DR. CRANE: That's right.

DR. MacDANIELS: I say we have always come down to the point, here we

are, where do we go from here and what do we do next? There, in a word,

"Here we are." Lots of discussion, much of it irrelevant. I will just

propose, along the lines I spoke before, that what comes out of this is

that We recommend to the incoming president to organize a survey and

testing campaign along the lines that seem to meet with some agreement;

namely, getting the state vice-presidents busy in finding out the

regional evaluation of different varieties.

Supposing we try black walnuts; just one species for this year, and that

he organize his state according to zones and come up with that

information with regard to that state.

And the other thing would be that these findings be sent to the

committee. We have a committee on surveys and one on judging and

standards, and let that be compiled by them jointly or set up in some

way that would seem to be effective and come up next year with this

overall evaluation along those lines.

I'd make that motion.

DR. COLBY: Second the motion.

DR. MacDANIELS: Any discussions?

DR. ANTHONY: In Pennsylvania two of us have worked full time for a year,

and I am not sure we'd be able to evaluate the black walnut yet.

DR. CRANE: We are not evaluating the black walnut, though.

DR. ANTHONY: You are asking one man to do that, your vice-president.

DR. CRANE: He is to appoint a committee.

DR. MacDANIELS: Any way he chooses to mark them out.

DR. ANTHONY: He is organizing a nut tester association.

DR. MacDANIELS: No, an evaluation association. As I would say, you have

the Ohio Association already formed; that would be their problem to come

up with an answer for their state. We have the Pennsylvania organization

already organized. They will come up with some sort of evaluation: No.

1, Thomas, No. 2, whatever it is, No. 3, whatever it is. Now, in your

other states we don't have an organization; do it some other way. I

don't care how they do it.

DR. CRANE: There are some others in these other states, too, that are

already formed.

Any other discussion?

(Whereupon, a vote on the motion was called for, and it was carried

unanimously.)

MR. SILVIS: Just one thing. It was made with the express purpose that we

start maybe just the black walnut. At the same time in certain areas you

may as well raise a hickory or a Persian right along with the black

walnut, or the filbert.

MR. McDANIEL: No objection, but this year we are surveying the black

walnut named varieties only.

MR. SALZER: I am just a buck private in the rear rank, but we have been

having little local meetings in New York, and they appointed me

vice-president for the State of New York, the Empire State, and here

Ohio has their organization, Pennsylvania has their organization. What

am I going to do? I can work Western New York, but I have got to have

someone to help me in Eastern New York.

DR. MacDANIELS: Take the membership list and take the men who can do it.

DR. CRANE: There are a lot of good men in Eastern New York.

Now, if there isn't anything else, I will turn the meeting back to Dr.

MacDaniels.

DR. MacDANIELS: Thank you, Dr. Crane. I think these talks are good for

the soul. We can let our hair down and know what we all think. And I do

think it's important that we do make some progress on this particular

problem. I think this is one way to do it. There may be a half dozen

ways and other ways better, but at least you have to agree on something

and go on from there.

Now, the meeting in the morning begins at nine o'clock, the full

program.

If there is no further business, then, this session is adjourned.

(Whereupon, at 10 o'clock, p.m., the meeting was adjourned, to reconvene

at 9 o'clock, a. m. the following day, August 29, 1950.)

TUESDAY MORNING SESSION

August 29, 1950

DR. MacDANIELS: I want to make the remark that this isn't church, you

can sit up front if you want to.

The first paper this morning has to do with a nut tree disease that is

bothering a good many of us, I think, particularly in Michigan, as you

recall from Mr. Becker's paper, the Bunch Disease of Walnuts, by Dr. H.

L. Crane and Dr. J. W. McKay. I don't know which one is going to give

it. Dr. McKay?

The Bunch Disease of Walnuts

Discussion

(Manuscript too late for publication.)

(Drs. Crane and McKay reported that there had been little further

development in knowledge regarding the walnut bunch disease since 1948,

when G. F. Gravatt and Donald C. Stout of the U.S.D.A. Division of

Forest Pathology reported on it with illustrations at the N.N.G.A.

meeting (see our report for 1948 pp. 63-66.) Since then the state of

California has prohibited the entry of all walnut nursery trees and

scions from the Rocky Mountain states or farther east.--Ed.)

DR. CRANE: I'd like to make one additional remark. You see, we call this

trouble "bunch disease" rather than "brooming," to distinguish it from

other diseases that are caused by known parasites. We have a disease

very similar to this one affecting walnuts and pecan and hickory, and

that one has been studied more carefully than has the bunch disease. It

is unquestionably caused by virus, and in our pecan orchards we have a

situation that exists that is a parallel to what it is in the black

walnut. The variety Stuart practically never has shown any symptom of

the bunch disease. Yet it performs very much like a lot of our black

walnuts do. They just don't bear; they don't have the proper foliage;

they don't make the proper kind of growth. So we are not sure whether

they are symptomless carriers, that is, in terms of the lack of

expression of virus growth and this bunchy condition on them.

Really, we feel that all people that are interested in the walnuts and

that are trying to grow them should make careful observations on these

trees to study just what the situation is, how it develops, and note the

performance of these trees that become diseased; because we feel that

it's a much more serious thing than people appreciate at the present

time.

In much of Eastern Shore Maryland and of the area around Washington and

Beltsville and over in Virginia, a great majority of the trees are

affected by it, particularly Japanese walnuts of all types and the

butternuts. I feel it is so bad on Japanese walnuts and butternuts that

they shouldn't be propagated in the area.

MR. McDANIEL: I had the bunch growth developed on a new species this

year in my planting in north Alabama, a 12-year-old tree of ~Juglans

rupestris~. It is a growth that looks practically the same as the bunch

disease on the Japanese walnut. I believe that's the first time it's

been observed on that species. There are no butternuts or Japanese

walnuts on the farm. There are dozens of black walnuts (seedlings and

several varieties) none of which show the bunch symptoms. However, it is

typically developed on some Japanese trees a few miles away.

At Whiteville, Tenn., Dr. Aubrey Richards has a suspicious looking tree

among some two year old seedlings of ~Juglans major~ from Arizona seeds.

MR. CHASE: I'd like to add to that, too, Mac. In our walnut arboretum we

had some ~rupestris~, and I had been suspicious of its being diseased for

a number of years. I finally have decided that it had the bunch disease,

and those trees down at Norris have all passed out.

MR. McDANIEL: My tree came from Norris, 10 years ago.

DR. MacDANIELS: ~Juglans rupestris~ killed by the disease.

MR. STOKE: Just because this is a little contradictory to what you have

heard, I want to say that my experience has been this: I have an old

nursery--well, there is a butternut in the row and also heartnut--Japs.

One of those Japs has had the bunch disease for six or eight years. None

of the others has been affected. It was a variety I wanted to

perpetuate. I took an apparently healthy scion from that and put it on

another tree, and that grafted tree also had the disease. But there has

been no evidence of contagion from this Jap to the other Japanese,

butternuts and black walnut in the same planting in the immediate

neighborhood--in fact, they crowd each other. That's a statement of

fact.

I spoke a little while ago of an old black walnut tree that had that

disease for a number of years and none other in that planting had it.

MR. O'ROURKE: Is there any correlation between the age of the tree and

the expression of the disease?

DR. McKAY: It's been our observation that we haven't had it in our

nursery to any extent. We have seen it in the nursery of J. Russell

Smith on Persian walnut. It, to my knowledge, is the only place where we

have seen it on nursery trees. It may be that our nursery happened to be

free of the inoculum, because it's been about a mile from the orchards.

MR. O'ROURKE: Would you by any chance think it might be seed borne?

DR. McKAY: We have no information on that virus.

MR. GILBERT SMITH: I have one statement to put in at this time. Dr.

Crane questioned whether the Japanese walnut should be grown. I wonder

if the Japanese walnut might not be a safeguard in the area where they

don't have the disease, in that you will detect the disease the quickest

on the Japanese walnut, and in that way anyone would become wise to it,

rather than if it was in the black walnut. It might be so insidious that

it could be well spread before persons knew they had it at all. I

wonder if the Japanese walnut, through its quickness in showing the

disease, might not be a safeguard to the other walnuts?

DR. MacDANIELS: That's a technique that's used with some other plants.

MR. CORSAN: I go on the principle that a tree that's well fed might not

resist every disease, but it will resist a great many diseases and most

of the diseases, if it's well fed. Now, the feeding of trees is very

important. I noticed that in going back and forth between Florida and

Toronto. I examine the pecan situation every fall and spring, and just

to think of Stuarts--you know the size of Stuart pecan--coming in good,

big crop of nuts that size (indicating with fingers). Can you see that?

And you know that is less than half the size the Stuart should be. It's

a great nut for cracking by machinery. In fact, a lot of people grow

nothing but Stuart. And last year they had such a crop. Last year I

pointed to a farm right near the highway. "Do you see that? For years I

have been trying to get you to put that sawdust, which is nearly 40 feet

high in a pile, around your pecans and see the vast difference in your

pecans." You know there was no rain down there all last summer, and the

pecans were half the proper size. Now, that sawdust would keep the

moisture in. I am a great believer in the use of sawdust. It's a tree

product itself and it has some of the constituents of what the pecan

should feed on.

As Dr. Waite told us one time in Washington--you will probably remember

the remark he made about the pecan trees in an orchard which were

absolutely fruitless year after year. He went through that orchard, and

he saw a pecan here and a pecan there that had a good, big crop right

among the empty trees. He examined them and found signs driven into the

trees, and some of the signs were put up with zinc covered nails. Those

signs that had the steel covered nails had no nuts on, but those that

had zinc in had a huge crop. It excited the growth of the female

blossom.

Now, we have got an awful lot to discover, as you gentlemen say in this

nut culture, way beyond the imagination of the human mind.

DR. MacDANIELS: We had better limit discussion to this particular

problem. Is there more comment?

MR. McDANIEL: On that problem, I have observed the brooming in the

heartnut seedlings about three years old, which were seedlings of the

Fodermaier variety growing at Norris in the late 30's. Brooming

developed in some of them in either the second or third year from seed.

DR. MacDANIELS: That answers their remark about the young trees.

MR. SLATE: A plant that is well fed and making very vigorous growth may

be more attractive to the insect vector. Therefore, a healthy tree might

take it.

MR. McDANIEL: These trees were very vigorous.

DR. MacDANIELS: How many growers of nut trees have this bunch disease on

their property?

MR. KINTZEL: Black walnuts?

DR. MacDANIELS: On anything at all. (Showing of hands.) There are at

least a dozen.

When Mr. Burgart up in Michigan finds out that the limiting factor

practically cleans him out, there is this question of bunch disease with

witches'-broom resulting from ground deficiency. I know in the Wright

plantings in the vicinity of Westfield they had brooming trees of the

Japanese walnut which apparently recovered after treatment with zinc.

And, of course, we know on the West Coast you get witches'-broom in the

Persian walnut which cannot be cured by zinc.

Is there any other discussion on this point?

(No response.)

We will go on to the next paper.

MR. CORSAN: Anybody passing through Toronto can drop in and see my

Japanese walnuts with 24 to the cluster and not a sign of bunch disease.

DR. MacDANIELS: Yes, you may not have the bunch disease near you. We

hope you haven't.

The next paper is by J. A. Adams, who is from the Experiment Station

here at Poughkeepsie. This experiment station is a branch of the Geneva

Agricultural Experiment Station. I believe that's right, isn't it, Mr.

Adams?

MR. ADAMS: That's right, and it is concerned primarily with the fruits

down here in this region.

DR. MacDANIELS: His subject is "Some Observations on the Japanese Beetle

on Nut Trees." Let me say Mr. Adams would like to show some slides, but

it didn't seem feasible to close this window down.

The Japanese Beetle and Nut Growing

J. A. ADAMS

Associate Professor of Entomology, New York State Agricultural

Experiment Station, Geneva and Poughkeepsie, New York

It is a pleasure to attend this meeting of the Northern Nut Growers.

Association and to take part in your program. I shall discuss the

Japanese beetle as it seems to affect nut culture, and outline our

methods of control.

The Japanese beetle evidently came into this country in the soil about

some roots of plants imported to a nursery near Philadelphia nearly 40

years ago. Since 1916, its distribution, habits, and control have been

closely studied by the federal Japanese Beetle Laboratory at Moorestown,

New Jersey. The insect has become generally distributed in the coastal

area, as far north as Massachusetts, as far south as Virginia, and as

far west as West Virginia. Beyond these limits, it has established local

colonies in New Hampshire, Vermont, Western New York, Ohio, Michigan,

and North Carolina. In most of the states affected there is an

investigator who, like myself, carries on local studies, more or less in

cooperation with the federal laboratory. In New York we now have, in

addition to the generally infested areas on Long Island and in the

Hudson Valley, about 50 isolated infestations in the central and western

parts of the state.

Might I have a showing of hands by those who have Japanese beetle

already? (Showing of hands.) There is quite a sprinkling of you who have

them. Many of you do not have them yet, but, since the insect is

spreading every year, you can expect them some day, especially if you

live in the Northeast. It is expected that this pest will not thrive in

the drier central States, but it might become established in the Pacific

States some day, unless prevented.

You can see these beetles anywhere in and around Poughkeepsie. From

Poughkeepsie I have watched them spread in the past few years to

Pleasant Valley and eastward. This morning as I parked my vehicle by

this building I picked these specimens from the smartweed, ~Polygonum

persicaria~. (Passing of specimens.) These insects also feed on the

flowers and foliage of purple loosestrife, ~Lythrum salicifolia~, so

plentiful and showy in our swampy fields. The most conspicuous damage is

done to the foliage of wild grape vines. You will observe this when you

visit Mr. Stephen Bernath's nut plantation. You will note the

conspicuous defoliation of the vines on the fence rows. Willow is

another host heavily attacked. I believe you have the beetles at your

plantation at Wassaic, Mr. Smith?

MR. GILBERT SMITH: Plenty of them.

DR. ADAMS: You will also observe the damage at Mr. Smith's place. You

will see that it is strictly a matter of skeletonization of the leaves.

A MEMBER: They eat the fruit, too.

DR. MacDANIELS: You have damage on fruit.

A MEMBER: They eat berries.

DR. ADAMS: Yes, but on nut plants the damage above ground is confined to

leaf skeletonization. It varies widely, depending on the kind of nut

plant. Before visiting Mr. Bernath's planting, I sought out the

botanical names of the commoner nut plants in Dr. MacDaniels' Cornell

Extension Bulletin No. 701, on "Nut Growing." Of the ~Juglans~ species,

the black walnut, ~J. nigra~, is sometimes heavily attacked. There are

large black walnut trees near one of our peach orchards. I have seen

hordes of beetles gather in these trees in July and August,

skeletonizing the leaves until the defoliation reached 40% or more. Late

in August the beetles seemed to leave the walnut foliage and descend

upon the ripening peaches. The heart nut, ~J. sieboldiana~ var.

~cordiformis~, was moderately fed upon at Mr. Bernath's nursery. The

butternut, ~J. cinerea~, is only lightly attacked, as a rule.

The hickories and pecans are not attacked to any appreciable extent, but

at least some of the chestnuts are very attractive to this pest. I have

seen shoots of ~Castanea dentata~ with their foliage reduced to lace. Some

of the small Chinese chestnuts, ~C. mollissima~, at Mr. Bernath's place,

were about one-fourth defoliated in mid-August.

The hazels seem to be attractive to these beetles. When the Japanese

beetle spreads to Prof. Slate's plantings of ~Corylus~ at Geneva, we may

get more information on varietal preferences. I find that exposed

foliage of ~C. americana~, the common wild hazel here, is sometimes fairly

heavily fed upon. I am holding up to the window a portion of a hazel

bush; you can see that the leaves along one side are skeletonized. It is

probable that the species, hybrids, and varieties of ~Corylus~ will show

the same marked variation in susceptibility that is shown in so many

other genera of plants.

Among the oaks, the pin oak, ~Quercus Palustris~, and the English oak, ~Q.

robur~, are commonly one-third defoliated while the common white and red

oaks are almost immune. Among the maples--to go farther afield from

nuts--the Norway, ~Acer platanoides~, and the Japanese, ~A. palmatum~, are

often severely injured, where the sugar maple, ~A. saccharum~, is only

lightly injured and the delicate-leaved red maple and silver maple, ~A.

rubrum~ and ~A. saccharinum~, remain untouched.

Since the Japanese beetle is here to stay, and to spread, these

differences are worth considering where plant materials are being

selected for new ornamental plantings. In our bulletin on Japanese

beetle (Cornell Extension Bulletin 770) we have to warn the reader that

planting chestnuts may bring him trouble with the Japanese beetle,

trouble which he would not have with flowering dogwood, ~Cornus florida~,

or the common lilacs, ~Syringa vulgaris~, which are immune to this pest.

It may be, however, that some of the chestnuts carry immunity factors.

In the U. S. Department of Agriculture Circular No. 547, published in

1940, "Feeding Habits of the Japanese Beetle," by I. M. Hawley and F. W.

Metzger, ~Castanea crenata~, the Japanese chestnut, is listed with beech

and chestnut oak as "generally lightly injured." I understand you

consider the nut of this species poor, but if resistance factors are in

the genus, there can be hope of finding or developing a chestnut

resistant to Japanese beetle.

We might be able to do with chestnuts what has been done with poplars.

The common poplars range from the Lombardy, ~Populus nigra italica~, which

is heavily damaged by the beetle, to the white, ~P. alba~, which is

immune. The forest geneticist, E. J. Schreiner, has written an article,

"Poplars can be bred to order," which appears on pages 153 to 157 in

"Trees," the Yearbook of Agriculture for 1949, published by the U. S.

Department of Agriculture. Schreiner provides an interesting diagram of

random planting of 102 poplar hybrids, in plots of 50 trees each,

representing 30 parentages. He writes, "Japanese beetle infestation was

heavy in ~1947~; as late as September 9 beetles were as numerous as 10 to

12 per leaf on the most susceptible plants. Although the insects were

feeding everywhere on the sparsely scattered weeds growing under the

hybrids, beetle feeding was found on only nine hybrids, representing

four parentages. Three of these parentages include hybrids that were

entirely free of beetle feeding during the entire infestation." Among

five hybrids of ~P. charkowiensis~ and ~P. caudina~, three were highly

susceptible, one moderately susceptible and one was non-susceptible.

Japanese beetles, when infesting rows of plants of the same variety,

usually occur unevenly on the individual plants. Some of the factors

have to do with the vigor or color of the tree. In my observation on

peach, I have repeatedly seen a sickly, yellow and half-wilted tree with

thousands of beetles in it, while other similar but healthy trees in the

same row averaged only a few hundred beetles. You can make one branch of

a tree more attractive to the insects than the rest of the branches by

partly girdling it or permitting borers or cankers to damage the base of

the branch. This observation suggests that the increased sugar content

raises the attractiveness of the leaf. It coincides with what is already

known that extracts of plants preferred by the Japanese beetle have, in

general, a higher sugar content, or more of a fruit-like odor than those

not attacked. (Metzger et al, Jour. Agric. Research, ~49~ (11): 1001-1008.

1934. Washington, D. C.)

There are other observations you can easily make yourselves. The

Japanese beetle avoids shade, except on the hottest days, and its

feeding in dense trees shows up most in the tops; its feeding on uniform

plantings tends to show up most in the edge rows. Nursery-size trees are

more extensively defoliated than larger ones. At this point we must

consider that the insect usually has to fly into a planting from the

outside, for it breeds chiefly in lawns and meadows. If the foliage mass

of the nut planting is small and the grass areas nearby are large, the

beetles are likely to do heavier damage than where the planting is very

large and grass areas negligible. A small planting in a suburban area,

beside a large golf course, cemetery or dairy farm, is going to be more

heavily attacked than a large one set in a clearing in the woods.

~Control of the adult:~ The safest, most direct measure is to pick or

knock the beetles off the plants, preferably in the early morning, when

they are cool. They may be dropped in a pail with a little kerosene in

it. Some plants can be shielded with thin nets which can be placed on

them by day. We do not recommend Japanese beetle traps. These yellow

traps, which are baited with geranoil and other essential oils, can draw

beetles in from a considerable distance but we have found that, possibly

because many beetles miss the trap, the population of beetles remains

high near the trap, in spite of heavy daily catches. Although the use of

one trap to the acre on a block 10 miles square would probably get

results, the use of a few traps on a small nut planting is likely to be

disappointing.

A MEMBER: Will birds or any kind of poultry eat them?

DR. ADAMS: Yes, poultry will eat them, as far as they can reach. Certain

birds, of course, will feed on them to some extent, but birds, in

summer, seem to have plenty of other things to eat, and they certainly

leave plenty of beetles in plain sight uneaten. We can see that the

birds are a fairly constant helpful factor, but are not to be relied

upon to prevent injury occurring in a beetle outbreak.

Rotenone, which, I believe, is one of your main insecticides in nut

culture, is fairly effective on Japanese beetles. It kills the beetles

hit with the spray and gives protection for several days thereafter. If

you apply it often enough, rotenone can take care of the plants so that

they don't become disfigured by the beetles. Using cube powder, you may

apply five ounces of 4% rotenone in 10 gallons of water. Of course, in

many cases there is no objection to using DDT wetable powder or dusts,

unless you are afraid of a mite problem arising after DDT is used. If

DDT can be sprayed on the plants, it needs to be applied only about

three times during a summer, or sometimes only twice. For plants that

are growing very fast, the new growth, of course, has to be kept

treated. You may prefer to spray once heavily over all the plants in

July and then, after that, keep the beetles off by spraying or dusting

the new growth, during August. For more directions see U.S.D.A. Farmers

Bulletin No. 2004.

Now, there are new chemicals that will kill Japanese beetles very

quickly. Parathion will kill them, but its toxicity necessitates great

care in handling and, on peaches, we find it protects the plants for

only a few days. Chlordane, which has a very important use in connection

with these insects in the grub stage, is not recommended above ground;

it is too brief in its action. Methoxychlor may be used instead of DDT.

It is less effective, but much less poisonous, and should be applied

more frequently.

Now, the other aspect of control is to try to reduce beetle production

over the whole area so that you don't have so many beetles flying in to

the plants during the summer and you don't have to spray so frequently,

if at all. This is the phase to which I wish to give particular

attention, after we consider the life history.

~Life history:~ The Japanese beetles in the adult stage are in evidence

here from late June to late September, or, roughly, for the summer

season. The adults lay their eggs in the soil, mostly in lawns, mowed

grassy fields and pastures. The adults die but the eggs give rise to

tiny, bluish-gray larvae which feed chiefly on grass roots. The larvae

grow through the fall and spring, and, if more numerous than about 40 to

the square foot in September, or about 25 in April and May, can cause

severe lawn damage.

MR. CORSAN: That's the stage when the pheasants and starlings eat them.

DR. ADAMS: Yes, in the grub stage.

MR. CORSAN: I see thousands of starlings gorging themselves.

DR. ADAMS: Yes, scratching birds, crows and skunks can take them out;

the starlings make a hole the size of a pencil point to do so. In our

survey areas grub populations sometimes seem to drop rapidly in May,

when the birds are feeding their nestlings. In June, the surviving

larvae mostly change into pupae, and by July they are appearing as

beetles. From the lawns and grassy fields they readily fly to weeds,

shrubs, grapevines and trees. They fly at least a few hundred yards, if

need be, to find their host plants. Well kept, sunny, lawns with good,

moist soil, which carry 40 grubs to the square foot in the fall may

still have plenty at transformation time in early summer. A lawn of

5,000 square feet could thus produce 100,000 beetles. Yards, roadways

and pastures commonly produce as many as six beetles to the square foot,

which means a quarter million to the acre.

~Chemical control in the grub stage:~ In New York we suggest that on a

home property the more valuable sections of permanent lawn be

grub-proofed with chemicals as soon as there are 5 to 10 grubs to the

square foot. This grub-proofing has two effects: (a) it stops beetle

production from that lawn, and (b) it prevents the lawn grass being

damaged by the grubs of this and other annual grub species and by the

birds and animals, including moles, which damage grubby turf. For

grub-proofing I prefer to use chlordane. It may be applied in a spray,

at 8 ounces of 50% wettable powder to 1,000 square feet, or it may be

purchased in the more bulky 5% form and applied dry with a two-wheeled

lawn fertilizer spreader. For each 1,000 square feet I take 5 pounds of

5% chlordane and, since it tends to clog the spreader, I mix it in a

cardboard drum with 5 pounds of a dry, granular material such as the

activated-sludge fertilizer known as "Milorganite." The ten pounds of

mixture is then spread on the 1,000 square feet, half east and west,

half north and south.

If applied in the fall or early spring there will be no beetles coming

out in July and no grubs for several years. DDT at 6 pounds of 10% DDT

to 1,000 square feet will give an even longer grub-proofing effect. Our

plots so treated in 1944 are still grub-free. The possible trouble with

DDT is that it is too nearly permanent, and if you should plow up a

piece of lawn treated with it and try to raise tomatoes or strawberries,

you might find the soil too toxic.

~Biological control in the grub stage:~ The chemical grub-proofing of the

sunny parts of the front or main lawn on a property is desirable for the

reasons stated, but it does not usually stop more than a fifth of the

beetle production around the property, because there are usually plenty

of neighbors' lawns, pastures, public grounds, and other

beetle-producing turf areas nearby. How are you to reduce the beetle

crop on these places, mostly on ground you don't control? Here is where

biological control comes in, something which I feel will appeal to you

in this group. The parasitic insects known as spring Tiphia, imported

from the Orient and well established on hundreds of estates, golf

courses, and cemeteries around Philadelphia and New York, may be

introduced in your vicinity when grubs reach about 5 to the square foot.

The parasites, which are like flying ants, appear above ground in spring

and feed on honey-dew. The female burrows in the soil and attaches her

eggs singly to Japanese beetle grubs. A maggot hatches and consumes the

grub. I have charge of the distribution of these parasites in New York.

I like to liberate at least one colony in each village or town division.

Some of you may help me plan the liberation for your vicinity, possibly

on a cemetery near your place. The colonies enlarge to about a square

mile in 10 years, and may cut beetle production by 50%.

Another biological agent which can be added to grub-carrying turf is the

bacterium causing Japanese beetle grubs to turn milky white and die. A

powder is made from diseased grubs and talc and this milky disease spore

inoculum is applied with a teaspoon in dots or spots over the turf. The

important point is that the spore powder must be used on a plot where

there are grubs to get the disease, and not on chemically grub-proofed

soil. Milky disease spore powder is sold under three brand names,

"Japidemic," "Japonex" and "Sawco-Japy." One-half pound, suitably

applied, will cost you about $2.50 and be an act of good citizenship,

for the disease slowly spreads to any grubby soil in surrounding

properties. I can supply addresses of the producers and detailed

reprints of my studies.

Discussion

MR. McDANIEL: Does this disease affect any other beetles we have in

America, besides the Japanese?

MR. ADAMS: Yes, one other species; it causes some sickness in the grubs

of the turf pest known as the Oriental beetle.

MR. McDANIEL: How about the green June beetle?

DR. ADAMS: No, unfortunately, it doesn't work on that beetle, which is a

pest on Long Island and in the South.

A MEMBER: How much area would a (1/2-pound) can like that treat?

DR. ADAMS: It depends. You can apply a half-pound to a quarter acre, or

any smaller space you want to put it on. If you want to put spots down

closer together, say every three feet, it will treat about 1,000 square

feet. It suggests on the label that you do. But if you treat a plot on a

large field, I'd recommend you put it out at about a teaspoonful every

ten feet. In other words, I wouldn't put less than a half-pound on the

plot set aside for it on my place. The application is just a starter to

introduce the disease in the area, and it doesn't matter too much

whether you spot it at 10-foot intervals on a pasture or put it at

fairly close intervals on an area about the size of this room. The point

is that it mustn't be broadcast, because that spreads the spores too

thin. Grubs don't get the disease if they eat only a few spores. We

assume that where you put the spots down on the ground the grubs under

those spots will get the disease and wander off and die. When a grub

dies, it multiplies the number of spores up to many millions. That

portion of soil becomes infective, and more grubs going through the

infective portions carry the disease to intervening areas until the

whole piece of turf is unhealthful to these grubs. Droppings of birds

feeding on sick grubs spread the disease.

MR. FRYE: One application is all that's needed?

DR. ADAMS: One application is all that's needed. Control is slight at

first, but increases with the passage of the years.

MR. CORSAN: Quail feed on them. Why can't we have quail around the farms

instead of shooting them?

DR. ADAMS: I would be for that, but we have to find other methods for a

lot of people. Besides, we need something that will intercept some of

the grubs in the fall, before they get big. After all, by the time the

quail are interested in them, they have already done some damage in the

ground. In the ground the grubs can do two kinds of damage. They can

make turf loose so it can be rolled back like a rug. Second, if you

should plow up a piece of sod that has many grubs in it and try to plant

row crops or nursery stock, they may eat the roots off the planting in

the spring.

DR. McKAY: I'd like to ask what effect low temperature has on them and

how far north you think will be their limit?

DR. ADAMS: The soil temperature at which the grubs begin to die in

hibernation is 15 degrees, and I have never seen the soil temperature

that low here under turf. (I operate a soil thermograph on my lawn.)

A MEMBER: How far down do they go?

DR. ADAMS: They hibernate at 4 to 8 inches in the ground. It's rare to

have it drop below 27 degrees at these depths.

MR. STERLING SMITH: What do you mean, Fahrenheit?

DR. ADAMS: That is Fahrenheit.

A MEMBER: That's frozen solid. That's at 32 degrees.

DR. ADAMS: The deeper soil will drop only a few degrees below freezing.

The soil here usually remains no lower than 32 degrees, except within an

inch or two of the top.

A MEMBER: Do you think soil temperature is going to be a limiting

factor?

DR. ADAMS: I think the limiting factor northward is the coolness of the

summers. In Northern Japan their life history gets altered because of

the shortness of the summer, and I think in the Adirondack area they

won't be serious for that reason.

MR. WEBER: Will this spore powder kill other kinds of grubs that are in

the sod?

DR. ADAMS: Not to any practical extent. It does not control the grubs of

the "June bugs," or brown June beetles, or what are called "white

grubs."

MR. LOWERRE: Would the DDT kill the parasitic wasps?

DR. ADAMS: Turf treated with chlordane or DDT is grub-proofed and is not

of any use to the flying parasites as a place to lay eggs, or for

bacteria to multiply. So we don't want to put chemicals on top of

biological control plots. For instance, on an average home property I

would treat the front lawn, the more valuable piece, with chemicals so

that it would be 100% grub-proofed to protect the turf and to take that

much turf out of beetle production. Then on the back lawns or grassy

fields adjoining, I would apply at least a half-pound of this milky

disease material, and in that way provide a complete treatment; the

parasites can be added on some large public turf area nearby. And don't

think you are going to stamp the Japanese beetle out just by spraying

all the adult beetles you see each summer on the cultivated plants,

because there are lots more on the shade trees, weeds and vines.

A new book, "The Insect Enemies of Eastern Forests," contains a great

deal of information on the insects feeding on nut trees. Unfortunately,

it isn't indexed to crops, so you can't look up "walnut" and find what

insects bother you. You have to know what the insect is, and you will

find it with its insect family. That is U. S. Department of Agriculture

Miscellaneous Publication 657, by George E. Craighead. Price $2.50, from

the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C.

MR. CORSAN: What in the world has become of the black walnut

caterpillar, that big, black fellow with the grey hairs?

DR. ADAMS: Maybe they are at a low point in a cycle. Mr. Bernath will

show you a few of them.

MR. CORSAN: He might show me a few of them, but I have been pestered

with them for years, and this year I haven't got any.

DR. ADAMS: I suppose natural conditions have taken care of them for a

while, but they will come back again.

(Applause.)

DR. MacDANIELS: Thank you, very much, sir. We will take a few minutes

recess now.

(Whereupon, a short recess was taken.)

Editor's Note: The following paper which was delayed, was originally

scheduled for our 1949 Report.

Insecticides for Nut Insects

E. H. SIEGLER United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural

Research Administration Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine

Fortunately, the growers of nuts do not have to combat a large number of

injurious insect species. However, some species do at times cause a

heavy loss of nuts and may also damage the vegetation growth of the

trees. Injury by insects will vary from year to year, due to various

causes, and insects frequently show varietal host preferences. Timely

use of insecticides is the most effective means of combating many

harmful species.

Until the beginning of World War II a rather limited number of

insecticides was available, such as lead arsenate, cryolite, nicotine,

mineral oil emulsions, and rotenone. Some injurious insects were

satisfactorily controlled through the timely application of one or the

other of these materials, or combinations of them; others survived in

damaging numbers in spite of all attempts to suppress them.

During and since World War II, both in the United States and abroad,

work on insecticides has been stepped up markedly. As a result, many new

insecticides have been developed and are available for general use.

The first of the new insecticides about which we heard was DDT.

Actually, the compound itself was not a new one, since it was prepared

by a German student chemist in 1874. However, no use was found for it

until 1939, when a Swiss chemist found it promising as an insecticide

against the Colorado potato beetle. It was first tested in the United

States a few years later.

Since the successful introduction of DDT, promising new insecticides

have become available more frequently and in greater numbers than ever

before. Among these materials are certain chlorinated hydrocarbons

related to DDT. These include methoxychlor and TDE, neither of which is,

on the whole, as useful as DDT but both of which are of value and have

an important advantage over DDT in that they are reported to be less

toxic to warm-blooded animals. Other new chlorinated hydrocarbons

include benzene hexachloride, synthesized in 1828 and first tested

against insects in France in 1941 and discovered about the same time in

England; chlordane, developed in the United States a few years ago; and

toxaphene. Several organic phosphorus compounds, including hexaethyl

tetraphosphate, tetraethyl pyrophosphate, and parathion, have also been

developed.

Technical benzene hexachloride is a mixture of several isomers, the

gamma isomer being the most toxic to insects. The practically pure

isomer is known as lindane. A handicap to the general use of benzene

hexachloride on fruit is its tendency to cause off-flavor condition when

applied too close to harvest. Lindane is less likely to cause off-flavor

in fruit than technical benzene hexachloride but may not overcome this

fault altogether.

The organic phosphate insecticides, like DDT, were first found of value

in Europe and were introduced into the United States after the close of

World War II. Parathion in particular shows great promise for the

control of many insect pests. Although these compounds are very

poisonous and must be handled strictly in accordance with the

manufacturers' recommendations, a recent announcement by Arnold J.

Lehman, of the Food and Drug Administration, indicates that their

residues are not likely to be harmful. He has stated that "parathion is

not stored in the tissues to an appreciable extent--it is rapidly

destroyed by the tissues of the body which in turn is an added mechanism

for the prevention of tissue accumulation." Residues of hexaethyl

tetraphosphate and tetraethyl pyrophosphate persist for only a short

time and residues of parathion drop to a low level within 10 to 14 days

after application. This information, however, does not make it

unnecessary for the user to observe strictly all warnings and

precautions issued by the manufacturers of parathion and of other

organic phosphates. Serious effects and deaths have occurred though

excessive exposures to parathion.

General Information Regarding the Use of the New Organic Insecticides

~Handling the insecticides.~ All the new organic insecticides, the organic

phosphates in particular, are to some degree toxic not only to many

insects but to man and animals as well. Even the most toxic ones can be

used, however, without harmful effects on the operator, provided all the

cautions issued by the manufacturer are properly followed. Special care

must be taken in handling concentrated insecticides preparatory to

making diluted spray or dust applications.

~Spray concentrations.~ DDT has been used more extensively than any of the

other newer insecticides and for this reason there is considerable

information relative to the spray concentrations known to be effective

against insects susceptible to it. For spray purposes DDT is generally

employed at the rate of 1-1/2 to 4 pounds of 50 percent wettable powder

per 100 gallons of water.

Parathion is being used at 1/2 to 1-1/2 pounds of 15 percent wettable

powder per 100 gallons of water for mites and up to 2 pounds to 100

gallons of water for insects more resistant to it. The occurrence of

injury to the foliage and fruit of some varieties of apples when this

insecticide is used is under investigation.

Benzene hexachloride (10 percent gamma isomer, wettable) is being used

at 2 to 4 pounds, and sometimes less depending upon the insect, per 100

gallons of water. Wettable mixtures containing 25 percent of lindane

(approximately pure gamma isomer) are used at dosages which would give

an equivalent quantity of the gamma isomer in the diluted spray.

Chlordane is usually employed at the rate of 2 to 3 pounds of 50 percent

wettable powder and toxaphene at 2 to 4 pounds of 40 percent wettable

powder per 100 gallons.

These insecticides are also being sold for use as dusts, either ready to

use or in a more concentrated form which can be reduced to dusting

strength through the addition of inert material.

~Spray Residues.~ Spray residues are not important on nut crops, but on

fruits it is important to time the insecticide applications so that

harmful residues are avoided. Animals should not be allowed to graze

vegetation beneath trees recently treated. Instructions on the packaged

insecticide should be followed.

~Effect on beneficial insects.~ Since the more potent of the newer organic

insecticides are toxic to many parasitic and predatory insects, all of

which help to reduce the populations of injurious species, these

insecticides, if used, must be largely relied upon to effect control by

themselves. Often no immediate assistance is forthcoming from beneficial

insects after these materials have been used.

Nut Insect Investigations

Except for studies on the chestnut weevils, nut insect investigations by

the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine are being conducted

primarily on the pecan at southern laboratories. Many of the remarks in

this paper are therefore based on information obtained from these

laboratories. In view of the short time the new organic insecticides

have been available, work to determine their place in nut insect control

programs is largely in the experimental stage. Much further work will be

necessary before detailed instructions can be given for their general

use.

Insects Attacking the Nuts

~The Pecan weevil.~ The adult of the pecan weevil[8] is a snout beetle

that attacks not only pecan throughout the South but also hickory in the

eastern half of the United States. During mid-season, previous to the

formation of the kernel, nuts are frequently punctured for feeding

purposes. This results in failure of the nuts to complete their

development. The principal injury, however, is caused by grubs that

develop from eggs laid in the nuts after the kernels have formed. This

is usually during September on pecans in the South. The grubs feed on

the kernels and may consume them completely (Fig. 1).

[8] ~Curculio caryae~ (Horn).

Applications of sprays containing 6 pounds of 50 percent DDT wettable

powder per 100 gallons of water just previous to and during the

oviposition period have proved effective against this pest.

[Illustration: Fig 1.--Nut infested with larvae of the pecan weevil.]

[Illustration: Fig. 2.--Larva of the butternut curculio in Japanese

walnut shoot.]

[Illustration: Fig. 3--Adults of the walnut husk maggot on black walnut.

Enlarged.]

[Illustration: Fig. 4.--Adult of a leaf-footed bug. Enlarged.]

[Illustration: Fig. 5.--Defoliation caused by the black pecan aphid.]

Nut curculios. Several species of curculios, such as the butternut

curculio[9] (Fig. 2) and the hickorynut curculio,[10] infest the fruit

of these and other nut trees. Their life histories and methods of attack

are somewhat alike and for the purpose of this report the butternut

curiculio is given as an example. This insect lays its eggs in both

the young shoots and nuts, which usually drop as a result of the injury.

The larvae then develop to maturity within the dying tissues after which

they enter the soil and transform to adults. Subsequently they leave the

soil to pass the winter above ground protected from low temperatures by

weeds or other vegetation.

[9] ~Conotrachelus juglandis~ Lee.

[10] ~Conotrachelus affinis~ Boh.

Lead arsenate, 4 pounds per 100 gallons of water, has been relied upon

in the past for control of various nut curculios. Among the newer

insecticides, benzene hexachloride (6 percent gamma), 4 to 6 pounds per

100 gallons, has shown promise against a shoot curculio on pecans when

applied soon after the trees start growth in the spring.

~Hickory shuckworm.~ The hickory shuckworm[11] is another serious pest of

pecan and hickory nuts. Early in the year, previous to the hardening of

the shells, the kernels are eaten. This injury causes many of the nuts

to drop. In the fall, the later generations tunnel within and feed upon

the shucks only. The affected nuts are usually smaller than normal; in

addition the shells are often stained and are more difficult to separate

from the husks.

[11] ~Laspeyresia caryana~ (Fitch).

Extensive experimentation in the control of this insect has been carried

out without much success. No effective insecticide treatment can be

recommended for its control.

~Walnut husk maggot.~ The adult of the walnut husk maggot[12] is a fly

(Fig. 3); it is related to other injurious fruit flies such as the apple

maggot, Mediterranean fruit fly, and the oriental fruit fly, which has

recently been found in Hawaii. Adults emerge from the soil and fly to

the trees in midsummer. Egg laying follows in 1 to 3 weeks, the eggs

being deposited on the husks of several kinds of nuts. The maggots feed

within the husks. Not only is the quality of infested nuts lowered, but,

in addition, the husks are more difficult to remove. A closely related

species is particularly damaging to the Persian or English walnut in

California.

[12] ~Rhagoletis suavis~ Loew.

Lead arsenate, 2 to 4 pounds per 100 gallons of water, in combination

with an equal quantity of hydrated lime is quite effective in destroying

the adults of the walnut husk maggot when applied at the time they are

present.

~Stinkbugs and leaf-footed bugs.~ There are a number of stinkbugs and

leaf-footed bugs (Fig. 4), in addition to the species mentioned,[13][14]

which are responsible for important injuries to pecans, filberts, and

other nuts. These insects puncture the immature nuts with their beaks.

The punctured areas become spongy, somewhat dark in color, and are

bitter to the taste; on pecan the typical injury is referred to as black

pit and kernel spot.

[13] ~Nezara vizidula~ (L.).

[14] ~Leptoglossus phyllopus~ (L.).

Crops of favorable host plants such as cowpeas and soybeans should not

be planted in or adjacent to nut orchards subject to attack by these

sucking bugs. In general, orchard sanitation should be practiced.

[Illustration: Fig. 6.--Galls produced by the pecan phylloxera.]

[Illustration: Fig. 7.--Injury to young pecan tree by the fall webworm.]

[Illustration: Fig. 8.--Larvae of the walnut caterpillar.]

[Illustration: Fig. 9.--Caterpillar of the hickory tussock moth.]

[Illustration: Fig. 10.--Rose chafer beetles on chestnut blossoms.]

Insects Attacking the Foliage

~Black pecan aphid.~ Pecan trees at times suffer sufficient damage from

the black pecan aphid[15] to cause considerable defoliation (Fig. 5)

during the latter part of the season. The injury to foliage in its

earlier stages consists of irregularly shaped yellowish areas which turn

brown when the tissues die.

[15] ~Melanocallis caryaefoliae~ (Davis).

This aphid is usually controlled with nicotine sulfate (40 percent

nicotine), 3/8 pint plus summer oil emulsion, 2 quarts per 100 gallons

of spray. Parathion and benzene hexachloride have given good results in

experimental work but are not yet generally recommended.

~Pecan phylloxera.~ The pecan phylloxera[16] is related to aphids. It

attacks principally the vegetative parts of the tree such as the leaves,

petioles, and shoots on which galls (Fig. 6) are produced. Pecans,

hickories, and other species of nuts are subject to infestation.

[16] ~Phylloxera devastatrix~ Perg.

In the past a spray of nicotine sulfate (40 percent nicotine) 13 ounces

combined with either lime-sulfur solution, 2-1/2 gallons per 100 gallons

of water, or lubricating-oil emulsion, 2 quarts per 100 gallons, applied

in the late dormant period has been the standard recommendation. In

recent experiments in the South with some of the new organic sprays,

benzene hexachloride and some of the dinitro compounds have indicated

good promise.

~Fall webworm,~[17] ~walnut caterpillar,~[18] ~and hickory tussock

moth.~[19] The caterpillars of these species (Figs. 7, 8, 9) are

frequent pests on the foliage of nut trees. They often defoliate entire

branches.

[17] ~Hyphantria cunea~ (Drury).

[18] ~Datana integerrima~ (G. and R.)

[19] ~Halisidota caryae~ (Harr.)

The best time to apply control measures is as soon as possible after the

caterpillars hatch. The insects can be readily destroyed with lead

arsenate, 3 pounds, or DDT (2 pounds) of 50 percent wettable powder, per

100 gallons, applied when they appear. Other new organic insecticides

may also be effective but have not been widely tested.

~The rose chafer and Japanese beetle.~ Adults of the rose chafer[20] (Fig.

10) and the Japanese beetle[21] are voracious feeders on the foliage of

nut trees and must be destroyed if severe injury is to be avoided.

[20] ~Marcordactylus subspinosus~ (F.).

[21] ~Popillia japonica~ Newm.

Fortunately these insects may now be controlled by spraying with DDT, 2

pounds of 50-percent wettable powder per 100 gallons of water, when the

beetles appear. In the case of the Japanese beetle a second application

may be necessary if the infestation is heavy.

~Spider mites.~ Nut trees, especially those which have been sprayed with

DDT, may become seriously injured by various species of mites.[22] DDT

is very toxic to the natural insect enemies of plant-feeding mites and

therefore the mites build up to injurious numbers.

[22] ~Tetranychus~ sp. and others.

Of the various miticides recently tested on pecan, a spray of parathion

was the most promising. In some recent tests for the control of spider

mites on chestnut trees, 1-1/2 pounds of 15 percent parathion wettable

powder per 100 gallons of water was effective. Do not use parathion

unless you observe all the precautions contained on the package label of

the material.

[Illustration: Fig. 11.--Larva of the twig girdler. Enlarged.]

[Illustration: Fig. 12.--Adult of the flatheaded apple tree borer.

Enlarged.]

[Illustration: Fig. 13.--Larvae of the flatheaded apple tree borer.]

[Illustration: Fig. 14.--Scars on trunk of pecan tree caused by cutting

out flatheaded apple tree borers from their tunnels.]

[Illustration: Fig. 15.--Adult of the buffalo treehopper. Enlarged.]

[Illustration: Fig. 16.--Twig scarred as a result of egg laying by the

buffalo treehopper.]

Insects Attacking the Trunk and Branches

A number of insects cause important damage to the trunk and branches of

nut trees.

~Obscure scale and others.~ The obscure scale[23] infests a variety of nut

trees. On pecan the chief injury results from attacks on branches under

three inches in diameter.

[23] ~Chrysomphalus obscurus~ (Comst.).

The obscure scale and other scale insects can be controlled with

lubricating-oil emulsion during the dormant period. However, nut trees

are often susceptible to oil damage, especially at 3 percent

concentration. Since healthy trees are more resistant to oil injury, it

is therefore advisable to watch for scale infestations so as to spray

them before the trees are weakened.

~Twig girdler.~ Nut trees are sometimes attacked by the twig girdler[24]

(Fig. 11). This beetle lays eggs in the twigs, which are girdled so as

to stop the flow of sap that would normally prevent hatching. The

girdled twigs usually become detached from the trees and as a result the

nut-bearing wood is reduced.

[24] ~Oncideres cingulata~ (Say).

The standard recommendation for control of this insect has been to

gather and destroy the infested twigs in the orchard and from any

infested trees nearby. Recent tests on pecan in northern Florida

indicate that DDT and parathion may be effective against this insect.

Three applications (the first on August 26 when the first girdled twigs

were observed and the others on September 9 and 23) of DDT, 4 pounds of

50 percent wettable powder per 100 gallons of water, or parathion, 3

pounds of 15 percent wettable powder per 100 gallons, gave complete

control. Further experiments will be required to determine the minimum

effective concentration of spray and the number of applications needed

for control. It is suggested that DDT be used for the control of this

insect until more information is available on how to handle and to use

parathion.

~Flatheaded apple tree borer.~ The adult beetle of the flathead apple tree

borer[25] (Fig. 12) deposits its eggs throughout the summer season,

preferably in the small grooves of bark on the unshaded portions of the

trunk of pecan and other trees. The borers (Fig. 13) hatch and tunnel

through the bark to the cambium layer. Young trees may readily be

girdled (Fig. 14).

[25] ~Chrysobothris femorata~ (Oliv.).

To avoid this insect as far as possible, orchard sanitation should be

practiced and the trees should be kept in a healthy condition. In some

plantings wrapping the trunks with paper or burlap to protect against

egg laying and maintaining low branches to shade the trunk have been

helpful. Cutting out the borers with a knife has also been resorted to;

trunk washes have likewise been used but have not been very effective.

~Buffalo treehopper and periodical cicada.~ Buffalo treehoppers[26] (Fig.

15) and the periodical cicada[27] weaken twigs by inserting their eggs

in them. The injured bark becomes roughened as it heals (Fig. 16), and

the growth of the limb is retarded.

[26] ~Ceresa bubalus~ (L.).

[27] ~Magicicada septendecim~ (L.).

Pruning of weakened twigs is recommended for wood injured by the cicada.

If treehoppers are a pest, clean cultivation will help. Cover crops of

cowpeas or clovers should not be planted. In preliminary tests two or

three applications of tetraethyl pyrophosphate (20 percent), 3/4 pint

per 100 gallons of water, have given promising results in controlling

the periodical cicada. The first application should be made after the

cicadas appear and the others as needed to prevent damage.

Observations on Effects of Low Temperatures in Winter 1949-1950 on

Walnuts and Filberts in Oregon and Washington

JOHN H. PAINTER

Horticulturist, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural

Research Administration, Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and

Agricultural Engineering, Oregon State College, Corvallis, Oregon

In western Oregon and Washington, where the Japan Current is supposed to

keep the winter temperatures moderate, something happens every now and

then and we get really severe winters. We can't blame it on the "A" bomb

because we had severe winter injury in 1919 and 1935 long before the "A"

bomb.

The last two winters have been exceptionally cold, but this past winter

of 1949-1950 was much more severe than the previous one.

In 1948-1949, the cold came rather suddenly in the latter part of

December. In the past winter, 1949-1950, the real cold came on January

30, with temperatures ranging from 10 to 30 degrees below zero F. Most

official temperatures were higher; but at Corvallis the official

temperatures were taken at least 60 feet above the ground level, on the

roof of the Agricultural Building, which is over a steam-heated building

and is old enough to be not very well insulated. This cold continued in

somewhat modified form for a week.

During the previous winter the lowest temperature recorded in the nut

growing areas was about 10 to 11 degrees above zero F., and the severe

cold lasted for only a couple of days.

In both winters the ground was fairly well covered with snow, but with

considerably more snow this past winter than the previous winter.

No apparent damage to Persian walnuts was observed as a result of the

cold in the 1948-1949 winter, but in certain low-lying areas catkins of

Barcelona and Daviana filberts were killed, especially those of the

latter. Considerable dieback of filberts occurred; but during the

following growing season recovery was effected and at the end of the

summer very little evidence of winter injury was visible.

The injury resulting from the cold weather of the past winter was much

more severe than that of the previous winter. Whereas filberts were the

only nut trees injured in 1948-1949, they escaped with relatively little

damage in 1949-1950 in comparison with Persian walnuts.

On February 11, 1950, ten days after the really severe week, several

walnut growers of long experience held grave fears for the entire

industry. Peach and apple trees, which seem to exhibit winter injury

more quickly than walnuts, showed so much damage then that walnut

growers thought the injury to the Persian walnut would be even worse.

From February 11, 1950, to the present date (July 30) I have been making

observations from time to time in different locations with special

attention to walnuts and with some to filberts. It is thought that

certain of these observations might be of interest to nut growers in

other areas, even though there is nothing particularly new or startling

about them. They do, however, tend to show how surprisingly well the

Persian walnut trees can withstand severe cold if it occurs after they

have once gone into dormancy.

Generally speaking, the winter injury to walnuts has been spotty. No

areas of great size have been either free of injury or severely injured.

Usually, where a difference in severity of damage is found between areas

close together, some reason for the difference can be found, but it is

not always evident on the surface.

Injury to Walnuts

With the possible exception of southern Oregon, it is safe to say that

100 percent of the walnut trees in Oregon and Washington suffered some

twig injury as a result of last winter's cold. In many cases the

subsequent dieback of the twigs may extend only a few inches, but

sometimes the injury involves not only the past season's growth but that

of three or even four years back.

As might well be expected, this twig injury of necessity has meant the

loss of many terminal and lateral buds which bear the female flowers; so

for that reason, if for no other, this twig injury has assumed serious

aspects.

In many cases the catkins were severely injured even where there was

little or no twig injury. The catkins of the Persian walnut seem to be

extremely sensitive to cold. Many Persian walnut trees in Oregon this

year failed to produce any catkins at all. Some produced very few normal

catkins, but some half-developed and deformed catkins. An examination of

these partially injured catkins, however, revealed the fact that they

did produce some pollen. It will always remain a mystery to me how as

many walnuts were pollinated and set as there were, with the scant crop

of catkins.

In practically every orchard examined, where the temperature got as low

as minus 10 degrees F., the pith cells were blackened. This is not

uncommon in other tree crops following severe winter injury. Fairly good

peach crops have been borne in Georgia on trees that had the pith cells

completely blackened.

In the case of walnuts this year, many growers were considerably worried

by the fact that even the wood tissue outside the pith region was black

and watersoaked. However, to date (July 30, 1950) this condition has

not proven serious; as long as the cambium cells were not injured no

real trouble has developed. In some cases under observation, even where

some injury to the cambium cells was known to have existed, enough live

ones have been left to effect recovery. Compared to peach, holly, and

even apple trees the Persian walnut has put up a marvelous fight to

recover from the injury sustained.

Factors Accentuating Winter Injury in Walnuts

After the several months of observation, certain factors appear

invariably to account for excessive damage to walnut orchards. Elevation

seems to be a principal factor. The hillside orchards or those on upland

sites (soils) were far less injured than the river-bottom or

valley-floor orchards, even though the latter may be on a better soil as

far as fertility is concerned. My early prediction of 50 percent of a

crop in the hillside orchards seems now to have been about 10 percent

short, unless other factors become involved. On the other hand, my early

prediction of 25 percent of a crop in the valley-floor orchards has been

close to correct. Of course, certain valley-floor orchards with a

combination of adverse factors won't have even a 5 percent crop.

Older orchards were more severely hurt than younger orchards with

otherwise similar conditions. This is possibly due to the lack of vigor

and of reserve material, resulting from crowding and competition for

elements of nutrition.

The size of the crop the preceeding year seems invariably to have had an

effect upon amount of damage done. The matter of reserves is again

involved. Two orchards that bore a reduced crop last year because of

spring frost injury have come through much better than some other

similar orchards, at practically the same elevation and age, that bore a

crop last year.

Two adjacent hillside orchards show considerable difference in degree of

winter injury and crop prospects for this year. It is believed that this

difference was due to the fact that in one orchard 35 percent of the

crop was destroyed by blight last year, in comparison with a 1 percent

loss in the other. The owners and I estimate that there is at least 20

percent larger crop this year in the orchard which had the heavy loss

from blight last year.

In several orchards where different levels of fertilization have been

used by the grower, it appears that the more liberal the application of

fertilizer, particularly nitrogen, the less severe was the winter damage

sustained.

At the college orchard in Corvallis, the one tree that got no additional

nitrogen last year and that bore the heaviest crop of nuts is

outstandingly the most severely winter injured of the 17 trees involved.

Only two varieties of walnuts have been studied, Franquette and Mayette,

and some Carpathian seedlings in one orchard. Here in Oregon the Mayette

seems to have generally withstood the winter injury better than the

Franquette. It is my belief that they are just naturally a little more

vigorous than the Franquette. Yet they never seem to overproduce as the

Franquette sometime does. Last year was the "on" year for Franquettes

and that might easily account for the generally apparent better

condition of the Mayettes this year.

Carpathians Resist Winter Best

Near Ontario, Oregon, I saw 7 seedling Carpathian walnut trees early

this spring. They were leafed out and the catkins were elongated before

any Franquettes, even in the Willamette Valley, had started breaking

buds. No sign of winter injury was apparent on the Carpathian trees at

that time, yet Franquettes at the Malheur Experiment Station, a mile

away, were obviously killed to the groundline. The owner, Mr. Peter

Countryman, says these trees are often damaged by spring frosts but they

always produce some nuts.

A letter dated August 4, from Mr. Countryman, indicates that a hard

frost on the morning of April 24 when the temperature dropped to 22

degrees, did considerable damage to the new growth and catkins on the

lower half of the Carpathian walnut trees. He estimates not to exceed

one-third of a crop on these Carpathian trees this year; but he says

that since the freeze the trees have made good growth, the new terminals

being about 18 inches in length and the nuts on them are very large.

To sum up the walnut situation, then, the encouraging thing is that no

walnut orchards have been called to my attention that were completely

killed. Several badly neglected orchards and two orchards where it is

said that the temperature dropped lower than minus 25 degrees F. are so

severely damaged that it is impractical to try to save them, but even

these are not completely killed.

Injury to Filberts

From the less comprehensive observations made on filberts following the

severe winter just past, it appears in general that when the filbert

tree has gone into dormancy it is more tolerant of cold than the walnut.

The difference of one month in time of occurrence of the cold in the two

winters seems to have had more bearing on the damage to filberts than

the difference in temperature. In the Forest Grove, Oregon, area, and in

Clark County, Washington, filbert trees, however did suffer severely

from the cold last winter, but these two areas were the "cold spots" of

the Northwest.

It seems as if the same factors that accentuate winter damage in walnuts

work in a similar way on filberts, except that the elevation factor

does not seem to be of so great importance. Age of tree, level

of nutrition, and size of preceeding year's crop seem to be more

important than elevation. Young filbert orchards, on either hillside or

valley-floor sites, seem to be much less severely hurt than older

orchards on the same sites. It is the acreage of _young_ filbert trees

that will make good the agricultural statistician's estimate of 40 to 50

percent of a filbert crop this year.

I have seen one 32-acre orchard of 24-year-old filbert trees that was

injured beyond repair, but they were crowded and unfertilized. At the

very same location a 14-acre orchard of 15-year-old filberts with

adequate spacing was not seriously injured, even though the trees were

not fertilized.

One other orchard in a poor location and on waterlogged soil, which has

had little or no care, has likewise been lost. Filberts definitely were

hurt in the two "cold spots" previously mentioned, but official reports

of minus 18 degrees F. were common in that area.

There was a noticeable difference in damage to catkins between Daviana

and DuChilly. Very few Daviana catkins produced pollen; but DuChilly

seemed to be fairly normal.

Injury in filberts was confined mostly to the catkins and twigs.

Excessive sucker growth up and down the main trunk and branches has

taken place in the filberts, as is the case in walnuts.

In neither walnuts nor filberts was there much splitting of the bark on

the trunk. This was probably because there was no sudden fluctuation in

temperatures and sunshine was not excessive during the critically cold

days.

It has been previously stated that the filbert is possibly more tolerant

of cold than the walnut. In spite of this there probably has been more

extensive damage to filberts than to walnuts; but it must be remembered

that filberts are the principal nut crop in those two "cold spots." Not

many walnuts are grown there, but the ones that are were likewise

injured.

Editor's Note: Mr. Gellatly's following papers were read by title.

Effects of the Winter of 1949-50 on Nut Trees in British Columbia

J. U. GELLATLY

Box 19, Westbank, B. C.

(Orchard at Gellatly, B. C.)

Our district is just recovering (in August) from the effects of the

toughest winter we have experienced here in the past 50 years. This gave

the weather test to the tune of -22° F., official. The unofficials were

of 30 to 40 below--depending on distances and location from Okanagan

Lake, a deep body of water three to four miles wide and eighty miles

long. This lake rarely freezes over completely, especially near our

section; so the open water acts as a thermostat during most winters. But

the past one pulled a new stunt and it froze over completely giving zero

winds a vast open sweep, so that to be near the lake was a disadvantage,

for it was colder there than it was farther back, in more sheltered

locations.

Heartnuts and Hybrids

The bright spot in the nut tree picture is our heartnut trees. They all

came through in good shape, making rampant growths and carrying a heavy

crop. These include: 2 Walters, 4 O.K. Heart, 1 Canoka, 1 Slioka, 1

Rover, 2 Calendar, 1 Westoka, 1 Nursoka, 1 Aloka, 1 Symoka, 15 select

unnamed bearing seedlings, yet on trial. All are promising. Also we have

three of the Elfin paper shell heartnut hybrids. I have failed to find a

good pollinator for these Elfins, so they are shy croppers, although

producing plenty of the female blooms. All of the above trees are 6

inches in diameter and up to 20 inches.

Then come the Buart nuts. I coined this name to designate the hybrids I

had made having the butternut (~J. cineria~) as the pollen parent and

Calendar heartnut (~J. sieboldiana cordiformis~) as the mother tree.

Possibly the seven best of these are: Leslie, Dunoka, Fioka, Okanda,

Kingsbury, Penoka, Flavo. These trees are all carrying crops and most of

them are making good growth.

Filberts

Ackerman, Brag, Comet, Craig, Holder, Petoka, Carey, Baroka, Barcelona,

Bawdin, Firstoka (Gellatly No. 1). These have made a good showing, as

the majority of the trees or bushes under 4 to 6 inch crown diameter of

these varieties, are doing well and carrying good crops, while many

above these diameters suffered in varying degrees from slightly to

severely, apparently regardless of variety, location, or soil on which

they grew. It may be noted that all these varieties have been hardy in

the past, but age was adding up and age evidently had somewhat to do

with their inability to take the punishment they got this past winter.

For all my large Bing and Lambert cherry trees were severely injured or

entirely winter killed, as were nearby peaches, apricots, pear, and some

apple trees, particularly in the larger sizes, while many of these

younger trees were uninjured, except that they are fruitless this

season.

Soft Shell Walnuts

(Juglans regia)

Broadview variety on Gellatly Farm, of 20 bearing trees, all suffered

winter injury for first time in 20 years. This injury varied all the way

from freezing back two to three feet of all higher branches and twigs,

to an actual loss of one-third to two-thirds of entire tree and trunk.

At date of writing all are staging a good comeback with no care but a

"wait-and-see" policy as to final treatment. There was so much loss as

to involve too much work if pruning and after care of sprouts were

undertaken. It was decided to leave the dead limbs and branches as a

protection to the fast growing new sprouts, which, without this

protection, would probably have been badly damaged by wind and rain

storms. Even large birds lighting on these new sprouts might break them

down.

The dead limbs will be gradually removed later, as the new limbs harden

up and take over. Many of these will be left as supports for at least

two years, when I expect most of these trees will be back in production,

if we get a return to normal (minus 10° F.) winters, many will produce

in 1951, as the new wood is showing a good growth of catkins. Although

all bearing trees on my place were injured, the younger trees in my

nursery were not hurt to any noticeable extent. At Summerland

Experimental Station, 25 miles south of Gellatly, grow two large

Broadview walnut trees supplied by myself. I had grafted on these black

walnut roots (~J. nigra~) at the ground line, in every respect like my

own. These trees are carrying a good crop. One shows slight winter

injury, the other none at all. The official low for their location was

22° below F. with nearby unofficials to 30° below.

Their present location is at least 200 feet above lake level, and on

very well drained sandy loam. Mine are about 30 feet above the lake and

on somewhat heavier loam. I note that trees on my more gravelly soil

came through in the best shape at official-22° F., unofficial 24 to 28

below. My Broadview that made best survival had grown the previous year

in a chicken yard. Ground was well scratched over and droppings

incorporated in top 4 inches of soil. Tree was flood irrigated three or

four times in dry season. On this tree only outer new branches were

killed and tree gives every indication of being back in crop in 1951

season.

The crop record on this tree is from 1945 and reads '45--35 pounds;

'46--75 pounds; '47--91 pounds; '48--36 pounds; '49--100 pounds. Weight

is for clean, undried, and partly dried nuts at time of picking up. Some

of the other Broadview trees have higher crop records, although of same

age and size, with possibly a bit better soil, in same grove. One tree

in six years, '44 to '49 inclusive, had an average of 74 pounds per

year; another had an average for the same years of 104 pounds per year.

Just recently I made a special trip to see how the parent Broadview tree

had wintered. I found it had sustained severe damage to two-thirds of

the upper part of the trunk and main branches. The lower third was

staging a good comeback, despite unofficials of 35 to 40 below zero F.

as reported by neighboring farmers.

The following varieties of soft shell bearing walnut trees were also

winter injured: Munsoka, badly, top two-thirds of trunk; Linoka, badly,

top two-thirds of trunk; Myoka (Jumbo type) one-third of top branches;

Geloka (Jumbo type) frozen to ground line but sprouts two feet high now

growing. On Sirdar (a Jumbo type long nut), only outer tips of branches

were killed. This was a surprise to me, as it is a second generation

seedling of Italian source. The parent tree grew and cropped well for

many years on bench land at Sirdar, in southern interior of B. C. until

the winter of 1935-36, when it was so badly damaged that the owner had

it removed. I rather looked for a similar fate in this one. There is

this difference: mine was not as old nor had it been cropping heavily as

yet. The season here is barely long enough to develop fully the kernels

of Sirdar.

Crath Carpathian Walnut No. 46

This walnut was grafted on black walnut (~J. nigra~) root in 1944 and

planted here on low loam soil in 1945. It never has been hardy under our

conditions, winter killing some every winter since it was planted. This

past winter it was killed to below snow line 18 inches above union,

whereas Broadview trees alongside, which are the same in every respect,

never were injured until this past winter. Then only minor damage to

soft new growth was done. So it looks as though Broadview is still the

best bet for our conditions.

I am of the opinion that extreme temperature is not the sole determining

factor in causing winter injury to nut or other trees. This opinion is

based on the behavior of trees that have winter killed continuously

while in certain soil, but on being moved to another spot having

enriched soil of similar make-up and drainage located only 200 yards

away, have never winter killed since removal, and have taken much worse

winters, including the one just past.

The fact that many of our introductions grow and thrive 150 to 200 miles

north of here, where temperatures drop to minus 35° to 40°, with

occasional drops to 54° below zero. Check this on your map of Interior

of B. C. on 53° latitude at Quesnel, B. C. I see a geology map lists

that district as sedimentary and volcanic rocks. My informant grows

butternuts, chestnuts, and filberts. Another grower at Clinton, located

on 50° latitude, central B. C. with temperatures to minus 40° F., grows

Japanese and black walnuts, also Pioneer almond. We are sure that the

same temperatures with our conditions would kill most of our trees.

Recipes

J. U. GELLATLY

Walnut Honey Sandwich

1 Teaspoon crystallized Honey (the coarser the crystal the better)

3 Broadview walnut half kernels or quarters.

Place honey on one-half kernel, then stick the other half on the honey,

making a small sandwich, or kernel covered ball of honey. This is a

delightful confection.

Potato Nut Soup

1. Grate 1 tablespoon onion.

2. Grate 1 good-sized potato.

Place in double boiler, stir while adding boiling water, to a thin

paste. Stir until cooked clear like corn starch pudding. Add hot whole

milk to bring to creamy soup. At this stage add one-fourth cup filbert

kernels. First put nuts through one of the new nut planing gadgets.

These are better than the old grinder shredders or choppers, as shavings

are so thin and soft they just melt in hot liquid. (Also delightful on

ice cream or fresh fruit.) Have potatoes well cooked before adding milk

or nut flakes. Cooking nuts too long sets up some chemical change that

thins the creamy texture of the soup.

Description of Filazel Varieties[28]

[28] Since the Peace River hazel is apparently ~Corylus rostrata~ these

filbert hybrids of Mr. Gellatly belong to a different category from the

"hazilberts" of Mr. Weschcke and the "Mildred filberts" which had ~C.

americana~ parentage.--J. C. McD.

J. U. GELLATLY

The name (Filazel) I coined to designate those crosses I had made,

having the Peace River hazel as the mother tree and Craig and others of

our large filberts as the pollen parent.

Peoka

Has thin shell. Clean, well-filled kernel. Is heavy cropper and free

husker. Nuts mature early. Are well filled by August fifth with shells

starting to brown. Fully ripe by August tenth to fifteenth.

Manoka

One of the best of my first selections. Very attractive, heavy cropper,

well-filled kernels by August first, shells coloring by August fifth.

Ripe and falling August fifteenth.

Fernoka

Good cropper of roundish nuts, having short open husks and good clean

kernels.

Myoka In clusters 1 to 6. Has short open husks. Leaves color well in the

fall. Has ornamental value.

Fairoka

One to 7 nuts in cluster in fancy frilled and rolled back husk. Nuts

roundish, of fair size and color. Flavor, good. Leaves color well in

fall. Has ornamental value.

Maroka

Medium-sized nut exposed in clusters 4 to 6. Open husk, folded back.

Ureoka

Medium size for Filazel. Thin-shelled roundish nut, 4 to 6 in clusters.

Very short, partially closed husk.

Orvoka

Two to 5 nuts in cluster. Clean kernels. Husk half-inch longer than nut.

Has open side. Good cropper.

Brenoka

Long husk like parent hazel, but lacking prickles of the wild. Medium

sized nut in clusters, 1 to 4.

Eloka

Two to 4 in cluster. Medium sized nut with clean kernels in open husks.

No. 500

Four to 10 nuts in cluster. Has short open husk. Good-sized nut of

Barcelona type. Is a good cropper of clean kernels. Shell heavy.

No. 502

Largest Barcelona type Filazel that has fruited to date. Clusters

contain 4 to 8 nuts enclosed in heavy medium-length closed husks.

No. 503

One to 9 nuts in cluster, having clean, full kernels in thick shells

enclosed in short open husks.

No. 505

One to 6 nuts in cluster, having closed, medium length husks. A good

cropper.

No. 509

Two to 6 roundish nuts in long closed husks free of prickles so common

on wild hazels. A good cropper. The parent hazels used for these crosses

mature the nuts by the first of August and were winter hardy at-60° F.

in Peace River, Alberta.

Other Hazels

Manchurian short bush hazel, distinctive clipped off top on leaf with

some colored (of reddish hue). This bush retains leaves all winter, and

would make a good protective covering for wild life. Has well-flavored,

clean kernels fully developed by August seventh, 1950. Kernel is

enclosed in heavy, squat shells encircled with distinctive short closed

husk, as if folded together just covering nut. The leaf shape and

markings carry through and appear in the young seedlings.

Experiments with Tree Hazels and Chestnuts

J. U. GELLATLY

Corylus jacquemontii

(Smooth Bark) India Tree Hazel

Tree No. 1. Location--N.W. corner Lot 6, subdivision Lot 487, Scions

from Kew Botanical Garden, England. Top grafted on Craig filbert 10 feet

from ground line. This made good annual growth and compatibly well

adjusted unions, which after many years are still in line and not

readily detected except by difference in color and character of

bark--the grafted top being smooth and lighter of color than Craig

stock. Although stocks were bearing when cut for grafting, and scions

were from bearing trees and had catkins on when received, grafts were

trained to take over and become the main growth and leading tree from

the Craig crown. This grafted tree did not produce catkins or nuts for

four or five years, but branches on the stock went right on bearing, as

did also other Craig sections on same root crown or filbert clump used

for grafting above tree hazel. At date of writing, and following the

severest winter of the past 45 years, when temperatures dropped to -24°

F., followed by brief, bright sunshine and rapid rise of temperature,

all ungrafted filberts of over three to four inches in diameter are dead

or nearly so, while suckers 2-1/2 inches in diameter and smaller are

quite sound and making good growth. So, also, are the stocks or sections

top grafted to the tree hazel--even the larger 4 to 4-1/2 inches in

diameter trunks. I ask why, as by all ordinary results the grafted trees

should have been the easiest damaged. This tree, and the other sections

of filberts on same crown, had cropped for three years past, so that

from that angle they should have been on an equal footing. Only a few

clusters of nuts grew on this ~Corylus jacquemontii~ this 1950 season.

Data on tree size: Height 32 feet--was grafted about 10 feet above

ground line. Circumference of tree--12 inches above ground is 15 inches.

At 4 inches below the graft, it is 10 inches, and the same four inches

above graft union, which is very uniform, and if this combination could

be reversed we would have an ideal non-suckering stock for commercial

filbert orchards. ~Jacquemontii~ also buds well on cork bark ~C. colurna~

tree hazel.

Corylus jacquemontii

Smooth Bark India Tree Hazel on

Cork Bark Turkish Tree Hazel

Corylus colurna Stock

Tree No. 2 Location--S.W. corner of Lot 6, subdivision Lot 487. Budded

August 15, 1941, at six feet from ground line, to one inch two year

growth. Two years later top was removed and bud made to take over

leadership. From then on it made good growth. Removal of top was not

done at one operation, but first year leader was cut one-third way

through, on long slope from bud downward on both sides, and allowed to

callus over one year. Second year leader was cut further and when

callused, top was then removed. This treatment gave good coverage of

wound on trunk. Tree bore first crop 1949, eight years after budding.

Nuts 1/2 inch in diameter, moderate shell of roundish form, well filled,

with good flavor, clean kernels. August 4, 1950--Tree has a base

circumference at ten inches above ground of 18-1/2 inches--at six feet

above, 14 inches--below union circumference is 14 inches, while four

inches above union it is 11 inches. No evidence of any winter injury

after taking a-24° F. temperature. No crop this year, but has a good

crop of catkins showing for 1951.

Corylus hetrophyllia Japanese Tree Hazel

Tree No. 3. Location--N. W. corner of Lot 6, subdivision Lot 487. Scions

from Kew Botanical Gardens, England, top grafted on Craig Filbert stocks

10 feet from ground line. Made very good union. Present circumference

four inches below union is 7-3/4 inches, and four inches above union is

8 inches.

The bark on this graft is similar to the Craig on which it is growing

but lighter in color. There is no winter injury in evidence at this date

except a very much lighter crop than usual. Has small, oval,

light-colored nut of good flavor and color--clean kernels.

Corylus colurna (Thin Bark) Turkish Tree Hazel, also Cork Bark

Tree No. 4. Source of Scions--Oregon, U.S.A. Top graft on Craig stock

six feet above ground. This Craig filbert clump has several divisions.

Main one now six inches above ground. Has a circumference of 20 inches,

and just above this branches into four main limbs of similar size, which

at a height of six feet were grafted--two to the thin bark above, and

two to the cork bark type. The thin bark type have made very compatible

unions--well healed over. The circumference four inches below the graft

is now 9-1/2 inches and at similar distance above is now 10 inches.

July, 1950:--These are bearing a few nuts, following a winter

temperature of-24° F. Although the two branches worked to the cork bark

type have no crop this season, they have over-grown graft unions, and

the tops are oversize for stocks. Circumference four inches below union

is now 7 inches, and at same distance above is 9 inches. Both these

types have thick shelled roundish nuts which are hard to get out of the

husks, and so far have many blank nuts. India tree hazels also contain

many blanks and are very difficult to separate from the husks. Trees are

all hardy and vigorous.

Best of 25 seedling ~C. colurna~ (cork bark tree hazels). Circumference

twelve inches above ground line is 31 inches, and at six feet above

ground is 25 inches. Height about forty feet. On August 3, 1950, I

climbed thirty feet into upper branches to see if there was any crop,

but none was to be seen, but heavy crop of catkins was developing for

1951. I have many hybrids from all of these tree hazels and filberts,

nearing the bearing age, and they give interesting promise of new

strains, as all sorts of crossing are evident.

Tibet Hazel (C. tibicia)

Vigorous grower, upright, good cropper, fair size round nuts. Clean

kernels, nut clusters, 4 to 6 nuts in open medium husks. Nuts fall free.

These clusters differ from usual run of filberts or hazels in that each

husk is separate on short neck from center of cluster.

Timber Type Tree Chinese Chestnut (Castanea mollissima)

Seed secured direct from China. All select large nuts. So far, only a

very few produce trees that yield nuts of as large size as those

planted. All that have are timber type trees. All the bush or dwarf

spreading type trees yield small to medium-sized nuts, all of good

quality and flavor. (Selection to 1950 date referred to.)

One Chinese Chestnut Selection Named

Skioka. Most promising timber type to date of this group of seedlings.

Has one straight trunk 38 feet tall, base circumference 1 foot above

ground, is 22 inches; and 6 feet above ground line circumference is 15

inches. To date, tree is sparse cropper. Started bearing in 1945, with

three very large sized nuts in large fleshy burs. It has borne every

year since, with gradual increase in number. In 1949 it matured 12 large

nuts of 1-5/8 inch diameter. A good peeler and solid kernel. I have four

other trees of similar size and all winter hardy this past winter, at

24° below. Skioka is the most promising to date of the four as to size

of nut.

Bush or Peach Tree Type of C. mollissima

Of this type I have about 30 trees. Many seem 100% hardy and came

through in good shape. However, for some years they, with the tree type,

seemed to be having trouble with some soil deficiency or else some

excess of soil salts which caused a lot of leaf fading, followed by

browning and drying up. Some trees almost defoliate themselves, while

others nearby and alongside are O.K., possibly due to individual

tolerance of conditions.

* * * * *

DR. MacDANIELS: The first paper after recess has to do with the

varieties of hickory nuts. I know of no one who is in a better position

to talk on this subject on their performance here in this part of New

York State than Gilbert L. Smith of Millerton. He began a number of

years ago topworking trees on a hillside and propagating trees as a

nurseryman and probably is, as far as I know, one of the best men in nut

shade trees and hickory varieties that there is anywhere in the country.

Mr. Gilbert Smith.

MR. SMITH: I am no good at making a speech, so I am just going to read

this. This is our experience with hickory varieties so far. That's just

up to date, but not any further.

Our Experience with Hickory Nut Varieties

GILBERT L. SMITH, Route 2, Millerton, N. Y.

Because we are located so far north, 41° 45' North Latitude, we have

paid particular attention to the earliness of ripening of the various

varieties of hickory.

While we have living grafts of more than a hundred named varieties of

hickory, only a comparative few have started to bear nuts. Of these, I

will give a brief discussion, starting with the earliest and going

through the list in order of their ripening.

ANTHONY, shagbark--We believe that this is Anthony No. 1 but as there

are four or five varieties named Anthony with a number following the

name, we are not absolutely sure. This variety has ripened very early

with us. It is rather small but cracks very well and has borne well with

us. We consider it to be an excellent variety.

WESCHCKE, shagbark--Is our second earliest variety so far. It is also

rather small, with a distinctive shape, tapering from a rather broad

blossom end to a sharp point at the stem end. Our graft has had one very

good crop, but it is younger than many of our other grafts. We consider

it a very good variety.

CROWN POINT, shagbark--Is our third variety in order of ripening. This

is a rather small nut with some of them being very small; that is, there

is quite a variation in the size of the nuts. It cracks quite well and

is of very good quality. It has also borne as well or better than any

other variety we have under test. We have never propagated it for sale

as we have hardly thought it quite good enough.

In fourth place of ripening order, we have four ties, namely; Bauer,

Cedar Rapids, Hines, and Independence.

BAUER, shagbark--Has borne well, is of good size, good quality and

cracks well. It is also a very good shaped nut. We consider it to be one

of the very good hickories.

CEDAR RAPIDS, shagbark--While our graft of this variety has borne but

moderately, we consider it to be a very good variety. It is of good

size, cracks well, is of good quality and attractive shape.

HINES, shagbark--While our graft of this variety has borne well, cracks

well and is of good quality, it is so small that we have never

propagated it for sale.

INDEPENDENCE, shagbark--The nuts of this variety are so small that we

have paid little attention to it.

FOX, shagbark--This variety is in fifth place in order of ripening.

Fox won first prize in the 1934 N.N.G.A. contest. But there is a deep

mystery connected with this variety as subsequent crops, grown on

grafts, have not produced nuts of such top qualities. There have been

many theories advanced but no one has solved the mystery yet. One theory

is that there is bud variation in the parent tree and that Mr. Fox,

quite naturally, cut scion wood from the lower parts of the tree, which

were most readily accessible. During the war, I secured a special

allotment of gasoline and made the trip to Fonda, N. Y., to cut scions

from all parts of the tree. The scions from the various parts of the

tree were labeled separately and were grafted on stocks in our test

orchard. While not all of these grafts lived, we have living grafts from

nearly all parts of the tree. I note that at least one of these grafts

has nuts on it this year. If there is bud variation we hope that we will

have at least some grafts of the superior Fox nuts.

In spite of all this, Fox is an excellent variety, being of good size,

cracks well, and is of very good quality. While it is fifth in order of

ripening, it is still an early hickory and will succeed considerably

farther north than our location.

In sixth place we have two varieties, namely; Clark and Stocking.

CLARK, shagbark--Our graft of this variety has borne well, the nuts

being of good size, crack well and are of good quality. We consider it

to be a very good variety.

STOCKING, shagbark x bitternut--While our graft has grown very well, it

has produced but very few nuts. We were not very greatly impressed with

these.

In seventh place in order of ripening, we have two varieties, Camp No. 2

and Stratford.

CAMP NO. 2, shagbark--We did not find this variety good enough to

interest us very much. Subsequent crops may show up better.

STRATFORD, not sure whether shagbark or hybrid[29]--Our Stratford graft

has been poorly tended and has had little chance to show its merits. So

while it has an excellent reputation, we know very little about it.

However we have several good sized grafts of it, growing in nursery row,

which have several nuts on this year, so we will find out more about it

soon.

[29] It is a bitternut hybrid.--Ed.

In eighth place we have three varieties; Proper, Shaul, and Wilcox.

While being in eighth place, these are still medium early varieties.

PROPER, shagbark--This is a little known variety, our graft is rather

young and we have had too few nuts to form any opinion of this variety

as yet.

SHAUL, shagbark--While this is a very good nut, being of good size,

cracks well and of good quality, our graft on shagbark stock has grown

slowly and it is the one variety so far that we have found will not do

well on our bitternut stocks.

WILCOX, shagbark--So far this is our favorite variety. The graft has

grown into a fine tree and has borne good crops of nuts which are of

good size, crack almost perfectly and are of very good quality.

MINNIE, shagbark--While we have not had a crop of this variety since

starting to keep a ripening record, it ripens about the same time as

Wilcox and is a very good variety.

Ninth on our list we have two varieties; Davis and Peck Hybrid. It so

happens that I discovered both of these varieties.

DAVIS, shagbark--First prize winner in the New York and New England

Contest of 1934. Incidentally, a sample of Fox nuts was awarded tenth

place in this same contest. You will note that this was the same year in

which Fox won first place in the N.N.G.A.

Davis has pretty well lived up to expectations. Grafts of this variety

are rapid growers. It is the only variety we have ever succeeded in

making live on pignut stocks. While the grafts are slower growing on

pignut stocks, they have lived for several years and have borne nuts.

But as the squirrels have stolen all of the nuts, we do not know how

they compare with the nuts grown on other stocks.

Our grafts of Davis have borne well, the nuts are of good size and crack

well, although not as well as those of Wilcox. It is also of very good

quality. We consider it to be a top rate nut.

PECK HYBRID, shagbark x bitternut--The nuts of this variety are large,

thin shelled, crack well and are of good quality. It also bears well.

The drawback is that only about one third to one half of the nuts are

well filled. I can take freshly shucked nuts of this variety and by

placing them in water can pick out a sample of nuts that are just about

as good hickory nuts as you can find anywhere, but these will be only

about one third of the nuts involved. For this reason we have never

propagated it for sale.

In tenth place we have three varieties; Berger, Strever, and Triplett.

BERGER, shellbark--While this variety is quite small for a shellbark, it

is quite large when compared with the shagbarks. Our graft of the Berger

has borne fairly well, cracks well and is of very good quality.

Incidentally our graft is the true Berger. There was some mix-up with

the Berger wood, and some who thought they had Berger found that they

had something else when their trees started to bear.

STREVER, shagbark--The original tree of this variety is growing near

Pine Plains here in Dutchess County, on the Old Strever Homestead. This

property was later sold to people named Owre, who tried to have the

variety named after them. I believe that Strever is the more proper

name.

While this variety is of good size and quality, it has not cracked quite

well enough to rate it as a top flight hickory.

TRIPLETT, shagbark--This is a large shagbark which cracks well and is of

good quality. Our graft bears well. I believe that it was discovered by

Dr. Deming and the late Mr. Beeman. This is a variety which can well

bear considerable attention in the future. We are propagating some of

the trees for sale.

In eleventh place we have nine varieties, namely: Bridgewater, Griffin,

Hagen, Harman, Kirtland, Lingenfelter, Manahan, Oliver, and Wampler.

BRIDGEWATER, shagbark--A large fine variety, cracks well, yields well

and is of good quality. This is another discovery of Dr. Deming's and

Mr. Beeman's. We have started to propagate it for sale.

GRIFFIN, shagbark--I have mislaid my comments on this variety and cannot

remember much about it, except that it is of good size and bears well.

HAGEN, shagbark--We have not had enough nuts of this variety to enable

us to form an opinion of it.

HARMAN, shagbark--A large nut. We did not think much of our first crop

of this variety but the second crop was very good.

KIRTLAND, shagbark--This is a fine large nut, but with the one good

crop, we have had, only about half of the nuts were well filled. The

other half were floaters, only partly filled.

LINGENFELTER, shagbark--Here again we have had too few nuts to enable us

to form an opinion. Mr. Reed thought very well of it.

MANAHAN, shagbark--This nut is of southern origin and I fear that we are

too far north for it. However we have had one crop that was very good.

All other crops have not been matured. It is evidentally a very good nut

where it can be grown.

OLIVER, shagbark--Too few nuts to form an opinion.

WAMPLER, shellbark--Too few nuts to form an opinion.

In twelfth place on our list, in order of ripening, we have Bowman and

Redcay. These are both shellbarks and the nuts have not been well

filled, as borne on our grafts.

In last place on our list, we have a southern shagbark, Booth, and two

hicans, Bixby and Burlington. We have not been able to form an opinion

of Booth. Bixby and Burlington have, so far, been very shy bearers and

the nuts have not been well filled. They are of very large size and very

excellent quality.

The time elapsed between the earliest and latest ripening of these

different hickory varieties was 36 days. The time between the different

steps were about three days. I do not give the dates because they will

vary from year to year. In early years, Anthony has been ripe very early

in September.

Summarizing this report shows that our tests so far indicate that the

following varieties are good and well worthy of propagation: Anthony

(probably No. 1), Weschcke, Bauer, Cedar Rapids, Fox, Clark, Wilcox,

Minnie, Davis, Berger, Triplett, Bridgewater, Manahan (farther south).

Instead of listing these 13 varieties alphabetically or in order of

their merits, I have listed them in order of their ripening, earliest

first, and so on. Those varieties in the first half of the list can be

grown in locations considerably farther north than our location, which

is 41° 45' North Latitude, while those in the last half of the list are

not likely to be adapted to locations farther north than ours.

You will note that five of these varieties are not well known, but are

good varieties. They are, namely; Bauer, Cedar Rapids, Clark, Triplett,

and Bridgewater.[30]

[30] The Bridgewater pollenizes the male-sterile Weschcke variety in

Wisconsin. See Mr. Weschcke's discussion, pp. 193-95 in NNGA Report for

1948.--Ed.

This is only a preliminary or progress report, and should not be taken

as final in any respect. Neither does it cover all or near all, of the

top-rate hickory varieties. For instance, you will note, the variety

named Glover has not been mentioned. This is because our grafts of it

have not started to bear yet, so we have no comparable basis for

including it in this report. Yet there can be no question as to the

merits of Glover, for it is one of the very best. There are, no doubt,

many other very excellent varieties not mentioned here.