the normal additions of wood and bark, while the dead parts become more and more an element of weakness. Specific decays may set in slowly, consuming all the heart wood. How some affected trees are able to stand as long as they do is a mystery. Sooner or later an extra wind strain is put on them and they topple over; and whenever a serious storm occurs the oak woods suffer disastrously for this particular reason. A large number of the windfallen trunks will be found to show this defect.

Few trees which incur this disease recover from it or outgrow it.

Hence, they never reach more than one-fourth or one-third of normal size and age. As a rule they completely fail before they are ten inches in diameter near the base. The trouble is much more common in sprout or coppice growth than in seed-grown trees. Since in our cut-over lands sprout growth is apt to be the rule it follows that such woodlands are not as productive as they might be.

A judicious selection should be continually carried on during the earlier years, cutting out the undesirable species and, particularly, every tree which shows the beginning of the defect here noted.

The black oak (Quercus tinctoria), and the pin oak (Quercus palustris) are the species most affected, the others of that section less so. The white oaks seem to be entirely free from it. Unfortunately, the prevalent habit of giving cattle and hogs the free run of our woods is a considerable factor in reducing the number of white oak trees and increasing the red and black, since they cull out and eat the sweeter white oak acorns and leave the more bitter acorns of the other oaks to germinate and thus determine the future forest. A limited feeding and rooting of hogs in an oak wood is, however, a decided advantage, since it puts many acorns in the best position and surroundings for successful germination. The great bulk of all germinating acorns fail to make seedlings because of lack of suitable soil or other cover.

THE SERIOUS INJURY PRODUCED BY THE PINE WEEVIL (PISSODES STROBI).

The most serious obstacles in the growth of the white pine in this vicinity is the pine tree weevil (Pissodes strobi), a small beetle which has the habit of laying its eggs in the young terminal shoot, called the leader, or occasionally in one of the uppermost laterals. The young grubs developed from these eggs proceed to burrow through the bark to the wood, and thence between bark and wood or through the wood itself into the pith, eating the nutritious matters and gradually completely killing the shoot. The rapid upward growth of the tree so desirable for forestry purposes is thus most effectually checked. Instead of the spiry top a bushy bunch or branches is formed. It was formerly supposed that this injury was necessarily a permanent deformity, but such it not always the case. Slowly, a new leader may be developed from these side branches. A number of them begin to curve upwards as they lengthen. There begins to be a race and a struggle between them to see which one will reach the coveted place and become the new leader. Quite commonly it take a number of years to decide this point. Meanwhile the top continues misshapen, often curved and one-sided. Not unfrequently two or three branches develop so evenly that none acquires supremacy. The tree then becomes permanently forked at the top and nearly useless for timber purposes. Under the most favorable circumstances it requires several years for an injured stem to become perfectly straight again.

Many cases are seen where there have been repeated attacks year after year resulting in a low, round-headed or bushy tree almost entirely run to branches, and, hence, of scarce any value except for firewood.

The great value which the white pine and other evergreens possess resides in the straight symmetrical trunk, tapering to a fine point. Anything which interferes with this symmetrical development seri

ously impairs its value. Moderate crowding of trees accelerates this spiry form and tends to rapid trunk development. Hence the larger the body of pines growing together and the less the interference of other kinds of trees the better will be the pine growth. Isolated or irregularly separated trees suffer far more than others from the attacks of this pine tree weevil, largely because they are not forced to throw their growth into new top, but waste it in the vain effort to recover by building out new side branches.

The ravages of this destructive insect are very common, at least in this section of the State. For some years it has annually infested about five per cent. of the young white pine trees, but during the past year it has destroyed the tops in as high as ten per cent., and has been conspicuous in Norway spruce and other ornamental trees as well. I can see no feasible preventive remedy. If there could be united effort made wherever young pines are growing and the af fected tops cut away and burned, the insect might not be exterminated, but its injurious effects would be greatly lessened. But among the abundant and widely scattered trees, most of which receive no attention at all, it seems destined to continue unless some predacious animals or parasites should arise to combat it. While it is probable that there are such they do not at present seem to have much effect.

SHADE TREES FOR STREET PLANTING.

Among the questions frequently asked the writer is what is the best shade tree for streets and roads? What would you advise me to plant? Like many other questions, it is scarcely possible to answer in a word by naming a single tree of such superior qualities as to suit every situation and meet every requirement. What is the best tree under some circumstances may not be the best under others. It is worth while to look over the matter first with reference to the conditions and note how these will apply in different cases. The requirements of a good shade or street tree are various and sometimes conflicting. Among them are ease of transplanting or ability to recover readily from its shock, rapid growth, freedom from insect attack or fungous injury, pleasing form and long life. Suitability of soil is a factor underlying all of these, and in the long run of prime import

ance.

Soft or fleshy-rooted trees are not easy to transplant. The tulip tree (often called poplar) and other magnolias, which have many fine and desirable qualities, are of this character. It is not advisable to use them except where there is an excellent loamy soil, with plenty of room and good drainage. In such situations they may do excellently, provided they are handled carefully and watched closely