I know of no one subject connected with fruit culture of more importance to us western people than this. There is no malady or cause existing here that would prevent our having a full crop of that delicious fruit the plum almost every year, were it not for this pestiferous insect. Is it possible that we are to have no remedy ? Must we fell all our plum, apricot, and nectarine trees, to prevent the increase of this little wretch to such an extent that he will destroy our other fruits, which is now the case to a considerable degree in many locations ? I hope this great calamity may, through the ingenuity and skill of some one, be averted by the timely discovery of a remedy that will cost less than the fruit is worth. The shaking of the trees upon sheets, the only sure means of saving the crop yet discovered, with me takes an amount of labor and time fully equal to the value of the crop; so that its discovery may, as far as my experience goes, be considered of no value or utility to community. To save the majority of the fruit on half a dozen trees in my garden, by this means, requires the labor of a hand one hour and a half every morning and evening for a period of six weeks.

At ten hours for a day's work, this would amount to over twelve days; (recollect there are to be no Sundays during this time; if so, your crop is gone;) which, at 75 cents a day, would amount to $9; saying nothing about boarding a hand for two weeks, which would be at least $3 more. The trees upon which I made my experiments will not average over one bushel of fruit each. It will be seen, then, that by this process of preserving the fruit,- it would cost about $2 per bushel, which I think is quite as much as it would bring in our market, at least after deducting labor of picking and carrying.

I have tried many of the published experiments beside this, such as chickens, pigs, lime, salt, etc., etc., all of which have entirely failed. Connected, however, with an application of a solution of lime and sulphur to the tops, made with a syringe, during the past season, I made an accidental discovery which I think worthy of note, and which may lead to some beneficial results. I had read communications from several persons who had been successful with the sulphur and lime application. I determined last spring to try it; and as soon as the plums were fairly shaped, and before the curculio commenced his destruction, I prepared the solution, went to work vigorously, and gave four applications within ten days, on one tree of Gen. Hand, one White Prune, one Caledonian, one Knight's Green Drying, one Royal Hative, and one Green Gage. I covered the tops, leaves and fruit, so completely with the mixture, that at a little distance the trees looked as though they were in one perfect sheet of bloom. For two years previously I had not had a single fruit to ripen on any of these trees. About five days after the first application, I discovered the work of the insect on every tree, all about equally. The depredations increased constantly, although we applied the mixture in greater quantities.

After the fourth application I discontinued it, believing that it was doing no good. At this juncture I set my gardener to work at spading up a part of my garden, with directions to spade it deeply and turn the top earth completely under. It happened that he commenced in that part of my lot where one of the plum trees stood, (the Green Gage.) The ground under it, and in all that part of the lot, was deeply spaded and well turned under. There was no spading done under or about the others. After three or four days I discovered that the depredators had discontinued their work upon this tree, while on all the others they appeared, from the havoc they made, to work with a double fury, as though maddened at the attempt to foil them by covering their victims with lime and sulphur. On the five trees there was not a single fruit left to ripen. On the Green Gage not a plum was incised after the spading, that I could discover. From it was gathered about one bushel of perfect fruit.

That this fruit was saved by turning up the subsoil, or turning under the top soil, I have no doubt; but as to the philosophy of the thing, or the reason of the result produced, I am at a loss. It must have been produced, however, by one of two causes; and I will remark here, by way of introduction to one of them, that by syringing the trees a large quantity of the lime and sulphur solution fell upon the ground, so as to produce an incrustation upon the surface to the full extent of the circumference of the branches of the tree. One is, that the composition, or incrustation on the surface, by the turning under was brought into immediate contact with the spongioles, or feeders of the roots, and thence taken to the fruit; that, when dissolved by the sap of the tree and acids of the fruit, its effects were to produce a flavor or taste loathsome* to the depredator, and thereby prevented his further annoyance. The other is, that during the season in which the curculio inflicts his mischief, he fixes his habitation permanently under the tree, near the surface of the ground, where he remains during his time of rest, and from which he ascends to the top of the tree, either by his legs or wings, at his proper season for labor; and that by the spading he was turned under the ground so deeply that he could not again make his way to the surface.

I shall continue my experiments next season. I shall try the spading alone, and the turning under and sulphur and lime mixture on the surface of the ground in conjunction.

* We very much doubt this, as we hare found the moat loathsome applications to the fruit of no avail in repelling the insect We are very happy to record such instances of close and careful observation, and trust that experiments will be continued; but we must say that we here very little confidence in any experiments of such a limited nature, because almost every year we see individual trees escape, as in the case of the Green Gage alluded to, from some cause or other unseen. - En.

One inquiry, and I will close for the present. What has become of the remedy for the curculio discovered by Wm. Quant, gardener to W. C. Langley, Esq., 3d Avenue, Long Island? (See Horticulturist, Vol. 6, pp. 583, 584.) He asserted his "conviction that his composition was a radical exterminator;" that he "would keep its nature private until practical men and others [meaning, I suppose, the rest of mankind,] interested were satisfied, after which his receipt should be open to the world." I have waited patiently for its publicity. Should it prove to be what Mr. Quant confidently believed it would, I know of no discovery recently made, connected with pomology, which would be of equal value to this, in many portions of our country. I should be glad to hear what Mr. Quant's success has been during the past season, and whether he has not given sufficient satisfaction of the utility of his application, to justify him in making it public.