THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
340 
(‘erned, to prohibit the iiuporlatioii of balled plants into 
America. 
The Deputy Chiee of the Phytopatiiolooical Seuviee, 
(s.) N. van Poeteren. 
Jlerlin, Md., November lllb, 1918. 
National Nurseryman, 
Flourtown, Pa. 
(lentlemen;— 
The lack of demand caused bimdreds of aei(‘s of nur¬ 
sery slock to be pulled out and burned during the past 
live years and wheat, corn, potatoes and other vegc'lables 
gi'own. That Avas right to feed our soldiers and Alli('s. 
If the nurserymen will eontinue to grow a port of their 
land in staple crops, it may help to avoid anotluM' over¬ 
production of nursery stock in such a short time. 
We shipped from Harrisons’ Railroad Siding this year 
four ears of potatoes, 51 ears of peaches, four ears of 
pears, 51 ears of nursery slock. 
We harvested about 3,000 bushels of corn for our 
teams and a good (juantity of wheat, oats and peas. 
There is a scarcity of good nursery slock, but we lind 
enough compared with the amount of labor to dig, pack 
and plant. It’s a good time to go safe. Grow your food 
for man and beast! 
Very truly yours, 
Orlando Harrison. 
TOO MUCH LITERATURE 
As the Experiment Station Record, Department Year 
Rooks, Rulletins and the multitudinous publications 
issued by the U. S. D. of A. and the various State Depart¬ 
ments of Agriculture come to hand it makes one (jues- 
tion, are they worth while? 
Is their value commensurate with the stupendous la¬ 
bor required to produce them? to say nothing of the cost 
in money. 
.fudging from a decade of observation the writer offers 
the opinion that it is not. And further that the advanced 
or scientific knowledge of agriculture and horticulture 
of the United States is largely hidden aw ay in books and 
almost valueless because not used. 
It is a peculiar trait of human nature that anything 
that may be bad for llie asking is lightly valued and sug¬ 
gests the thought that the whole conception of our ex¬ 
periment stations and horticultural colleges as a means 
of educating the public is wrong. It is modeled too 
closely after the sciences such as medicine that require 
little action with much study, whereas agriculture and 
allied professions are still subject to the ruling “In the 
sweat of thy face shall thou eat bread.” Science is 
trying its best to sidestep this penalty but not succeeding 
very efficiently. Fundamentally the earth only gives 
of her bounty to those w ho work w ith their hands as w ell 
as their brains. 
If the horticultural and agricultural schools turned out 
more practitioners w ho w ould teach by action and results 
and less books, the scientitic data w ould be of more value 
to the country. 
We can learn much from older countries w hose vo¬ 
taries ac(}uired their skill in the held and garden rather 
than in the class room. 
The boy who goes through high school and then spends 
several years at an agreultural college, with its course's 
of playing at work docs not seem to measure up to the 
boy who goes direct from the high school to serve apjin'n- 
ticeship at a good nursery, garden or farm hefore finish¬ 
ing his education at college. 
The old controversy that used to be so much debated 
among gardeners and horticulturists, Rraetice versus 
Theory, Hook larnin versus Practice, Scientitic know¬ 
ledge versus Practical Experience has almost died out. 
The old school of rule of thumb practitioners have givi'ii 
place to college men and science orders all things. 
The economic Entomologist, chemist and bacteriologist 
sit on the throne and issue their edicts governing the 
plant life of the country. Nature goes along just the 
same, working under the laws that brought the entomo¬ 
logist into being, resenting when her laws are broki'ii 
and demanding full •indemnity. She show s no leniency 
for errors of ignorance and w ithholds her haiTests w hen 
cheating is attempted. Dig or plow and manure you 
must or she w ill w ithold her w ages 
The old practitioner may not have had much theory 
or book learning, but he at least knew how to work and 
produced results. 
GERMAN NAMES 
There has Iieen considerable agitation noted, since the 
war with Germany, in favor of. discarding Geiinan 
names of roses and other plants of German origin. 
However much we may loathe anything that calls to 
mind the dishonor and bestiality of a government gone 
mad, there is something childish and impotent in chang¬ 
ing the name of a flower and denying its origin. 
If the flowor in question is of American origin and 
named in honor of some one or something Gei’inan it 
would be quite correct to cancel the compliment but we 
have no right to change the name ot a plant ot (lerman 
origin. The real American thing to do would be to raise 
something superior and give it an American name. In 
the meantime allow Gennan plants to retain their (n'r- 
man names as a continual reminder of faith misplaced. 
The Northern Nut Growers’ Associaton is carrying on 
an active propaganda to encourage the use ol nuts, 
calling attention to the great food value in them, and do¬ 
ing everything possible to encourage the planting of nut 
groves. 
The nu^nbership in the Association is lf'2.00 per y(*ar 
and includes a copy of the current annual report. The 
Secretary is Willard G. Rixby, 46th & Second Avenue, 
Brooklyn, N. Y. 
