he nuts are cracked with
greater difficulty. Nevertheless, it is the most hardy of any native
species of _Juglans_. Its kernels are rich in quality and of a flavor
more pleasing to some persons than that of any other nut. Cracking the
native butternut and marketing the kernels affords the rural people in
many sections a fairly profitable means of employment during the winter
months. Its native range extends farther north than does that of either
the eastern black walnut, or that of the shagbark hickory, _Hicoria
ovata_, and considerably beyond that of the shellbark hickory, _H.
laciniosa_. Therefore, in view of its hardiness, and the merit of its
kernels, it is well worthy of consideration for planting in the most
northern parts of the country.

Were it not for the blight which is now making practically a clean sweep
of destruction over the eastern states, wherever the native chestnut is
found, the American chestnut, _Castanea dentata_, would certainly be
entitled to leading consideration as a highway, an ornamental or a nut
producing tree. Unaffected by blight or other diseases, it is one of the
largest-growing and most graceful species in the eastern United States.
The European chestnut is nearly as susceptible to this blight as is the
American species. The chestnuts from eastern Asia now appear to be
sufficiently immune to offer a practical solution to the situation by
their introduction into this country. However, they commonly lack the
sweet agreeable flavor of the American species and need hybridizing in
order to improve their quality. This, the Federal Department of
Agriculture is now doing, and in due time, there may be something to
offer in ample quantity which will make a satisfactory substitute for
the native species. Exclusive of the Asiatic species and the government
hybrids, there are now no available species which can be recommended for
planting in the blight affected area, and these should be planted only
for test purposes.

The pines referred to at the outset of this article as being important
nut producers are all western species found only on the mountains and
nowhere under cultivation. There are at least fourteen American species.
Representatives are found in most of the Rocky Mountain states. The most
important species is _Pinus edulis_. It is found at altitudes of from
five to seven thousand feet in the mountains of New Mexico, Arizona and
northern Mexico. In favorable years, the seeds are gathere