Cultivating Our Native Cyprepe-diums

Probably none of our native wild flowers are more popular than are those showy members of the Orchid family—the Cyprepe-diums or Moccasin flowers—also popularly known as Wild Lady’s Slipper. The yellow Lady's Slipper of the two species Cyprepedium parviflorum or Smaller Lady's Slipper and Cyprepedium pubescens or Large Yellow Lady's Slipper have been and still are the most common with us but they are now becoming scarce even where pasturing does not prevail. The stemless Lady’s Slipper—Cyprepedium acaule which some consider the real Moccasin flower, used to be plentiful in toe north part of the county but is now becoming scarce. The small white Lady’s Slipper, Cyprepedium can-didum, never has been plentiful here in Sauk county and it has always seemed a treat to flower lovers to find the little flowers nestled in the grass of some swampy meadow.

Most attractive of all is the showy Lady's Slipper which we have known so many years as Cyprepedium speetabile but now the botanists say we must call the species C. hirsutum. Thirty or forty years ago there were a number of places where I was certain of finding these showy flowers with their delicate hading of crimson, pink and white. Now I can only make a guess at where they may probably be growing and I won’t tell where for I hope to get a few specimens for planting. They do not grow in the swamps with us as I am told they do in some parts of the state. They are probably yet plentiful in the more newly settled parts of the state, but in time pasturing will crowd them out. To encourage those who care to grow the Cyprepedium I here tell of the success of Mr. A. R. Reinking, a merchant in the city of Baraboo.

Last June I received from his father, Mr. A. Reinking, an invitation to call and see the ‘‘Wild Lady’s Slipper” in bloom. I went and was indeed pleasantly surprised to see the show of flowers of the speetabile species then in their prime, and a few lingering flowers of the yellow specie.; which had about done blooming. They grew on the north side of the house receiving only the morning sun. Some of the plants had probably a dozen stems many having two flowers to the stem. Among the plants and mingling with them were native ferns and various species of early spring flowers such as Blood Root, He-patica, Spring Beauty, Violets, the showy Orchis and others. The larger ferns extended along the ride of the house beyond the Lady’s Slipper. I remember there were the two Onocleas—the sensitive fern and the Ostrich fern —the Osmundas or flowering fern:;, the Maiden Hair and Lady ferns, the Beech ferns—the slender Cystoperis and the graceful Cystoperis. During a recent interview with Mr. A. R. Reinkir.g, he told me that his first planting was one of the Yellow Lady Slipper; during the World's Fair year 1893. The original plant set out nearly twenty-seven years ago is still thrifty and has increased in size from one stem to a large clump. A couple of years later lie planted the showy lady’s slipper and other plants of the yellow kinds. All of these plants, including the showy kind planted over twenty-five years ago are all doing well and of course have increased in size. During these four years he had passed through high school and then there was an interruption in his planting while attending University in Michigan. After tile college days there were occasional additions made but none later than about ten years ago. After the first

planting Mr. Reinking took up the soil near the house for a foot or more deep .filling in with a good clay soil and surfacing with good garden soil. He did this because he noticed that he found all of his wild plants where there was a natural clayey soil with a surface of woods earth. All of his plants were collected while in bud or in bloom because then was the time when he could find them. He always took up a fair amount of soil with the roots and has always had success in planting the two kinds—the yellow and the showy. Some years ago he collected and planted the stemless Lady’s Slipper. They grew and bloomed for a few years but finally dwindled away. He has occasionally given the bed an addition of woods earth to the surface and a couple of times gave a light dressing of thoroughly rotted manure from the henyard. Every fall at the approach of winter he gives the bed a mulching of leaves, and in the spring leaves most of them for the plants to come up through. He has never divided the plants but thinks it could be successfully done.

He finds that some people are unpleasantly affected with handling the leaves, much like the irritation from poison ivy or primula obconiea. He has not been in the habit of cutting or taking flowers from these plants but thinks the practice would cause no harm to the plant if carefully done. There is such a growth of plants in variety growing together there can be no stirring of soil between. An occasional thinning out of some kinds of plants is necessary especially with the violets. As he has city water convenient it is not probable that Mr. Reinking allows the plants to suffer in a dry time.

The location is not exposed to sweeping winds. Any one having a location which could be given partial shade and protection from sweeping winds could have the same success with these popular flowers as has Mr. Reinking.

William Toole.

Plant a good supply of annuals for cut flowers in the home this year. Sweet peas, nasturtiums, phlox, zinnias, candytuft, and mignonette are all good.

My Neighbor’s Garden

When I went over to see my neighbor the other evening I found him with a copy of Wisconsin Horticulture reading my latest notes, and perfectly good natured. So much for a little extra attention.

It occurred to me that there was a lot of transplanting to be done in the garden he had laid out for me, and I wanted him to tell me how to do it.

“If you realize what you are doing, you’ll have no trouble in transplanting things,” he told me. “Most transplanting troubles disappear when you use your brains. If you don’t use your brains the result is just the same as if yon hadn’t any, and in that case you needn’t try to be a gardener. To transplant things successfully you must get the plant into the ground with the least possible interruption to its process of growth. If you can take up soil enough, and get it into the place you want it without tearing the roots or loosening the soil, you should succeed if the plan is a suitable one. In most cases ydu cannot do this, so you do the best you can to approach this ideal.

If you buy plants they generally come to you without any soil to speak of. When they come put them at once in warm water —not hot, but so it is just warm to the hand, and get them into the earth as soon as possible.

Examine the roots carefully, unless they are small and thread like, and if in digging the roots have been bruised or torn, cut off the bruised part with a sharp knife making a clean cut. Spread out the roots working the soil well between them so that each root, so far as possible, is surrounded by soil, and by fine, moist soil. The finer it is the better. It must not be dry and it does not need to be soggy or wet. What you should try to do is to get the plant into fresh soil with its roots as nearly as possible as they were where it grew originally. If it was in a pot and the roots have grown to conform to the shape of the pot, leave them as they are rather than try to straighten them out, for if you try to straighten them out you will surely tear the delicate feeding rootlets. If the roots are all in a bunch, growing in a circle from the crown or main stem, you can spread them most easily by making a conical mound in the bottom of your hole and spreading the roots evenly on all sides of it. The hole should be larger than the roots so that there will be plenty of fine soil all about them for them to penetrate while they are regaining the vigor lost in transplanting operations.

The depth at which the plant shall be set is important. Generally speaking it should be set just a little deeper than it was in the seed bed or if it is a mature plant just about as it was before with an allowance for the natural settling of the soil. If it is a young plant set so that the lower leaves are just clear of the earth. If it is a plant of which the foliage dies down in the winter, like the peony, set so that the eye will be well below the surface. If it has a fleshy root or a bundle of roots from which a crown of leaves starts, like a primrose or a strawberry set it so that the crown is just about even with the surface. If you are transplanting in the fall compact the earth so that water will drain from the plant, in spring and summer so that water will drain towards it unless your soil is naturally damp.

No matter how careful you are you are sure to injure the delicate feeding rootlets of the plant, and if you don’t do something to counteract this your plant will suffer. The leaves of the plant give off water constantly and if this is not supplied by the roots the plant dies. The more leaves the faster the evaporation. The moisture of the soil is taken up by the feeding rootlets, not by the big roots. In digging the plant the rootlets are either broken, or the intimate contact between the soil and the rootlets has been disturbed so that it cannot supply the water required to prevent withering. What’s the remedy? Isn’t it obvious? Cut off leaves enough to somewhat sustain the balance between absorption and evaporation. If you think half the rootlets have been injured cut off half of the leaves or more. You are less likely to cut off too many, than to leave too many on. For the same reason newly transplanted plants should be shaded from the sun. Use anything that will keep the sun off them, but will not smother them for they need some air. The ideal thing is a common flower pot inverted over them. This keeps off the sun, lets in the a.’r, and being porous does not get as excessively hot in the summer sun as a tin ean would. A shingle put in at an angle, a pie-plant leaf kept in place by lumps of dirt, an old hat or even a discarded easter bonnet, ean be used if pots are not available.

Should you use water in transplanting? That depends. If you use brains, you ean use water, or not as it is most convenient. Ordinarily it is not necessary, but if you can’t get plenty of good moist soil without too much difficulty, then use water. If you use water you must have plenty of fine earth. Pour the water into the hole, plenty of it. Put the roots of your plant into the water and move it about to spread out. the roots. Then sift in continuously the fine earth, working the plant up and down so as to bring all the roots in contact with the mud. Put in only enough earth to come within an inch or more of the original surface. When all the water has been absorbed cover the hole with fine earth slightly rounded to allow for settling. Don’t press it down at all or you are likely to have the roots of your plant encased in a hard ball of mud. The danger in using water, if your soil is clayey, is that just this will happen, but if you are careful and keep the top soil about the plant stirred, and the cracks filled, that the roots will probably get out of the ball and into the adjacent earth.

If you don’t use water then you must be careful to see that the earth is quite firmly compacted about the roots of the plants, and the top soil quite firmly compacted over them, or they will dry out before the rootlets can establish connection with the soil. This doesn’t mean that the top layer of soil must be compact, for after you have pressed the soil down about the roots as hard as you can it is best to spread an inch of loose soil over the top of the hole to act as a mulch.

The time of transplanting doesn’t so much matter if the soil is in good condition. It’s best not to try it too late in the fall, tho it, could be done, or in the midst of a summer drought, for it’s not so easy, but it can be done even then.

How big should the plant be? It doesn’t make so much difference provided it’s young. In fact a young seedling will survive under very adverse conditions and will stand treatment which would ruin an older one.

Don’t think you can transplant anything and everything. You can’t. Most plants cannot be transplanted when in blossom or in vigorous growth unless you can get a ball of earth which will take in all the roots, and some have such an extended and such a delicate root growth that this is practically out of the question. The best time is while the plant is dormant, that is, is' not making growth, and it may be either in the spring before growth has gone very far or in the fall after growth has stopped, if it stops early enough to let the earth get well compacted before frost. This, of course, does not apply to seedlings, which, however, should be transplanted very early, at least before the flower stalks form.

If the plant is a perennial and is to remain permanently where you set it, you should see that it has a good supply of food within easy reach of its roots. If the soil is shallow dig out a good deep hole and fill with good earth with well rotted manure worked in, or if you can’t get it, then powdered sheep manure can be used but should not be in contact with the roots. Bone meal is better, if it can be procured, as there is less danger that it may injure the roots.

Cucumbers and melons may be fed by pouring liquid manure into holes near the plants.

A. P. S. News

The executive committee of the American Pomological Society met in Columbus, Ohio, March 24th.

The sub-committee on Ways and Means failed to report and the full committee took over their task of providing funds for carrying on the work of the Society.

The plan of issuing debenture bonds was approved and these will be offered to members in the near future.

A vigorous campaign for increasing the membership will be prosecuted.

A publication to be known as the “Bulletin” of the A. P. S. was authorized and Frederic Cranefield was elected as editor. The Bulletin is to be merely a news letter for members rather than a magazine or journal.

The date of the next annual convention and fruit exhibit was fixed for Dec. 1-3, 1920 at Columbus, Ohio.

President Bailey will arrange for the publication of a year book, as separate from the regular annual report, which will record the progress of pomology in all lines during the year 1920. Under President Bailey’s direction this cannot fail to be a valuable book. It will be sent free to members.

Wisconsin still lacks over fifty members to complete its quota of one hundred promised by your secretary. If you are an amateur you will enjoy membership in this big national organization; if you are a grower of fruits for market you cannot afford to be on the outside.

Two dollars will make you a member. Send the fee to Prof. L. R. Taft, East Lansing, Michigan, or to this office.

A Life Well Begun

Editor Wis. Horticulture: Replying to the notice in the March number regarding Honorary' Life members, I wish to express to the members of the society my thanks for the honor bestowed. There seemed to be no opportunity to say anything at the annual meeting, so I have waited for the notice of the action then taken.

I have always tried to be a good member and one to help where opportunity offered. Perhaps my fellow members would like to know who Irving Smith is that he should be among the honored few.

I was born in Green Bay, Wis. Dee. 1st, 1860. My father, J. M. Smith, went into the civil war a strong rugged man and returned a physical wreck so far as any kind of hard work was concerned. He had been doing a little gardening, so in 1865 he started gardening as a business.

When I was 14 years old father said to me “Irving can’t you take care of the hotbeds!” and I did. We had then probably 75 to 100 sash and a number of cloth covered beds and made more later. At 18 I was the best hotbed man around there and I think as good as any in the state. From that time I turned over most of the actual work to others and I went into the garden as foreman. We were then cultivating about 30 acres.

Soon father began traveling a good deal, leaving the garden to me. I took care of it well enough so that the garden was frequently spoken of as the finest garden in the northwest. Of course father always went over the place frequently and made suggestions.

Father died Feb. 20, 1894 and the garden was continued for 13 years longer as J. M. Smith’s Sons. In the winter of 1906-7 I negotiated a sale proposition with a Chicago real estate man, and in May 1907 we put on a sale on the long time small payment plan and sold 204 lots in 6 days. Two months later, July, I moved to Ashland with wife and two children, 41/2 and 6 years old, to take up work as Supt. of the Industrial dept, of Northland college. In 1910 I resigned my position with the college to start “The Golden Rule Garden.” It had been my belief for many years that the golden rule is the only proper basis on which to do business and so I tried it out where I had no one to say no, and it works admirably. In starting my present business it was with the openly avowed purpose of showing the people of Ashland that vegetables in good variety could be successfully grown here.

The piece of land I bought is very similar to most of the clay land here. The man who did my plowing for the first two or three years insisted that it was the worst blankety blank forty of land in Ashland county. After ten years of hard work in developing the place to its present condition, I am not ashamed to say that I have made good on my statement to show the people good vegetables. Sev-eval of our members have been on the place and gone over it. While it is far from perfect, I think they will bear me out in the above statement.

As to the State Society, I think it was the summer of 1894 that I cast in my lot with you. Since that time to the present I have never sought any office but have had some official place a large part of the time. It has been my fixed policy to do whatever the president or secretary asked if it seemed reasonably possible. I was one who insisted for years that we must hire a secretary to give his whole time to the work if we were to accomplish much.

While I have never given very much time to writing for publication I have written quite a good many items for various papers ami have at least two articles in L. H. Bailey’s Cyclopedia of Horticulture.

Again thanking my fellow members for the honor you have bestowed I am,

Yours truly,

Irving C. Smith.

Ashland Notes

Snow is gone in the fields. Ice is getting honeycombed in the bay.

There is very little frost in the ground, and none in the lower parts between lands. Underdrains are working in fine shape.

Clover and alfalfa look green as last fall.

Orchard seems in good condition.

Grass is starting in favored spots. Looks like an early spring.

Irving C. Smith,

Meh. 29.

Our soil is a black loam, underlaid with red clay, and, as it is not underdrained, we plow in rather narrow beds. During the winter a top dressing of spent hotbed manure is applied.

In the spring, just as soon as the land is dry enough to work, it is thoroughly worked with the spring tooth harrow and then a smoothing harrow is used and, last, the soil is leveled with a planker or float.

The seed is sown about one-fourth inches deep in rows fifteen inches apart. We sow the seed thickly so that there will be from twelve to fifteen Onions to the foot as they stand considerable crowding if the soil is fertile and they are given good cultivation. We never thin them.

As soon as the Onions show in the rows we go through them with a planet Jr. wheel hoe and keep this up every week until the tops get too large. We alternate with the knives and teeth, thus keeping the soil more mellow.

We use boys and girls for weeding. We live in the suburbs of a manufacturing city where the children almost invariably say “our ma” and ‘‘our pa,” when speaking of their parents, so we always have plenty of this kind of help, and it is efficient, if rightfully handled. We only work three or four hours at a time and go through the Onions early and often, before the weeds crowd, as children dislike very much to work on a weedy row.

When most of the Onion tops are down the Onions are pulled and just as soon as the tops are dry we have the children top the Onions into bushel crates and they are then stored in these slatted crates in the barn or an open shed until hard freezing weather.

Our Onions are all sold locally, grocers handling the bulk. Nothing but a yellow Onion is used in this vicinity, there being no sale whatever for red or white ones. Yellow Globe Danvers is the favorite variety.

We use sets for early bunching Onions but have never had any success in growing ripe Onions that way, as every set larger than a pea will run to seed. I have been told that they do not do this farther south. I have a brother who lived in Kansas a number of years, and he said it was a general practice among farmers there to raise their Onions from sets and that sets up to the size of hickory nuts would produce good Onions. Last year a woman who had come from Tennessee wanteu to know why her Onion sets all went to seed here.

We also raise a few Onions for exhibition purposes by sowing the seed in flats in the greenhouse in February, transplanting to the field as soon as hard freezing weather is over.

The grocers claim that the Spanish Onions grown here are not of as high quality as those grown in the South, and that they are stronger and not as sw’eet. As my taste does not lie in that direction, I am unable to prove or disapprove this statement.

Late in the season we sow Endive, Chinese Radish, Lettuce and Turnips between every other row of Onions and as soon as the Onions are harvested these late vegetables are cultivated with the horse and in this way the ground is kept free from weeds and these late vegetables often prove quite profitable.

About Heading in Apple Trees

Is it a good plan in a bearing orchard, fifteen years old, to cut off ends of limbs and tops of trees to make a more sturdy tree and confine the tree to growing fruit instead of getting such long branches. I have been told to cut off most of the last year growth. Will this promote growth of watersprouts ?

‘‘In general it is a good plan to do some heading back on trees of 15 years of age. This may cause the tree to be jnore fruitful but the principle object in this type of pruning is to improve the light condition in the lower part of the tree and to reduce the height so it is easier to harvest and spray. Water sprouts and suckers will come up close to the cut if care is not taken to make the cut at the proper place. If a limb is cut back to small spurs or branches, suckers and shoots will quite certainly be produced. If the branches are headed back to a fair sized lateral it is unusual for many suckers to be produced.”

The Society now embraces 700 bee-keepers in its membership list hence the bee pages. Mighty interesting reading even if you are not a bee-keeper, don’t you think so?

There are only a few copies left of the 1918 Annual Report and these are reserved for new members. When your neighbor drops in show him your copy and your Wisconsin Horticulture and ask him how about it.

Inside Information

The fee for annual membership is now One Dollar. Some members are forgetting about the change and send fifty cents. Sometimes I think it isn’t always a lapse of memory.

Both the March and April issues were 24 page papers and in April an eight page supplement. This may not hold out all year. If the membership list grows the advertising will grow and as the fees received for both grow the paper will grow; kind of a sprouting game all around. Send in a new member now and then and watch Horticulture grow.

If you have been successful in growing fine flowers or vegetables tell how you did it. One hundred words will often be enough to tell the story. You owe this much to your fellow members.

A few copies remain of the Feb. 1919 garden supplement. This is a complete manual on gardening. Send for one if you need it.

West Allis has a new local—the W. A. Horticultural Society, organized March 27th with 27 members and more to follow. J. M. Barr was elected president and Miss Gertrude Bailey, secretary. The organization of this local does not in any way affect the activities of the W. A. Garden Club, a smaller organization limited to 16 members, which has a special field of work.

Other locals affiliated with the State society and number of members in each are as follows: Oshkosh 50 members; Manitowoc 30; Bayfield 11; Lake Geneva 26; Madison 19 and the Milwaukee Florist’s Club 52 members; The Sauk County Horticultural Society 49 members.

The Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers’ Association 61 members and the State Beekeepers’ Association 702 members are auxiliary societies.

An advertisement in Wisconsin Horticulture at 70 cents a column inch is a good investment, because we reach the right kind of people. Try it.

Friends of Our Native Landscape

J. A. Hazelwood

Everybody truly loves the out-of-doors. Thoreau tells us of the importance of a keen appreciation of nature’s beauties. He says that the in-door life breeds insanity, and that the house is in a limited sense a hospital. The world outside is a panorama, the greatest of all movies, and man should learn to know and love the hills, valleys, fields and the wild flora and fauna, if life is to be rich, full and complete. Too few of us know the common stars and constellations above us that talk to nature lovers in the evening; too few of us know the names and characters of the common wild trees, shrubs and flowers; too few of us know how to enjoy the beauties of landscapes we have on all hands in the state. Any agency that will bring about more of an appreciation of the aesthetic should be encouraged.

Wisconsin needs at this time such a society to help awaken an interest in beautifying the highways; to improve and enlarge the state park system; to preserve streams with their adjoining bluffs; woods of the white and Norway pine; woods of birch and woods of maple; the ravines and canyons with their rare trees and ferns; ponds and swamps where the water birds make their haunts, and many plants find their homes, mounds with then

mute testimony of the race long since gone; native monuments of historical interest that will tie the present and future generations to the past and serve as playgrounds for the people and the homes of wild plants and animal life of our native state. A lot of people banded together for the purposes above set forth can accomp/sn ir. estimable good for Wisconsin.

Purpose

Friends of our Native Landscape will desire those to join them in their work who feel that the beauty of the out-of-doors has its importance in character building and is of value in the future development of the race; those who believe that pilgrimage to the native landscape has a restoring influence upon soul and body; those who believe that these bits of native expression are a real part of one’s spiritual life; those who believe that there is a mission in thus disseminating knowledge and appreciation of the out-of-doors, so that the coming generation may grow up in a full understanding of nature’s beauty; all these are urged to join the ranks of the Friends of our Native Landscape.

Chicago Society

It is not expected that the society will meet many times during the year. The organization will meet only when and where the opportunity or convenience oi the greater number permits and desires. There will be pilgrimages made to various places of natural beauty and historical interest about Madison and the state. The Chicago Society of Friends of our Native Landscape have what is termed “The Festival of Wild Crab Blossoms” and the festival known as that of the “Falling Leaf.” A pilgrimage into the wintry landscape with a feast of starlight and a council fire afterwards completes the state gatherings of the year. The Chicago Society once made a pilgrimage to Holy Hill in Wisconsin, and those who made that trip have ever since that time been speaking of the beauty and wonder of Holy Hill. One year the same society made a pilgrimage down the Rock River in Illinois from Rockford to Rock Island. Many other pilgrimages were taken by groups of the society to interesting scenic and historical places.

Nature Lovers’ Field

Those who love the world of out-of-doors, the hills and rivers, valleys and woods, the broad plains and lakes, should unite in this new movement. It will mean a refreshment of the spirit and will broaden the horizon of all those who participate. Wisconsin with her rolling farm lands, her hills, her river regions, her dells, her thousands of lakes, with forests and tall pine and sturdy oak, her many places of historic and scenic interest, furnishes a splendid field for the work of a society having the purposes of the Friends of Our Native Landscape.

The Prediction of Frosts

Ralph M. Beckwith

From the very beginning of the fruit-growing industry the horticulturist has had to combat frost as one of his most formidable enemies. Not only in temperate climates, but even in semi-tropical regions, does this malefactor creep upon him in the nighttime, killing the tender buds and young fruit, and leaving the grower discouraged, but impotent to repair the ravages wrought upon his crop. Millions of dollars have been lost annually due to frost damage; a large part of which could not have been saved perhaps, but another part of which undoubtedly could have been preserved. Frost damage can be controlled to a greater or less extent, but in order that it may be controlled to any extent, some knowledge must be had of when to expect the frost.

If it were possible to have a trained weather forecaster on every farm, then the matter of frost prediction might be left to him, but the farm would have to be a large one to permit of such an arrangement. The Government predictions may be applied to large districts, but owing to the wide variation of local conditions the grower must be able to make the simpler ones for himself. Elevation, slope, and proximity to large bodies of water exert such a marked influence on the climate of a place that, in such a state as Wisconsin, any generalization of climatic conditions is of little value to the practical farmer.

“Frost is commonly defined as the moisture of the air condensed at freezing temperatures on plants or other objects near the surface of the earth.” It is evident, therefore, that the temperature of the surface upon which frosts forms must be at or below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Since it is the formation of ice in the intercellular spaces that causes the damage in plants, the temperature of the plant is the determining factor, and not the appearance of ice on the exterior surface. The condensation Continued on jingr 1<U>

Better Keeps For Beekeepers

Keep good Italian strains, REQUEEN every year.

Keep strong colonies and European Foulbrood you will never need to fear.

Keep plenty of stores for the Bees

Keep them protected so they won’t freeze.

Then give the bees pilenty of room and they will store the honey,

Lots of bees, lots of room, good protection , lots of honey—lots of money.

Money makes the mare go, also the auto

It also permits the beekkeeeper to go. Then let the bees pay your way, Come to the BEEKEEPERS’ CHAU

TAUQUA, MADISON, August 16-21, 1920.

Meet with us at the State Beekeepers’ Convention, Dec. 1, 2, and 3, 1920.

Practical Beekeeping Extension Work

By A. Swahn, Ellsworth, Wis.

Some time ago, I received an invitation from Mr. H. F. Wilson to give a talk on some branch of beekeeping at the Beekeeping School and Chautauqua at Madison in August. I appreciate this invitation very much and at that time fully expected to be there, but find it next to impossible to get help to take my place here at this time, so the very best I can do is to make an effort to give my ideas in writing. I have asked' Mr. Wilson to kindQy read my paper in my stead.

The subject assigned to me is "Practical Beekeeping Extension Work’’ and I will try to make my subject as brief as possible.

In the past I have not been fully satisfied with the extension work done in this state, and Mr. Wilson and I have had' correspondence on the subject before. Lately, however, I am pleased to say that huge strides have been made for the betterment of this branch of the work.

Our present Beekeepers School and Chautauqua is a move in the right direction and will be of untold benefit to the advanced beekeepers of the state who will attend; I am heartily in favor of it and think it should be developed to the limit. There are, however, two branches to this extension work. One is the advanced branch like our present Chautauqua and the other is the primary branch which cannot very wel¹! be taken up at these meetings. The primary branch of this work is the one in which I am mostly interested at the present time. If we are to get the greatest benefit from any such extension work we must begin at the bottom and work up. I claim that it is the careless and poor beekeepers who need the most assistance. The modern method men will work things out for themselves and modernize their work to the best advantage.

Our present Chautauqua is in reality a post graduate course for our experienced beekeepers, and it will do them a vast amount of good. There are, however, a great many small or side line beekeepers who cannot or will not attend these meetings owing to lack of time for one thing and to lack of comprehension for another. A great many will feel that the talk and work in this course wil'l be beyond their understanding. It is a sad fact that a great many so called beekeepers are in reality only bee owners and care for their bees by the ancient methods of their grandfathers. Many of them have neither books or magazines on the subject and know absolutely nothing about the inside workings of a bee hive. I recall that a short time ago an old bee owner of 40 years’ experience came to me and asked what a queen cefll looked like. This makes us think that a great many such men simply put the bees out in the spring and back in the cellar in the fall, take what little honey they get and let it go at that, and if the amount is not what they think it shou'ld be they complain about it being a poor year. All years are poor years to such men.

My idea is to do either one of two things—discourage these ancient method bee owners and get them out of the way or educate them to more modern methods. Their ancient methods are a menace to those who try to be more modern in their work. It is very discouraging indeed to be continually surrounded with foulbrood and foul methods of alll kinds. The conditions under which honey is handled in some apiaries are not only insanitary but disgusting. These conditions and insanitary methods in no way advances the industry of beekeeping and¹ honey consumption in the minds of the public.

I fully sympathize with our inspec-torr and extension agents and realize that theirs is not an enviable vocation. Inspectors come and go and still nothing is done (here at 'least) to remove the menace of foulbrood and other foul methods. Most beekeepers dislike very much to report a neighbor beekeeper even if his apiary suffers from disease transmitted to his colonies. My idea is that our inspectors should insist on having every apiary cleaned up and if this is not done in a reasonable time by the owner steps should be taken to have it done by someone else.

I fulily realize that it is impossible for our inspectors to do all this detail work, and think they should be given full authority to appoint deputy inspectors in every county and through them should see to it that this work is done in a proper manner. Enforcing the law as above stated should of course be done only as a last resort, and before this is done every means should be employed to reach the personal pride of the bee owner and to educate him to voluntarily adopt more modern methods or get out of the business.) The best way to reach these men is through the medium of their pocket books. They should be shown how they can make more money by modern methods, and they shopld be shown how to do some of this by actual demonstration and assistance.

It is alll very nice to try to make ourselves believe that we are in the business strictly for the love of it. and' for the pleasure and benefit derived from the fresh air and stings, but there is a doubt in my mind whether many of us would be quite so enthusiastic if we did not expect to make a little money out of the business.

In business I have found that the best sales talk is price and quality. In beekeeping nothing will appeal or arouse one’s enthusiasm like the anticipation of profit together with the pleasure and' health derived from the business if conducted by modern methods.

Now in order to make my ideas plain I am going to find fault with our extension work in the past. I hope our inspectors and extension agents wifll pardon this, as I have no intention to find fault with them personally as they cannot do differently in the time given them by their superiors. It is these superiors and bosses that I am after and what I think is their faulty methods.

In the first place it seems that the instructions given every inspector and extension agent is to "speak theli little piece" and get out as soon as possible, and to see how many places can possibly be visited in a given time. I realize that this is an age when speed counts, but there are a few exceptions even to this rule, ana this is one of them where haste should be made slowly. This Chautauqua work is one of the best moves ever made, and it is just like a college for professional men—it Is a good place for experienced beekeepers to take a Post Graduate Course.

The novice or farmer beekeepers wi'll not as a rule attend this Chautauqua because the work taken up will be too far advanced for them to comprehend. It will be very much the same as a primary school boy attending a teachers institute—he would not get much out of it. The bee owners who are the real menace to modern methods cannot be reached by the present methods of instruction. In the practice of medicine a physician will quarantine a contagious disease and keep it within certain bounds, but in beekeeping this cannot be done. More radical methods must be employed if necessary, and all this must be shown to the ancients in the business.

It would be quite tiresome for the experienced should the speaker spend much time explaining what a queen cell looks like or how to find the queen or how to graft a ceQl and many other such primary matters. Nevertheless, that is exactly what should be done in order to make beekeepers out of the present bee owners. They should first be given the A. B. C. of bee culture together with a sprinkling of the financial possibilities of the business in order to get them interested. Too much of the X. Y. Z. or advanced work should not be taken up as it wiM confuse them and make them think it is too deep for them to comprehend and master. Lead them up to it gradually much the same as a school boy is led up the educational ladder—step by step. In -order to carry out my ideas it would be necessary for the extension agent to remain at some central point for at least a week, and to Classify the work and to take up certain subjects each day so that all classes of beemen can select the days best suited to their understanding of the business, if they should not care to take in the entire course. The work so arranged would benefit not only the novice but the expert as well. More good wilfl be derived from one week of such work in any locality than from years of work by the present system.

By the proper effort and encouragement on the part, of the extension agent and his “Bosses” some beekeepers in every county can be induced to put his apiary in model condition and by holding the meetings at these apiaries results will be obtained through the medium of personal] pride. After seeing how a model apiary looks and what can be eliminated by modern methods it will be a very poor stick of a man who will not try to improve his methods.

The novice should be shown how to proceed in order to get the proper knowledge of the business. He shouOa be advised to buy the proper books and magazines, and told how to study them. A question box should be used at every meeting, and all questions should be taken up and made plain both by explanation and demonstration. Do not confine these meetings to some comfortable room or hall. Let us pull our coats, put on our veils and light our smoker and get right among the bees and show the novices the inside workings of a bee hive.

By a little advanced preparation the apiary at which the meeting is to be held can be made ready so that queen cells will be available and instructions can be given with them in many ways which might be of assistance to the expert as well as the novice. Pages might be written of the details of the useful work which could be done at these meetings but that is unnecessary now. If these suggestions have any merits and if I can be of any assistance in any way in the development of better beekeeping methods I will put my shoulder to the wheel and do the beet I can. I thank you and hope to meet you all in person at some future date.

Out-Yard Advantages

It appears to me that every beekeeper who wants to make a success of beekeeping on a large Beale must have more than one yard of bees. If a beekeeper in my locality was confined to one yard he would not be able to keep more than about 200 colonies, and not that many if his neighbor chose to keep some.

I know of a man who has 4*00 colonies in one yard and does not get any more honey than others do from a yard of 200. I mention a yard of 200 but I prefer a yard of about 100. A few years ago when there were about 75 colonies of bees in my neighborhood, I usually averaged over 100 pounds per colony. Later when the number of colonies was increased to over 200, my average yield fell off about 10%—300 pounds surplus light honey and about 400 pounds dark honey. The yield of the light honey was small on account of the weak condition of the colonies in the spring. Therefore, I cannot make a true comparison on the light honey.

With the dark honey I can compare two yards, and they stand like this. Ten colonies in one small out yard yielded 40 pounds per colony and in the home yard' where the bees were crowded the yield was 13% pounds per colony. This extra honey came in handy indeed when I could not get sugar for fall feeding, and would have had to feed light honey. If I had had as many colonies in the out yard as in the other, I would have received about 2,400 pounds of dark honey and at 18c per pound would have been $432. So the safest way is to have two or three yards to be in the best locality possible.

I know of some bees that are kept in such poor places that it is a wonder that they get any surplus honey at all. These bees could be moved a few miles and be in a fine location surrounded by pasture land and fields of Alsike clover- Another factor comes in manipulation when raising queens that are to be mated before putting them in colonies. Have a super divided into 6 separations with holes bored through so as to have six entrances, three on each side. Have corks for these holes so they can be closed easily. On the bottom have a screen nailed tight Place some partly filled sections in these compartments and when young queens are hatched, shake some bees in each of these compartments and put a young queen in each one. Then take this hive to an out yard and set the super on top of another colony. The heat from the colony will keep these small nuclei warm and the bees will stay because they cannot return to their old place and each young queen will have time to mate.

A convenient way of transferring bees from one yard to another is to have a Ford roadster- These are the only cars that I know of in which the back can be removed and a box easily attached*. The box I have is on inside measurements 37 inches wide, 70 inches long, 10 inches high. And side rack 10 inches so that I can haul 12 colonies at one time, 6 to a tier.

The combined weight will not exceed 900 pounds at the most. My car is good for 1,000 pounds and when not loaded is very light and one can quickly go from one yard to another. Of course, if one is working out yards extensively, a larger and more expensive truck is better.

Charles Duax, Chippewa Falls, Wis.

Grading Wisconsin Honey

Continued from April

The standards as published provide for three grades of comb honey and one of extracted. In either ease the color is to be marked separately from the grade. Either comb or extracted honey may be marked with the single word “Ungraded” and sold at any time without stating the color or attaching any other label.

Comb honey designated “Wisconsin Fancy” must be the highest class clean table honey in the best grade clean sections and with all the cells capped over except the outside row next to the wood. This grade will probably be produced only by comb honey specialists and only a small percentage of the total crop will be included. Sections of “Wisconsin Fancy” must weigh at least 12% ounces net.

Wisconsin No. 1 will be the ordinary high quality honey in which till the cells are sealed except not more than six on each side beside the outside row next the wood. Sections will be well cleaned and we 1 filled. Slight travelstain permitted, ten cells on each side may be off color, and sections must weigh 11 ounces or more net.

Wisconsin No. 2 includes all other honey which should be placed on the market. Sixty cells may be unsealed beside the outside row and there are no requirements in regard to even capping or the attachment of comb. Sections must weigh at least 10 ounces net.

In each grade every section and case is to be marked with the grade, the color, and the packer’s number which will be explained later.

Only one grade is provided in extracted honey, to be known as “Wisconsin No. 1 Extracted Honey.’’ This consists of well ripened, well strained honey in new containers, and weighing 12 pounds to the gallon. Each container must be marked with the grade, the color, the net weight, and the packer’s number.

Complete information in regard to these grades may be obtained from the Division of Markets, State Capitol, Madison, Wis.

Every beekeeper who wishes to sell or deliver any honey under these grades is required to secure stamps from the division of markets. These will be purchased wholesale and supplied at cost. Numbers will be assigned by the division in the order of receipt of the applications. Each beekeeper will then be responsible for the correctness of the grade of every container on which his number is used.

A feature of the hearings and correspondence which was a surprise was the fact that no opposition to the establishment of grades was expressed by anyone. Several were anxious to be permitted to sell all or some honey ungraded but no opposition to marking it so was encountered. The only requirement affecting the small beekeeper who does not wish to grade his honey is that every section or can shall be marked "Ungraded’’ w’ith a stamp or in any other convenient way. This relieves the regulations of any burden they might bring.

In providing for state grading the beekeepers have shown that they are ready to advance a step whenever conditions warrant and are anxious to do their share to making Wisconsin honey take the place it. deserves on the national market.

Queen Rearing

(By Kennith Hawkins) (G. B. Dewis Company)

In this paper we will stress the essentials oi practice commonly used by better bieeuers of queen bets. Keally good queens cannot be reared by uess intensive metnoas, and wnen you nave listened to tins outline, you snoum be abie to raise good queens tor your own use. it you do not intend to follow at least these simple metnods in detail, do not try queen rearing; much better queen bees can be purchased trom reliable breeders who can afford to insure ail these conditions.

Be*es rear queens under three conditions: 1—To replace a lost queen; 2—To prepare tor swarming; 3—To repiace a tailing queen. xseeaeepers have observed tor years that the best queens are reared under supercedure conditions. Det us see wny this is.

Bees are animals, but tney differ from humans, horses and most otner animals with which we are tamiliar. This is because a bee emerges trom the ceul with a life store ot energy and supply of muscle. Bees consume food, but very little of it goes to replace worn muscle and wnen a bee is once worn out, she cannot sleep and eat, like a human, and regain that strength. Bees, emerging with their life store of strength are as strong at that time as they ever wiiu be. It is impossible tor them to better their conditions materially. Thus it is of the utmost importance that queens emerge wdth a real maximum of strength, since the queen is the most important bee in the hive. Su-percedure tends to produce queens of this sort because of the excess of food and attention they receive as larvae at that time; we know that good queens are reared that way.

The Condition of Supercedure

Det us examine the condition of the hive at the time of normal supercedure, to see how we can approximate these conditions in rearing our own queens. We must study these phases of bee behavior if we would succeed. Supercedure usually comes shortly after the main honey flow is past. At this time there are thousands of nurse bees in the hive and an abundance of stores at all times. The colony is usually at the peak of its strength as to bees, honey and larval food. No larvae at this time ever suffers for 'lack of food, lack of warmth or lack of moisture.

To approximate this condition, let us proceed as follows: 1—Pick out a strong colony and reduce it to a single story; 2—Make this colony queenless and remove from it all brood less than three days of age; 3—If necessary, insure a surplus of nurse bees by shaking before this hive, half a dozen frames of bees from other hives.

What We Have Done

Then we have a strong queeniess colony of bees with an excess or stores and a maximum of nurse bees. Only one thing is needed and that is a queen. By doing this toward evening, the next morning will find our queenless colony ready to accept our attentions.

A queen bee may be reared from any brood intended to produce either a queen or worker bee, provided worker larvae chosen are less than three days old. One may give this brood to the coflony by the plan followed by Dr. C. C. Miller and w’hich has been printed in the American Bee Journal and Gleanings, or by the Doolittle artificial cell method.

In choosing queen cell larvae, unless one is in a great hurry, only the smallest larvae should be taken, preferably those less than 24 hours old. One may learn the size of 'larvae of this age by examining those larvae in a brood frame which lie next to eggs. It is also necessary to know the approximate age of the larvae used, to guage the time when the queen cells should be distributed.

This queenless colony may be given the Qarvae either in the Miller queen frame or in Doolittle cells. This colony is known among queen breeders as the "cell starting" colony and the larvae should not remain in this colony more than a day or two at the most. When the queen cells have been begun by the bees and great quantities of larval food placed in the cells, the beekeeper should give these cells to the "cell buJlding" colony. The bees in both the cell building and cell starting colony should be fed slowly, a thin sugar syrup every hour day and night that the cells are in the hive- After cells have been taken away from the starters, another batch of cells may be given and the operation repeated daily as often as they will continue to start a sufficient number.

Building the Cells

Above a queen excluder over a full queenright colony, place another hive body well supplied with honey, many uncapped larvae and an excess of nurse bees. Both cetll starting and cell building colonies should be so strong that they need occasional attention to keep them from swarming out. In place of the centre frame of the cell building coflony, place the frame holding your started queen cells. Put on the feeder and let the bees do the rest.

The next problem will be the distribution of these queen ceflls before they hatch, to colonies from which the queens are to mate. Sixteen days are required from the egg laid to the emerging queen bee. Since the egrgs require three days to hatch and wen-

about one day old when used to start queen cells, they were then at that time about four days old. The queens would then emerge on the twelfth day after they were given to the cell starters and for safety, must be distributed the evening of the eleventh day. If not distributed before one or more of the queens emerge, all the cells will be lost, as the first queen out, with the aid or abetment of the bees, will proceed to destroy alii her royal sisters and the work of the beekeeper will be lost.

Distributing the Cells

The greatest care must be used in distributing the cells. Queens are in the most delicate stage of their existence at this time and are easily injured or made worthQess. The cells must never be squeezed, must not be dropped and always held, in handling, with the tips of the cells hanging down. We recommend the Ben Davis cell block for carrying them about the apiary. One cell is given, prefera/bQy in a West cell protector, to each queenless hive or mating nucleus, where the queen should emerge the next day.

We never recommend that cells should be alllowed to hatch in cages, but always directly into a hive or mating nucleus. Queens hatched in captivity seldom make as good queens as those allowed the liberty of their hive at once, upon hatching. We also are unreservedly against the “baby” nucleus in any style. Most of the better queen bee breeders now are using mating nuclei of full Hoffman frame depth and holding from two to five such frames. Only in a nucleus of this size will an emerging queen receive the warmth, food and attention she deserves, if she is to serve you well as the head of a honey producing colony.

Local Association Notes

Winter loss, one yard none, one yard 25 per cent, onel yard 30 per cent and one yard 40 per cent. The yard with no loss and most of the balance of the colonies in the other yards that are in fine condition were such that were not fed any liquid feed, but had enough honey in the brood chamber or were given sealed combs of honey. The yard of 40 per cent loss was fed mostily damaged sugar some of which contained salt. Nearly all the colonies were fed in late October and in November and did not have a good flight day afterward until March 9-10. Because the bees that were not disturbed Hate by liquid feeding wintered in practically perfect condition, it is evident that the late liquid feeding used up so much Bee Energy and filled them with feces so early that they could not live thru the past severe winter.

Two years ago with about the same kind of a winter my loss was 2 per cent, aJll the colonies needing more stores were given sealed combs of honey.

MORAL: If liquid feed must be given it must be given early, say the last week in September, but better than that is to give only sealed combs of honey that is ripe, thus saving all the bee energy for that long cold winter that may come anytime. On March 31st the bees were gathering TAG ALDER poQlen, but have not had a fair day since. (April 11th).

Honey sales (local) are very slow compared to February and March, at 30c. Clover seems to be in fair condition at this time,

Edw. Hassinger, Jr.,

Fox River Valley Beekeepers’ Assn.

Beekeeping An Organized Industry

Has the beekeeper a right to organize? He has: the same right as the banker, the manufacturer, the laborer. No more, no less. Organization is the big secret to success in every undertaking. Beekeeping has never been organized—the result has been that the industry instead of being a recognized business, has been a side issue with all the vagaries of a wandering caravan. A few men early saw the possibilities and have made beekeeping a paying business. However these men have been handicapped by the indifference of the mass of the beekeepers. Lack of knowledge on the part of most of our beekeepers have played an important part in holding the industry back. It has taken a world wide war to 'bring about a true realization of the bigness of beekeeping as an industry. Lack of organization, lack of business methods has prevented its advancement and made it an etheraQ thing of more or less obscure origin.

When bills dealing with bee laws and appropriations for their enforcement were brought before our legislatures they were made the butt of many jokes because the members of the legislature knew little or nothing of beekeeping. In some cases our college men have been forced to recognize the industry as a necessary part of their agricultural work.

Organization has done a wonderful thing for beekeeping in Wisconsin. Better production, better methods, and better and more stable prices are being established. Furthermore the people of the state and the executive officers of the government, the legislature and the university have been brought to have a wholesome respect for it as a bona fide business. Up to 1918 it was almost impossible to get any recognition from our legislature. But in 1919 through our state association and the local organizations an organized effort was made which resulted in a new ilaw and a somewhat adequate appropriation. And would you believe it before the bill was introduced several Senators and Representatives were around looking for the bill and wanting to introduce it. At critical stages several of them went out of their way to do special work on the bill. Every committee to which the bill was referred passed it in a hurry and at one time a special rollcalil was called to hurry the bill through. In fact but a single vote was cast against it in either the Senate or Assembly. Petitions, personal visits, and letters were presented which left no doubt in the minds of the legislature as to the size of the industry and the necessity of the biQi. A similar united effort on the part of beekeepers in other states and a nation wide campaign will make beekeeping a real industry.

Advertise honey in the proper manner and make it known for its real food value and few homes will be without it in every month of the year.

Most people have heard of honey but how few have ever tasted it. Bees are dangerous and are to be avoided., The sting and its effect are far more talked about among the initiated than is honey. PersonaQly I never saw a colony of bees until I was 19 years of age and previous to that time had never tasted honey but once. People crave sweets and yearly eat millions of pounds of filler to get a little of one and another. How weQl do I remember the good old days of Black Jack chewing gum and candy beans. No thought was had of what it contained only that it had a flavor which remained for several hours. The filler might just as well have been India rubber. Syrups, jams, jellies, etc. on bread, pancakes and biscuits. Littfle or no thought of food value and the filler was eaten to get the sweet. Imagine every child brought up with a taste for honey and the mother knowing that every drop eaten has full food value as well as medicinal qualities. There is no flller or synthetic and impure flavors here and never will be because the beekeepers at large wild not permit. Personally I do not believe that honey should have ever been sold by the beekeeper for less than fifteen cnts per pound and when he accepted less he sold it at Hess than cost if his labor was worth anything.

This being the case shall we let honey go back to the old prices or shall we organize and keep it a profitable business, receiving a fair return for our work and product. The 100 per cent incease in bee supplies is not likely to go down soon.

Furthermore beekeeping is an expert business and the expert is entitled to his pay in this as well as in other lines. The efficiency engineer, the mining expert, the surgeon and the lawyer all receive expert wages why not the beekeeper. The surgeon is an expert manipulator of surgical implements with skill, so is the beekeeper. It is true that there is a difference but is the skill required for both not the same. The great difference lies in that the lawyers, doctors, etc., are organized while the beekeepers are not Is a haircut worth more than It was ten years ago? Then we paid ten cents for a shave and twenty-five for a haircut. Now we pay twenty-five and fifty. How did it happen? Last week you paid forty cents for a haircut. Saturday you noticed the following item in the paper: “At the national meeting of barbers held Cast week in Chicago the executive committee decided that because of the high cost of barber supplies all barbers should raise their prices and they suggested that after' Sept. 1, shaves should be twenty-five cents and haircuts fifty. The result: today every barber in our town is charging those prices. Supposing for a change that beekeepers instead of asking the buyer what he will give tefll him what you will take and stick to it. We should not be unreasonable—And out what honey is worth and ask for a profitable return.          H. F. W.

The Prediction of Frosts

Continued from page 161

of the moisture of the atmosphere may take place below freezing, and while the appearance of ice on the exterior of a plant is good evidence that the temperature of the exterior is at or below freezing, its wonappearance is not good proof that ice has not been formed in the intercellular spaces of the plant. The term “frost” should be taken, therefore, as signifying injurious temperatures without regard to whether or not ice has appeared on the exterior surfaces of plants or other objects.

All bodies give off heat in cooling.—at different rates, to be sure, as. e. g., water gives off its heat much more slowly than does land, but heat passes off into the atmosphere none the less. Now, the conditions favorable to frost formation

are (1) a clear sky, because there are no clouds to hold the heat radiated from cooling bodies close to the surface of the earth; (2) dry air, because with dry air cooling by radiation will continue to a lower temperature before checked by the heat given off in condensation, than with moist air; and (3) a still night, because the air in this event, arranges itself in layers according to its weight, and the cooler air collects near the surface.

Now, in this section of the country, frosts may be expected anywhere from September to May, and there is danger of freezing at any time when the temperature arrives at from 8-10 degrees above the actual frost point. Assuming that it is the season of the year when frosts are likely to occur, the points to be considered, aside from local topography, are as follows:

• 1. The nature of the preceding weather.

• 2. The condition of the sky— whether cloudy or clear.

• 3. The direction and force of the wind.

• 4. The trend of the temperature.

• 5. Atmospheric pressure.

Taking up these points more in detail, we have first,—the nature of the preceding weather. We can see from any weather map that different conditions move across the country in irregularly shaped but well defined lines. Hence, there is always danger of one extreme following up another, and a frost may come right after an abnormally warm period. If, during the warm period the buds have developed to any extent, a mild frost will do more damage than a more severe frost following up a period of cooler weather where the buds are still undeveloped. An unusually warm period does not always mean that a frost will follow, but frosts do follow such periods, and hence warning must be taken.

Secondly, the condition of the sky. Clouds act as a blanket over the earth, and prevent the escape of heat. Even a hazy condition or the thinnest clouds have an appreciable effect in checking the radiation of heat at the surface. Hence, frost is not likely to occur if the sky is overcast. When unhindered by clouds the heat given oft' by the earth is so disseminated through the atmosphere, and even beyond the atmosphere, that unless the earth has a great store of heat, a decided fall in temperature is likely to occur, causing frost.

Thirdly, the force and direction of the wind. The force and direction of the wind is a reliable weather indicator. If the wind suddenly changes from the south to the southwest or west, it is a good indication that the weather will turn cooler. A frost occasionally follows when the wind changes from the east or northeast to the north or northwest. The conditions to be looked for as the wind changes are a falling temperature, decreasing wind, and a clear sky.

Fourthly, the trend of the temperature. If there is a continuous fall in the temperature in the late afternoon and early evening of 1 degree per hour till the temperature reaches 40 degrees by 6 p. m., and there is a light wind and a clear sky, frost must be looked for in the early morning. If the fall is more than 1 degree per hour, frost may be expected even though the temperature is considerably above 40 degrees in the late afternoon.

Lastly, atmospheric pressure. Actual barometric pressure is of little value in predicting frost, except that a warm period of low pressure is likely to be followed by the opposite extreme. The change in pressure is the impartant factor. A rapid rise in the barometer is good indication that a cold period is rapidly approaching. The change in pressure usually shortly precedes a change in the direction of the wind, as wind is dependent on pressure. We have already taken up a discussion of the influence of the direction of the wind and will not go into it further at this point.

There has arisen within recent years considerable discussion as to the value of the evening dew-point as indicating the probable fall in temperature during the ensuing night. By the term “dew-point” is meant that temperature at which the changge from vapor to water begins, and is, therefore, the temperature at which the release of heat begins also. The theory is that if the dew-point is above freezing in the evening, it will not change to any material extent during the night, and there will be sufficient latent heat liberated when the temperature reaches the freezing point to prevent it from going any lower, and consequently there will be no frost the next morning. If, however, the temperature of saturation is below freezing, there is nothing to prevent it from going below that point and a frost is to be expected. If this theory was substantiated, it would be easy to predict frosts, but unfortunately it is not. In some sections of the country good results have been obtained by this method, but in the most places no dependence can be placed upon it. Professor Cox. in his investigation of frosts in tin* cranberry districts of Wisconsin, found that “the early evening dewpoint afforded no indication what-

(Continued on page 170)

Cause of Wormy Peas

Peas grown in northeastern Wisconsin are troubled by the presence of a worm which feeds within the pods on the growing peas. The best method known at present to check the damage and spread of this pest is the selection of quickly maturing varieties and planting as early in the spring as possible.

Egg          Cocoon

Stages of the Pea Moth

This insect attacks practically all varieties of both garden and field peas. No other host other than peas is known. Late varieties are more susceptible to attack than the earlier maturing forms. This is due entirely to the time of appearance of the moth itself and .iot to any varietal resistance of the peas.

Eggs: They are small, not quite as large as the head of an ordinary pin; flat and slightly oval in shape; whitish in color; and nearly transparent when first laid. Within two days two reddish transverse streaks appear, one at each end of the developing embryo. The eggs are laid usually singly upon the pods, leaves, or stems of the pea vines; and sometimes on the stems and leaves of grasses or weeds growing in the pea fields. The incubation period ranges from 7 to 10 days.

Larvae: As soon as hatched the tiny young worms seek suitable places to eat their way through the growing pea pod. After they reach the interior it is almost impossible to tell whether the pods are infested or not. Infestation seems to hasten maturity of the pods and sometimes causes them to blanch prematurely. The young feed upon the peas within and grow rapidly, completing their development within 16 to 26 days.

One to all the peas in each pod attacked are injured by the larvae. The worms make irregular holes in the peas and cover them with frass webbed together wherever they feed.

Pupae: The worms, upon completing their growth leave the pods through small round holes and seek suitable wintering quarters, usually- a few inches under the surface of the soil. Here they construct their cocoons and are then ready to pass the winter.

Moths: The moths which are small, dull colored, and about 5/16 of an inch in length, appear shortly after the peas begin to bloom. The adults, in their characteristic zizzag flight, are usually seen about the pea vines late in the afternoon. Very few of them fly at night.

Best Methods to Control the Pea Moth

Spraying is not successful. The reasons for this are many, the most important is because of the methods of pea culture and the nature of the growth of the vines.

Cultural practices such as fall plowing, discing, and cleaning up of all vines left in the field after harvesting will help some.

The best recommendations are:

• 1. Select the best early maturing varieties.

• 2. Plant as early in the spring as it is passible.

Chas. L. Fluke, Jr.

Such peas are unfit for table use. ruined for seed and reduced in value for stock feed.

Prevent Losses From Cabbage Worm

Every season the cabbage worm causes serious losses to cabbage and cauliflower in Wisconsin. These losses can be prevented by the use of proper spray- materials. Important Points to Remember

Between the Rows

Next month we expect to write about Raspberry and Blackberry insects. Look for the articles. They may contain something of interest to you.

Several inquiries have recently come to the editor of the insect page regarding reddish brown, hemispherical scales on apple and elm; known as lecaniums. These are described by one as “ladybug shaped.” The important point to remember about them is, they are not controlled by the use of lime sulphur. The best spray is kerosene emulsion—using one part emulsion to 4 or 5 parts of water. This is a strong solution and should be used in the spring before any foliage appears.

The Prediction of Frosts

Continued from page 167 ever of the ensuing minimum temperature.”

As so much of the data on this method is contradictory, no practical value can be attached to it. I might say that the dew-point is found by taking a wet-and-dry-bulb thermometer, whirling the two for about two minutes, and noting the difference in reading. From the tables accompanying the instrument the dew-point can easily be computed.

About the only important factor which still remains to influence the coming of frost is the condition of the soil. Frost may be expected on a damp soil sooner than on a dry soil, providing, of course, that the soil is not too wet. Rapid evaporation promotes a rapid loss of heat in the water cxaporated, which passes on into the atmosphere and is lost. If the soil is very wet, however, the air becomes saturated with moisture, and holds back the heat given off in evaporation, thus helping to ward off frosts.

In conclusion—There is little doubt in the minds of modern horticulturists as to the effectiveness of frost prevention methods at times when an entire fruit crop may be saved by saved by raising the temperature a very few degrees. Expenditures for frost prevention should be looked upon as insurance, and should not be exceeded by the amounts spent in protection against cyclones and fire. The United States Weather Bureau has inaugurated a system for the distribution of frost warnings which is limited only by the telegraph, telephone, mail, and signal services, and growers whose location renders possible the receipt of these warnings, by any of the methods referred to, should adopt means for securing them. That these warnings, supplemented by the growers own observations, have a high value is shown by the testimony of those who have received substantial benefits therefrom.

Lime-sulphur without arsenate of lead is not nearly so strong a fungicide as with the arsenate. In all applications use arsenate of lead at the rate of 1 pound of the powder to 50 gallons of spray.— Prof. G. W. Keitt.

A good lawn is best made of 80 per cent Kentucky blue grass and 20 per cent of white clover and red top. The red top and white clover are temporary grasses and soon give way to the blue grass. They do give a good quick lawn.