damage will be found in a
communication from Mr. H. F. Stoke, of Roanoke, Va., which appears later
in this report.

Drouth and hot, dry winds are more dangerous enemies than either cold or
heat. It is somewhat ominous that, out of eighty-three reports,
forty-two, originating all the way from Maine to Oregon and from Canada
to Tennessee, report the occurrence today of frequent drouths, while
forty report hot, dry winds. Surely the need for tree planting is
immediate and urgent. Mulching, and the protection of recently planted
trees by wrapping their trunks, are preventives of some damage, but can
not stand up forever against the longer and longer periods of drouth now
being reported, during which the water table is gradually being lowered
beyond the reach of tree roots.

The length of the frost-free season has an important bearing upon the
production of nuts after the trees are matured. This is true in the
south as well as in the north. One of the most frequently reported
causes of loss of nut production in southern sections is an early
spring, inducing growth of buds and blossoms, followed by a frost. No
protection seems to have been found against this damage except by use of
heavy smudges. Large orchardists protect themselves, but planters of
small groves rarely do so. This explains the autumn scramble, reported
by many members, in search of early fallen nuts. We should continue our
search for trees which produce nuts of early maturity. Thus far the
search has not been too successful among most species, but some progress
has been made and the future is more encouraging in this respect than it
was a decade or two ago. Some early maturing nuts have been found and
pollen from the trees is being used for cross-pollination with better
known nut producers. In the northern states, dates of the latest spring
frosts range from April 1 to June 1, with the average around May 15. The
earliest fall frosts come from Sept. 5 to Oct. 15, with the average
about Sept. 15 to 20. Where the frosts fall much outside these
limits--too late in the spring or too early in the fall--protective
measures will help but will not always prevent damage.

_Soil Conditions._ There is a slight preponderance of clay soils over
loam among the returns from planters. Loams and sandy loams are tied for
second place. A smaller number report that these top soils lie shallow
over hard-pan or rock. Fewer still report a soil underlaid with sand or
gravel.

By