one-half feet. 
Diameter give in half feet. 
Quality as per general rule. 
Vines 
Age give in years. 
Quality as per general rule. 
Herbaceous Perennials. 
Quality, 
X one season’s growth from seed, cutting or division. 
XX two year’s growth, undivided stock. 
XXX three year’s growth, undivided clumps. 
F. Field grown. 
P. Pot grown with size of pots. 
Fruit Trees. 
Height give in single feet. 
Caliper take one-half foot from ground and give in six¬ 
teenth inches. 
Quality as per general rule. 
Small Fruits. 
Age give in years. 
Quality as per general rule. 
The object of this paper was to bring about a more uni¬ 
form method of measurement and description, thereby 
giving the purchaser a more accurate idea of the stock. 
The one measurement, generally height, is not sufficient 
for a complete understanding. This should work out to 
mutual advantage to both grower and purchaser. The 
grower would receive better results from a more definite 
grading, and the purchaser could better determine the 
grade he requires. 
Mr. Breed endeavored to treat the subject in as simple 
and uniform a manner as possible eliminating a variety 
of phrases such as stocky, bushy, twice transplanted, 
heavy, etc., all of which can as well be explained by the 
X method. 
At the conclusion of Mr. Breed’s paper a committee con¬ 
sisting of Messrs. E. W. Breed, J. R. Barnes, and J. Heur- 
lin was appointed to consider and recommend a code 
which we now publish. 
QUASSIN CHEAP INSECTICIDE 
An Effective Spray Made From it at a Low Price 
Attention is called in a recent bulletin (No. 165) of the 
United States Department of Agriculture to the possibil¬ 
ities of quassiin as a contact insecticide. There is reason 
to believe, say this bulletin, that quassiin can be cheaply 
prepared and possibly sold at a lower price than some of 
the materials now used in commercial insecticides. The 
only experiments, however, that have been made up to 
the present were conducted at Sacramento. California 
and it is possible that in a more humid climate quassiin 
would not be so satisfactory. 
Quassiin is the active principle in quassia wood, whbh 
is found in considerable ouantities in Jamaica. Quassia 
chips have been employed for many years in the prepara¬ 
tion of spray solutions for the control of the hop aphis. 
The percentage of quassiin in these chips varies some¬ 
what, but it has been stated to be 75 per cent bv one 
author. If this is correct, the bulletin savs, it would take 
only U /2 pounds of the chips to 100 gallons of snray to 
make an effective insecticide: 3 pounds or double this 
quantity, would certainly be sufficient; and with 3 nounds 
of whale-oil soap at 4 cents a pound would make the total 
cost of materials for 100 gallons of spray only 24 cents. 
In investigating the efficiency of the quassiin spray, the 
author of the bulletin compared it with a standard insecti¬ 
cide known as nicotine sulphate, a tobacco product. The 
quassiin be believes to be equally effective. 
Note:—Quassiin chips have long been used in Eng¬ 
land as an insecticide. Where the writer worked as a boy, 
in the peach houses and grape houses there was always a 
barrel of clear water in which was suspended a muslin 
bag containing about a pound of quassiin chips. 
It made the water extremely bitter and when syringed 
on the plants was very effective in keeping them free from 
aphids.— Editor. 
The town of Fine, New York, has planted out 40,000 
Norway Spruce and White Pine, with the idea of form¬ 
ing a nucleus for a town forest. The trees will be 
planted in forty acres near Oswegatchie, which has been 
donated by John P. Griffin, the trees being supplied by 
the interest and generosity of Prof. E. F. McCarthy. 
