orning after that we had a
frost on low ground. This tree is near such ground. With frost, and two
dry seasons, this year's crop has amounted to but one and one-half
quarts. Most hickories have done little since 1932.

Another hickory tree found last year that I call No. 2 did have four and
one-half pounds on it last season. It is hardly half grown, is a
shagbark, my best find toward cracking out in halves, and the earliest
in maturing nuts of any hickory I have found. It has no crop this year
but is worth keeping an eye on the coming seasons.

No. 3 is my best find in quality, quite good of cracking, good in size
for a shagbark and has possibly a trace of shellbark in its make-up.
While bearing light crops, it has been very consistent in doing so every
year for at least three years. It is an old tree, medium early in
maturing its nuts and doubtless could do better if freed from the under
and surrounding smaller trees. Its crop, shucks on this year, is
sixty-five pounds, or above eighteen pounds shucks off but not dried.

To the best of my present knowledge, and with such conveniences as I
had, and to aid in grafting, I should have been told to make a long
narrow box, put a wire screen bottom on it, make a cover for it, fasten
a wire at each end, put my scion wood in and let it down deep in a
cistern, and let it hang two or three inches over the water for scion
keeping. When grafting I should have been told to carry my Merribrooke
melter around in an empty pail to keep the wind from blowing it out and
to be able to better hold the blaze down and keep the wax at the right
temperature. And when and if the blaze does go out, do not try taking
the thing apart for relighting. Instead, split a small stick, put a
match in the split, take out the wax cup, strike the match and reach
down from the top for relighting.

Talk to people about better hickories and you discern first that the
subject has never been brought to their attention. On further
discussion, when they are made to understand that worthwhile hickories
can be grown, you come to the balking point. It's the crop! It's too far
off! People do not let the time question bother them when they set out
the usual dooryard trees because expectancy goes no further than trees.
In our latitude grafted hickories, first of all trees, rightly should be
in everyone's dooryard. It takes about as much time to grow the best
ornamental and shade trees as to make a hickory tree. And th