Smyrna times., 1884-08-20
YeIIOws In Peach Trees.

MATTER TO BE LOOKED INTO.
One of our prominent peach growers
was recently asked what was the best
remedy for yellOws in peach orchards.
when he replied, plant none out
This was on the principal Of Mrs. Glass
recipe for cooking a hare. "frst catch
the hare" The appearance of "vel.
lows among our peach trees, young
rs well as old, as it has in the past few
years, IS something alarming to the
growers who have had such handsome
returns; and the inquiry is a very
natural one, what is the best remedy
for the arresting of the disease?
In this immediate section there has
been no especial concern in regard toit
until the past two or three wears.
though it has been known that the eX-
treme northern part of the "peach
belt has been more or less affected hv
a disease disastrous to peach culture.
generally attributed TO wasting Ofthe
soil IN the peculiar properties necessary
tOr It's health and longevity, by contin-
ual culture. This certainly cannot be
attributed to the sudden DEVELOPMENT
of the "yellows here in Young or
chards planted in land never hereto
tore set IN peach trees, and we must
look for some other cause as the result
OF the disease, namely, the propdgaiinq
Of nurseries from Improper seed. This
brings the matter directly home TO the
nurserymen. Until several years after
the late war no such thing as the
" yellOws was known in Young stock.
and the matured trees only showed it
as a result Of culpable neglect, the cut
ting of worms at the root. or old age.
The connection of the war with the
disease was n this wise. Until that
event the nUrserymen had been par.
tlcular to plant healthy seed, procuring
them mainly from North Carolina and
Georgia where natural fruit only was
grown. During the civil strife this
could not of course be done The trees
on this side of the line were demanded
the same as ever, and to meet this de
mand the dealers had to procure seed
wherever they could. Hence they
were obtained from the canneries. &c.
ana IN the main were from budded
irult' which in the very nature of
things has not the healthy life germ as
matured fruit from trees where nature
has not been crossed and made to Weld
forced production. In the first. the
nurserymen were not wholly TO blame
because during the years of the war
they could not do better, but it led TO
carelessness and finally indifference.
because the young trees were purchas
cd without complaint and almost with
out regard to this vital question. But
1t may to many of them be like sowing
dragons teeth. The disease is intro
duced and its end may be an entire
doing away with the profitable industry
PeapA growers, like the ono referred
to ip the starting out of this article say
that limb or tree that once bears
premature peaches can never be made
again to bear healthy fruit: hence
there Is no cure where it is once estab-
lished. But there may be u preventive
in the planting of healthy, natural
seed, supplemented by good culture
and proper fertilizing, such as muriate
Of potash, &c. Until our farmers
knOW they are setting out orchards
from such stock they cannot expect an
escape from the yellOWs. The very
best knowledge they can have IL to !
plant their own seed and bud from |
- Ns NatAhNA ~ AtAAA 10 HtNlbilN III /
the Summer, or purchase from parties |
that can be perfectly relied on to do |
this. The very large nurserymen who
plant seed by the vessel load may mean !
well and do the best they can, but are
liable to be deceived. Thus, contract |
was made with a captain in the lower
part ofthis Peninsula to procure YES
gel loud OF seed from Georgia. The |
captain instead, slipped over to Balti- !
more, loaded up from cannery and. |
waiting for n proper time to elapse.
delivered the seed to the purchaser i'm |
New Jersey, and the latter paid him
for what he honestly thought was
natural seed,
This Is matter for our farmers to
carefully look into, for there is. or has
been, "milliOns in II, and the eontin-
ued culture of this crop should not he
to slip away without a deter.
mined effort to retain it, !