THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
167 
I am well pleased with the “National Nurseryman.” 
Will someone through its columns, give me a remedy 
for raspberry and strawberry anthracnose? 
Also a remedy to prevent nursery stock such as apple 
trees from being girded by rabbits? 
Spraying with Bordeaux mixture is perhaps the best 
preventative of anthracnose for both strawberry and 
raspberry plants, but if the plantations are badly infected 
it would be better to rotate the crops and plant the 
ground with something else for a time. 
John Weathers in “Commercial Gardening” says: 
The most certain way in dealing with diseased straw¬ 
berry beds, is to mow off' the leaves soon after the fruit 
has been picked, and, when the mown leaves are fairly 
dry, to cover the whole ground with a sprinkling of 
straw, litter, or other material that will burn well, and 
set it on tire. This effectually disposes of not only 
the diseased spore carrying leaves but all dead fragments. 
The spring following spray with sulphide of potassium. 
The one really effective remedy to prevent injury to 
trees by rabbits, is to get rid of the rabbits, and we are 
inclined to think this would be as cheap a remedy as any 
that could be applied to a large quantity of stock. 
Spraying the trunks with fish oil soap is said to pre¬ 
vent rabbits from girdling them. 
We should be glad if some of our readers would give 
their experiences. — Editor. 
GRAFTING 
Grafting is resorted to principally as a ready means of 
increasing the stock of desirable varieties; but some of 
the other advantages of the practice are sometimes over¬ 
looked. Let us briefly glance at a few. Old orchard 
trees very often become enfeebled and afford indifferent 
returns. Such may be rejuvenated by lopping one or 
more of the upper strong arms and grafting them with a 
strong-growing variety, which from their greater foliage 
will induce more vigorous root action, drawing the sap 
to branches which are too weak to attract it themselves. 
The benefit of grafting such trees with a more vigorous 
variety is enhanced by a dressing of fresh soil or man¬ 
ure, so as to enable the roots to reciprocate the increased 
action of the bead. In this way an orchard of old trees 
may be kept in a flourishing condition without resorting 
to the usual practice of beheading and re-grafting. 
Where the latter practice is resorted to with the ob¬ 
ject of changing an unsatisfactory for an approved kind, 
discrimination must be made between strong and moder¬ 
ate growers; for to graft a weak grower upon one nat¬ 
urally robust is not, as may be supposed, to supply the 
vigour wanting in the former’s natural constitution, but 
lo overcharge it with sap in excess of its digestive power, 
debilitation ensuing unless part of the stock is retained 
above the grafts, in which case the latter will flourish. 
The influence of the scion over the stock is so complete 
that it is doubtful if the latter has any influence on the 
former in three or four years, therefore in seeking to ren¬ 
ovate old trees scions of strong-growing varieties should 
be employed, the root action being dependent upon 
healthy leaf growth. 
The grafting of the Pear upon the Quince stock is not 
in all cases satisfactory, or of Apples on the Paradise 
stock; for though both are strong rooters yet they are 
comparatively weak growers, and to graft them with 
Pears or Apples of similar weakness adds nothing to the 
stock’s power of root production, matters remaining 
much as they were before grafting, unless a growth of a 
stronger variety be encouraged upon the same stock, but 
kept with in reasonable limits bv judicious pruning. But 
by grafting those stocks with vigorous-growing Apples 
and Pears, or the practice of grafting weak-growing 
stocks with vigorous scions induces vigorous root action. 
By grafting, therefore, rightly understood, we aim at 
something more than the mere employment of stocks for 
propagating purposes, but overcome difficulties of soil 
and climate to a certain extent, making a tree more ser¬ 
viceable, enhancing its productiveness and the quality of 
its fruit. 
E. Denny, in the Journal of Horticulture. 
NURSERYMEN WAKING UP 
American Association to Become Bigger, More Aggressive 
in Management, Broader and More Valuable, Hereafter 
Under the new constitution the usefulness of the Asso¬ 
ciation is to be greatly enhanced and the outlook for 
greater future success is very promising. 
Notwithstanding that the new schedule of terms for 
membership requires some to pay larger fees than hither¬ 
to the registration for 1916 at this writing equals that of 
last year, with more than double the revenue. A few 
pessimists predicted failure, being unable to grasp the 
vision of the future possibilities in the line of achieve¬ 
ment. But there is encouragement in the tone of the 
correspondence accompanying remittances of member¬ 
ship fees. One writes, “Have not done $10,000 of bus¬ 
iness the past year; I did before the war and expect to 
do again; but I see no reason why an active member do¬ 
ing a business of less than that amount should get off 
with a smaller fee than an associate member.” Another, 
a New Englander, writes “I am in sympathy with the 
effort to raise the standard of membership and increase 
the value of the Association, so that it will mean some¬ 
thing,” and he enclosed a check for $65 as his fee. Such 
declarations furnish illustrations of unselfish loyalty. 
The attendance at the forty-first annual convention at 
Milwaukee, June 28-30. ought to be a large and inspiring 
one. The new constitution will be further discussed 
after its first year of action, and the program will include 
items of most vital interest to the trade. The manage¬ 
ment of Hotel Wisconsin have been liberal in their pro¬ 
posals, and members should write early for rooms. 
Not many days remain in which to send in member¬ 
ships, and, busy as members doubtless are, we urge them 
to take the few minutes necessary to attend to this item 
of business, and thus facilitate the work of preparing the 
Badge Book for publication. 
Communicate at once with Secretary John Hall, 204 
Granite Building, Rochester, N. Y. 
