The chestnut blight, for instance, of a generation ago, may be
re-examined in the light of the proceedings before a chestnut blight
conference, held at Harrisburg, Penna., February 20-21, 1912. A chestnut
extract manufacturer, a Mr. W. M. Benson[3], stated at the time that in
his experience the best extracts were made from trees high in lime. "A
blighted tree," he stated, "is simply a tree in the process of starving
to death for lack of lime." Maps showed that the blight was worst where
there was least lime, and that the chestnut trees died last in
Tennessee, where soils are high in lime. Analysis showed that chestnuts
contained 40% lime, an unheard of amount. That this high test may
reflect a faulty condition is pointed out later.
All I can add to this is that there is an English Walnut Tree, Alpine
variety, on the farm of Mr. Deknatel, on Route 202, Chalfont, Penna.,
which is remarkable for its virility and crops of large nuts. This tree
grows in a place protected by house and barn near a well, in limestone
soil. It resisted the severe winters of 1935 and 1936, when many other
English Walnuts in the vicinity died. My opinion is that any tree in
that location would be an outstanding tree; and vice versa, had that
particular tree been planted in another location, it would have done no
better than any trees there located. Nuts from that tree might well be
tested and compared with nuts from other trees.