Cbe matfonal flurseryma 
Vol. XXVIII. 
FOR GROWERS AND DEALERS IN NURSERY STOCK 
The National Nurseryman Publishing Co., Incorporated 
HATBORO, PENNA. JUNE 1920 
No. 6 
QUARANTINES 
The epidemic that is stifling the nursery industry in the United States. 
By J. Edward Moon, President of the National Association of Nurserymen. 
The calamity there would be if pests and diseases de¬ 
structive to horticulture were not restrained by the 
science of the entomologists or plant pathologists is ap¬ 
preciated by every right thinking person engaged in the 
nursery industry. Recognition is due, and must he ac¬ 
corded, the scientists who have studied the life cycles and 
habits of insect pests, and the cause and development of 
plant disease, and then have found ways of controlling 
or preventing them. 
The difficulty lies in that zeal of science which sees in 
every pest or disease a potential source of danger to our 
vast horticultural resources, whether forest, orchard, 
landscape, or lawn. This zeal to prevent the possible 
ravages of such pests, when manifesting itself in Quar¬ 
antines that restrict the shipment of nursery and fruit 
or farm products, has already retarded the progress of 
the nursery industry and will retard commercial horti¬ 
culture generally, if the practice of establishing State and 
Federal Quarantines is carried to the extent towards 
which it seems inclined. 
The State Quarantines are now giving the nursery in¬ 
dustry the greatest concern, though prior to the present 
epidemic of these there was a Federal Quarantine pre¬ 
venting the entry of most plants from Foreign Countries. 
For some years previous to 1919, when this “plant exclu¬ 
sion act” became operative, many scientific and practical 
persons were of the opinion that danger from pests and 
disease, lurked in the admission of this foreign stock. 
Their agitation led to what is popularly known as “Quar¬ 
antine Order No. 37,” which prevents entry of nursery 
products—excepting in very limited amount for propaga¬ 
tion and under highly restrictive conditions. 
This “plant exclusion act” imposes a tremendous re¬ 
sponsibility upon the nurserymen of the United States to 
produce here, the plants now excluded. The industry 
does not shrink from this responsibility. There is the 
talent in the nursery industry of America to grow all the 
stock that the nation needs. Somewhere over our broad 
land, we believe there can be found soils capable of pro¬ 
ducing every plant wanted. Labor, of course, will not be 
had as cheaply as heretofore in Europe, and in as much 
as from 40% to 60% of a nursery’s operating costs are 
labor, nursery products will cost more than when foreign 
growers provided much of the supply. 
The chaotic condition brought on by the International 
Quarantine can perhaps be adjusted in time. It is the 
Interstate Quarantines, with their increasing frequency 
and sweeping drastic provisions that stifle the industry 
now. “Well,” do you ask, “what of it?” “Isn’t it neces¬ 
sary to prevent ravages upon our plant life?” Yes, but 
I would add, isn’t it just as necessary to encourage the 
production of new plant life to replace the existing, 
whether it shall die from the ravages of pests, or even¬ 
tually, from other causes, as all plants will? 
The importance of the nursery industry, and the seri¬ 
ousness of handicapping it by quarantine can be appre¬ 
ciated if one pictures what would happen if the nursery¬ 
men struck? Would nature unaided supply enough little 
trees to perpetuate our forest resources? Where would 
the necessary young trees come from to meet the nation’s 
increasing demand for fruit or nuts as food? How about 
the trees and flowers for lawns, parks, and landscape 
plantings generally? Like so many others, this industry 
is absolutely essential to our civilization. 
As an example of Interstate Quarantines stifling the 
vitally important nursery industry take those issued on 
account of the European Corn Borer. This pest came in 
at the Port of Boston on broom corn. Later, at places in 
Massachusetts and New York the borer was observed. 
S. 0. S. signals were sent out by entomologists. Publicity 
was given the discovery. Large appropriations of money 
were made to combat the pest, and a corps of scientists 
engaged. After opportunity for study and observation of 
this corn borer, the announcement was made in a bulletin 
of Service and Regulatory announcements by the Federal 
Horticultural Board, issued December 12th, 1919, that 
“In relation to corn, however, there are some hopeful 
features which indicate that early prognostications 
of injury from this insect may not be warranted. For 
example, it (the corn borer) has been found to be 
single-brooded in New York State, and probably will 
be single-brooded throughout the northern area of 
corn production. As a single-brooded insect in New 
York, its damage to corn has been absolutely neglig¬ 
ible. In coastal Massachusetts, where it is double- 
brooded on account of favorable climate, due to 
ocean current, its injuries have been practically lim¬ 
ited to sweet corn and dwarf flint corn. A few fields 
of the coarser and stronger types of corn, such as 
characterize the principal corn crop of the United 
States, have been practically free from injury.” 
Despite such authoritative announcements, publicity 
continues to spread alarm, and the States ot Illinois, 
Michigan, and Wisconsin threaten Quarantines against 
admitting from New England or New York many horti¬ 
cultural products, including certain varieties ol nursery 
