the fruit with a spacing of 4 to 5 inches between the fruit. Very 
young trees should not be allowed to bear too heavily. When a 
tree is overloaded with fruit, it requires thinning to obtain fruit 
of good size and quality, and to keep the tree from going into the 
undesirable biennial habit. 
WINTER CARE—Rabbits, Cats, Rodents and their control: 
1. To protect a tree in winter from depredators, it would be 
advisable to wrap several thicknesses of newspapers or tar paper 
around the trunk and lower branches of the tree in the fall. The 
paper should not be tied too tightly and it should be removed in 
the spring. 
2. Another method to prevent damage by animals is to treat 
the trunk with a repellent solution. The copper Soap Rodent 
Repellent is a dark green paint-like material which can easily 
be applied to a tree or shrub, giving a repellent protective coat- 
ing. Has fine lasting qualities, and will remain on trees through- 
out the winter and spring. This is endorsed and used by the 
Michigan State College. You may obtain this solution from 
M. J. Beck, 510 N. Cedar Street, Lansing, Michigan. 
THE PEACH BORER 
This is one of the most destructive pests attacking peach, 
apricot, nectarine, cherry and plum trees. 
When masses of gum-like substance mixed with sawdust-like 
refuse appears at or near the base of the tree reveals the presence 
of peach borer infestation. The gum is the bleeding of the tree 
and if the borers are not eliminated, they girdle under the bark 
and the tree will eventually die. The injury itself may extend 
about 3 to 4 inches above the ground line and about 8 inches 
above the ground line along the main roots. 
Around July Ist until early August, the adult moth deposits a 
large number of eggs on the trunks of the trees or in the ground 
near the trees. The caterpillar is a yellowish white color with a 
dark brown head and about 1% inches long full grown. The 
young borers that hatch, tunnel through the bark into the grow- 
ing tissues of the tree. Watch for the first signs of gum every 
year to prevent complications. 
To eradicate them, take a piece of wire or a knife and follow 
the channel until they are located. Most likely, there are more 
than one—look carefully. If the wound should be a large one, 
we suggest painting it to avoid infections. 
CONTROL OF THE BORER (Two Methods) 
1. Dig around the base of the trunk for about 2 inches and 
then cover this with some animal fat or some other fatty sub- 
stance up about 10 inches, this forming a coat and preventing 
the borer from getting into the tree. This should be done during 
the month of August. The purpose of using some animal fat is 
that it will not injure the bark of the tree or the tree itself. 
2. Remove weed growth around the base of the tree and level 
the soil. Next, paradichlorobenzene crystals are spread in a circle 
about 1 inch from the base of the infested tree. Finally, loose 
soil is used to cover crystals and is mounded up and tamped 
firm around the tree with a shovel. 
Use a Hormone Spray to prevent preharvest drop—control 
wind-fall losses—and get better color and size fruit. 
Use paradichlorobenzene for the control of peach borers. 
Materials for the Hormone Spray and borer control may be 
obtained fom the following manufacturers: Dow Chemical Com- 
pany, Midland, Michigan; General Chemical Co., 40 Rector 
Street, New York City, N. Y.; E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., 
Grasselli Chemicals Dept., Wilmington 98, Delaware. 
FRUIT SPRAY CHART 
SPRAYING—The amateur home gardener will find that one 
or more of the recently introduced preparations now on the mar- 
ket are practical to use. Nearly every type necessary is sold in 
convenient packages sufficiently large to keep the garden well 
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