I hope some day to have a nut orchard that will be the show place of southern Illinois and then I will invite the association to have an annual meeting here and at my farm.
From G. H. Corsan, Toronto, Canada:
This time I can say that my trees never looked so well. All passed through last winter and the terrible winter of three years ago. My list consists of the following: Constantinople hazelnuts, Kent filberts, Manchurian juglans regia, Jap heart nuts, Pomeroy juglans regia, Canadian seed juglans regia, common native chestnuts, Col. Sober's paragon chestnuts, castanea crenata.
The chestnuts grow a foot more from all terminal branches, not a twig winter-killed. Constantinople hazelnuts grew two feet from all terminal branches and not a bud winter-killed. Kent filberts killed back some branches, others did not, grew well this summer from 1½ feet to a yard.
There is a huge crop of Pomeroy paragon chestnuts on my trees this year. No blight near me, as thank heaven the farmers around me are too stupid to plant chestnut trees and in fact no farmer ever planted a nut tree with two exceptions within 20 miles of me. But one farmer by name of Anderson planted a mile of black walnuts along the roadside 75 years ago. These trees are loaded with nuts and boys just now and they reach away up higher than the tallest phone wire (that is the lowest branches do).
All juglans regias grew a yard from each terminal bud. My Pomeroys after killing back for several years have at last got a real good start and are going to live and bear. When I see a bluish tinge to the leaf of juglans regia, together with a smooth glossy leaf, not too long—having 7 and not 17 leaves to the stalk—and having a very white grey bark, then I know that the nut will be EXTRA good, and though that type of tree is a bit tender and requires water in the early and mid-dry summer, as well as hard wood ashes, lime and chicken manure in the late fall, this is the tree that on the north aide of Lake Ontario where I am now some day will bear and ripen real nuts.
My grapes and peaches ripen well this fall, though we as all others had a late spring and my Indiana and Iowa pecans actually grew 2 feet from terminal buds.
Were I an old man of 80 I would plant nut trees to the exclusion of every other work. First, I would be growing a crop of food 150 years after my death. Second, I believe that every man who has vitality to live over 80 has been a bad man in his youth and he owes it to the world. Third, it is a healthy occupation, stooping down and digging and takes the rust and poisons out of the system. Fourth, there is a joy seeing the leaves and branches grow the next summer and in old age one must feed and take joy from the eye and ear more and more and less and less from the mouth and stomach. Fifth, it is not at all an unreasonable supposition that as a boy again I may be climbing the same trees that I planted. And if I know for certain that I would not be then some other boy will take my place.
The salvation of the future is more and more food from trees and less and less from animal sources. The day is fast passing when the farm consists of a tobacco barn, a pig pen, a cow stable and a hennery. From living upon a badly selected type of food we fear the flu and other diseases. No disease will ever come out of a nut tree. But we are a lot of fools and blame the absolutely innocent cucumber for what a vile mixture of salt and vinegar does to us and thus these same asses will say, "that nuts are unhealthy" and we pay a billion dollars out every three months to have the dentists fix our teeth that never receive any nut grinding exercise!
From J. F. Jones, Lancaster, Pa.: