THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
265 
THE WEST US FUSE SHAPE. 
Recent Rains, Good Fruit Crop and Prosperous Business Condi, 
tlons Cause Anticipation of Brisk Spring Trade—Little 
Surplus Except on Light Apple—Heavy Peach Crop in 
Nebraska Creates Demand in Eastern States 
for Stock — Retail Trade. 
Ottawa, Kans., Oct. 10.—F. H. Stannard & Co. : Our 
trade for this season has been very satisfactory, especially the 
retail trade, which is the largest in the history of our business. 
Our wholesale business is not quite up to last year, principally 
on account of the dry weather. 
“ Recent rains, good fruit crop, and prosperous business 
conditions, have put our western country in splendid shape 
for spring, and we anticipate one of the best spring trades we 
have ever had. In our judgment, there will be little surplus 
in the West, except on light apple.” 
Crete, Neb., Oct. 9. — E. F. Stephens : “ The apple crop 
for Nebraska has been very light. The peach crop has been 
surprisingly large for our state, and perhaps each and every 
tree that was old enough to bear was loaded down with all it 
could carry. This has checked the demand for apple trees 
and increased the call for peach trees. The feeling of the 
public in our state is rather against fall planting perhaps for 
the reason that many nurserymen dig so early in the fall in 
order to accommodate their dealers with early delivery that 
the trees are not in the best condi'ion for wintering, Their 
customers have oft times failed successfully to winter trees so 
handled. This has increased the difficulty of making fall 
sales and deliveries. 
“ Our experience as commercial orchard planters favors 
digging trees late in the fall ; last of October or first of 
November, and burying over winter. The farmers can then 
handle their trees and plants in the late fall and have the 
advantage of very early spring planting. The present feeling, 
however, is such that it is easier for agents to sell for spring 
than for fall, and the bulk of our trade will be for spring 
delivery, which at this time promises to be about 50 per cent f 
larger than last spring. 
“ Regarding the supply of nursery stock. There seems to 
be a sufficient stock of apple trees, and lesser demand for 
cherry trees and a necessity for purchasing a portion of surplus 
of peaches from states east of us. The season on the whole 
has been favorable for the growth of nursery stock. We have 
fine blocks of peach and plum trees running from 5 to 7 feet 
in height, and apple trees at two years running 5 to 7 feet. 
“ We have 40,000 trees in our partnership orchards besides 
large orchards at home. Frequent culture neutralizes harm of 
heat. We cultivated our cherry orchard twenty-five times this 
season.” 
Salt Lake City, Oct. 19— Pioneer Nursery Company: 
.“ Our sales for fall are about as usual. It is too soon for us 
to even guess at the special features of the present season s 
trade. We think stock will be pretty well sold out before 
spring. 
Topeka, Kansas, Oct. 21—F. W. Watson & Co.: “It is a 
little too early yet to compare value of fall sales with former 
years. We are now in the midst of packing. There is a good 
demand for two year apple, all grades, with prices inclined a 
trifle lower than last season. Cherry in good demand, especi¬ 
ally for lighter grades; one year blocks are being dug. Peach 
are getting scarce; No. 1 trees better price and better demand 
than for several years. Kieffer pear, slow sale with declining 
prices. 
“ Apple seedlings sold well, and from present indications the 
demand will exceed the supply before shipping season is over. 
There are more pear seedlings than usual, especially Japan, 
prices only about half as high as last season. 
“The dry weather during the summer frightened quite a 
number of the nurserymen, but otherwise did no damage. 
Stock has ripened up earlier this fall than usual, and is in fine 
shape to handle. From present indications there will be no 
surplus stock to burn this spring.” 
WORSE THAN SAN JOSE SCALE. 
The Riverside, Cal., Enterprise states that the board of hor¬ 
ticultural commissioners recently found a small invoice of 
hothouse plants that had been sent there from Los Angeles, 
and on examination found them infested with purple scale, the 
worst pest that ever appeared in the state. The plants were 
all burned, as the only way of removing this dangerous enemy 
of horticulture. The shipping of purple scale to that city was 
an act that should never have been attempted, says the Cal¬ 
ifornia Fruit Grower as it was the duty of the commissioners 
and inspectors of Los Angeles county to have destroyed it 
before shipment. _ 
MAY SHIP INTO VIRGINIA. 
In the last issue of the National Nurseryman we stated 
that an understanding had been reached regarding acceptance 
of New York state certificates of inspection. Comfnenting on 
the matter, the Country Gentleman says: 
It appears that Prof. Alwood of Virginia has taken a bold and unwar¬ 
ranted stand in refusing, a short time ago, to recognize certificates of 
inspection of nursery stock issued by the New York State Department 
of A griculture, on the ground that the persons making the inspection 
were not practical entomologists and were unknown to him. He 
makes no claim that there is diseased stock from this state shipped into 
Virginianor complaint that the work of inspection is not effectively done. 
His attitude is that until such time as he is notified by an entomologist of 
“known standing” of the competency of the inspectors he will not 
recognize certificates and will thereby exclude from \ irginia stock 
sent from this state. Pennsylvania is being treated likewise. The 
doctrine that any state official has the power to stop interstate com¬ 
merce goods coming into the state, without proof that the sale of the 
goods would be in violation of state statute, particularly where, as in 
the cases in question, the presumption is great that the goods are free 
from disease and could be exposed and sold without violating any law 
or regulation, is somewhat new and startling. Especially is this so 
when one considers that the San Jose scale statute of Virginia provides, 
in so many words, that the provisions of the law shall not apply to 
interstate commerce traffic. Prof. Alwood can inspect nursery stock 
on its arrival within his state, and if found diseased, destroy it; but he 
cannot shut out healthy stock lawfully. 
This ruling of the professors, if allowed to prevail, would practically 
kill the entire trade of New York nurserymen in Virginia, and would 
open up an avenue for unfair competition on the part of the Southern 
nurserymen, for while New York stock was held out, they could easily 
and successfully grasp the market. 
However, to satisfy the professor, Dr. E. P. Felt, our state entomolo¬ 
gist and a member of the editorial staff of this paper, has certified to 
the ’competency of our inspectors, all of whom were taken from the 
civil service list, and the certificates of our state department will in 
future be accepted. 
