THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
403 
CUSTOMS DECISIONS AFFECTING IMPORTERS OF 
NURSERY STOCK. 
No. 19946.— Nursery Stock—Boxwood. —Protest 201913 of 
American Express Company (Boston). 
An article invoiced as Buxus arborescens and commonly known 
as boxwood, which was classified as nursery stock under paragraph 
252, tariff act of 1897, was claimed to be dutiable under the provision 
in the same paragraph for evergreen seedlings. 
Waite, General Appraiser: * * * That boxwood is an ever¬ 
green is conceded, but the protestants have not sustained their claim 
that these importations were seedlings. The Government has 
offered in evidence the testimony of the examiner of nursery stock 
at the port of New York, whose experience and acquaintance with 
such merchandise covers a period of forty years. He states that, 
although it is possible to raise from the seed such plants as imported, 
as a matter of fact it is not done; that they are started from cuttings 
for the reason that too long a time is required to germinate from the 
seed. 
I 11 the light of such testimony and in the absence of any evidence 
sustaining the importers’ claim, we overrule the protest. 
No. 19947.— Flower Seeds—Seeds of Shrubs and Vines —Pro¬ 
test 296313 of Henry & Lee (New York). 
Merchandise classified as seeds not specially provided for under 
paragraph 254, tariff act of 1897, was claimed to be free of duty under 
paragraph 656 (flower seeds), or paragraph 548 (seeds which are 
drugs). Protest overruled. 
Waite, General Appraiser: * * * No testimony was taken 
in the case and no samples produced. The appraiser’s report shows 
the importation in question consists of seeds of salisburia (an orna¬ 
mental tree), wistaria (a climbing shrub), limonia (shrub), ilex 
(holly), and pueraria (a tuberous-rooted climbing plant). We do 
not think the seeds of a shrub or tree or a hardy vine, such as holly 
or wistaria, were intended to be included within the description of 
flower seeds in paragraph 656. In our opinion, the commodity is 
not assessable under that paragraph nor under paragraph 548, but 
is correctly classifiable as seeds not specially provided for and assess¬ 
able as found by the collector at 30 per cent ad valorem. 
No. 19948.— Seedlings of Pine and Spruce—Evergreen Seed¬ 
lings. —Protest 207,142 of Chas. D. Stone & Co. (New York). 
The protest related to seedlings of white pine and blue spruce, 
classified as evergreen seedlings under paragraph 252, tariff act of 
1897. Assessment affirmed. 
Waite, General Appraiser: * * * The importers claim that 
“both these varieties of trees shed their foliage in the winter time, 
and are therefore manifestly not evergreen,” but should be dutiable 
as nursery or greenhouse stock at 25 per cent ad valorem under the 
same paragraph. 
The above-quoted statement of the protestants, upon which they 
base their claim, would seem to have been made in error, for the 
trees named are perhaps among the best known of the evergreens. 
They are found in the forests in the north of our country, and their 
characteristics are so well known that all authorities agree upon their 
habit of always retaining their leaves. We consider this to be mat¬ 
ter of common knowledge, and the mere statement of the fact 
suffices. 
Copy of H. R. 21318. As amended at conference of Entomol¬ 
ogists, Agricultural Chemists and Manufacturers, held in New 5: ork 
City, June 18th, 1908. 
A Bill for preventing the manufacture, saH, or transportation of 
adulterated or misbranded fungicides, Paris greens, lead arsenates, 
and other insecticides, and for regulating traffic therein, and for 
other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and house of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That it shall be 
unlawful for any person to manufacture within any Territory or the 
District of Columbia any insecticide, Paris green, lead arsenate or 
fungicide which is adulterated or misbranded within the meaning of 
this Act; and any person who shall violate any of the provisions of 
this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and for each offense 
shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not to exceed five hundred 
dollars, and for each subsequent offense and conviction thereof shall 
be fined not less than five hundred dollars, or sentenced to one year’s 
imprisonment, or both such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion 
of the court. 
Nurserymen and fruit growers can aid the passage of this bill by 
writing to congressmen and senators urging its need. 
PEACH YELLOWS. 
healthy peach pits. 
The following open letter by the State Entomologist of Virginia 
calls attention to a very important matter: 
This is to again call your attention to the important question of 
controlling peach yellows. While this disease had caused consider¬ 
able loss and destroyed many orchards in this state prior to 1900 , 
the peach industry sprang up in other sections, and little attention 
was paid to the trouble until within the past three or four years. 
Since then it has threatened the very existence of the peach industry. 
This disease is transmitted by peach pits, and also by buds taken 
from diseased trees, even from healthy portions of diseased trees. 
This makes it absolutely necessary for nurserymen to look care¬ 
fully to the source of their peach pits and bud-sticks. Many of our 
state nurserym.en have already responded to this suggestion, and 
procured their peach pits under certificate of freedom from this 
disease, and we hope non-resident nurserymen who sell in the state 
will do the same. We append below to non-residents a copy of a 
circular letter recently sent to our state nurserymen in regard to 
peach pits. 
We must also ask that state nurserymen, where they have not 
yet done so, make it their duty to see the orchards near them several 
times during the year, and call our attention each time to any case 
where they find diseased trees. If trees diseased with yellows 
standing in orchards near nurseries are destroyed promptly, as soon 
as they show the first symptoms, healthy nursery trees, can be 
grown, even in sections where this disease is prevalent, and we shall 
so advise orchardists who wish to purchase peach trees. A large 
trade cannot, however, be expected in this line immediately. 
We hope non-resident nurserymen will take this up with their 
inspectors, and see that conditions are equally as good. Georgia 
and California authorities advise the purchase of peach trees from 
sections only that are free from yellows. We must come to the same 
thing, unless nurserymen use due diligence to protect, not only their 
premises, but co-operate to the fullest extent in keeping the disease 
in check in the orchards near them. 
This disease has a long period of incubation. Nursery trees are 
not likely to show the presence of the disease the first year, and it is 
difficult to detect the disease in the nursery; hence the inspection 
must be carried to the orchard. If a reasonably large percentage of 
trees show yellows within a few years after planting in the orchard, 
this indicates that some of the trees were diseased when they left the 
nursery. We have often observed such conditions during the past 
few years, and we hope nurserymen will pay such attention to this 
matter that these cases will not be found in the future. 
Peach growing is one of the most important industries of this 
state,and, if properly protected,will develop now with great rapidity, 
and there will be a greatly increased demand for nursery trees 
Hence it is greatly to the interest of nurserymen to use every means 
in their power to help control the disease. 
Yours very truly, 
J. L. Phillips, 
State Entomologist. 
WHEN IN DOUBT, ADVERTISE. 
Enclosed you will find two dollars and fifty cents payment for 
my ad in your journal, October issue. Since running this ad with 
you, I have contracted for all my seed and therefore I will be obliged 
to recall it for the present. However,as soon as I can get an estimate 
of my spring work, I will return with an ad which can iemain. I 
received many returns from the ad and am well satisfied. 
F. N. Graass. 
