How to Select the Right Commercial Rice Cookers

Posted in Home Improvement
by Anthony Cruz

A top of the line commercial rice cooker is a must if you own a restaurant that specializes in sushi or paella or other rice based menu items. Here are some tips and hints on some important things to consider when buying commercial rice cookers:

On/Off commercial cooker

We know that the reliable on/off commercial cooker cooks nice rice, automatically turning off when the rice is cooked. These commercial cookers do not cost you much. So if you do not have some extra cash to shell out, consider buying an on/off commercial cooker.

Many on/off commercial cookers sport some warming features. If you have the budget, buy a commercial rice cooker that has this feature. This commercial cooker is a must if you have a food business.

Amazingly, on/off commercial cookers can keep your beloved rice warm for about 12 hours. You will not regret getting an on/off commercial cooker.

Fuzzy Logic commercial rice cooker

What about a commercial rice cooker that features Fuzzy Logic technology? You are going to need one if you are eyeing a more sophisticated commercial cooker; this kind features advanced settings for brown rice, steamer, soup, and porridge. This type of commercial cooker is nice, but they are more expensive compared to an on/off rice cooker.

Induction heating

Most top of the line commercial rice cookers feature induction heating technology. The advanced heating system allows you to cook rice perfectly.

Commercial cookers with induction heating system have accurate temperature sensing methods. Heat does not just radiate from below, instead heat distribution is even throughout the entire pan.

Design

If you are after style, choose a commercial cooker that suits the overall design of your restaurant. Commercial cookers come in many colors and shapes. Some rice cookers look very traditional, but some look very elegant and stylish.

Other things to consider

Make sure your commercial cooker has easy to clean parts. A commercial cooker that sports a dishwasher-safe and removable bowl makes the cooking easier. Get commercial rice cookers with nonstick bowls.

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How to Do a Mortgage Modification if Self-Employed

Posted in Personal Finance
by Steve Johnson

Loan modification is starting to be a very common way for individuals to stay in their homes by negotiating the conditions of the loan with you bank. Nevertheless, prior to getting the approval, you must show that you can repay the modified loan with your current earnings.

If you are self-employed, it may be hard to prove your earnings when presenting it to the bank. This could be so for many different circumstances. Nevertheless, banks must have a type of proof that you will be able to pay back the mortgage.

In order to solve this challenge, you can request your accountant about a financial statement. The financial statement should cover the last six months. It is fundamental that the financial statement is filled out by your certified accountant since it will have credibility to the statement

After you get the final amount from your accountant, you consider the number as a normal paycheck. You should plug in that number to calculate the debt-to-income ratio which is the critical factor to determine if the loan modification will be obtained.

By using this number, you disregard the weight of employees, leases, etc. Only the basic amount showing your present earnings is shown in the financial statement.

Once you have done this, submit this value to the bank. The value won’t be audited or reviewed. The bank may use it as documentation as long as it is given by a certified accountant

This is normally all the proof lenders require. Lenders will use this document as demonstration of earnings when the homeowner is self-employed. Because banks will take this documentation as demonstration of income, they need to ensure that this document is coming from an accountant.

Keep in mind that lenders expect to obtain some type of demonstration of income prior to offering the loan modification. By giving the lender with the financial document prepared by your certified accountant, banks will get the proof they require to give you the mortgage modification.

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Credit Cards

Posted in Loans
by Bob Jones

The commencement of the electronic age has made almost everything more possible. Diagnosing and curing previously terminal diseases became widespread; travelling to uncharted territories became a possibility and most of all, people’s everyday lives was made easier by technology. We now have more convenient stores, easier means of transportation and a range of labour-saving gadgets that makes work and pleasure almost effortless.

With regard to the technology of finance, an efficient banking system and efficient services have offered people better alternatives and options with which to manage their finances. Among the so many financial management tools that emerged, one stands out head and shoulders above the rest - the credit card.

Credit cards, especially to working people and those who live very busy lives, have become the ultimate financial saviour. More than just being a status symbol or an accoutrement to expensive purses and wallets, credit cards have revolutionized the way people spend their money.

However, apart from the glamour and the convenience that credit cards bring, there is a lot more to these bank cards than most people could ever think.

Credit Card 101: Before entering into the very long list of the pros and cons of having a credit card, it is quite important for people to realize just what a credit card really is, in order for them to maximize its potential.

In layman’s terms, a credit card is something that allows a person to make purchases up to the limit set by the card issuer. One must then to pay off the balance in installments with interest. Usually, credit card payments are per month and range from the minimum amount set by the bank to the entire outstanding balance. And because it is a form of business, the longer the credit card holder waits to pay off his or her entire balance, the more interest piles up.

Since having a credit card is a responsibility, only those people who are of legal age and have the ability to pay off the amount they are going to spend through their credit card, is allowed to have one. Actually, most of the adults in the U.S. use credit cards on a regular basis, because it is very convenient compared to using cash or cheques every time they have to buy something.

It is just as important to be cognizant of the various kinds of credit cards before you begin to build up credit card balances in order to avoid having huge debt. Since credit cards are indispensable to most consumers, it is a must that they understand the sorts of card that include charge cards, bankcards, retail cards, gold cards and secured cards. All of these kinds of cards come with one or two interest rate options: fixed and variable rates.

If you decide to take a fixed-rate credit card, the interest rate remains the same, compared with variable rate cards where the rate is subject to change depending on the credit card issuer’s discretion. Fixed-rate cards usually carry higher interest rates.

Basically, credit card issuers offer three types of accounts with basic account agreements like the ‘revolving agreement’ also called the ‘Typical Credit Card Account’ which allows the user to pay either in full monthly or prefer to have partial payments based on the outstanding balance.

Whereas the ‘Charge Agreement’ requires the credit card users to repay the complete balance every month so that they don’t have to pay any interest charges. The Installment Agreement, however, asks the payer to sign a contract to repay a fixed amount of credit in equal payments over definite periods of time.

Another category of credit card account includes the individual and joint accounts where the former requires the individual alone to repay the debt and the latter requires the partners to pay together.

Now that you have some understanding of how many kinds of credit cards there exist, it is time to review your goals before applying for one. Some of the facts you should consider is how you will use the credit card. If you intend to carry a balance at the end of the month, how much are you want to pay in annual fees, if you have a strong credit history and if your credit in need of repair.

Once you have an understanding of what you are looking for, pick the right credit card for you by researching the information that will suit your needs. You may also review the credit cards you’ve checked out and compare them.

Are you shopping for a credit card? Regardless of the type of credit card you decide on, be sure to discuss your specific financial requirements with your financial advisor or accountant before applying for any credit card. It is a must that you understand the benefits of using a credit card like safety, valuable consumer protections under the law, support and the accessibility and availability of services.

Although having a credit card is perceived as being synonymous with financial security, this can also trigger a person’s thirst for material things and may lead to the temptation to buy something they don’t really want. A credit card bearer should always have in mind that having a credit card is a big responsibility. If they don’t use it carefully, these may owe more than they can repay. It can also damage their credit report, and create credit problems that are very difficult to repair.

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Looking At Different Walk-in Tubs

Posted in Home Improvement
by Bob Ranold

Many of us easily take for granted the easy everyday motions of life such as getting in and out of the bath tub. This is a task that for us who are young, do without even thinking twice and is accomplished with relative ease without thinking twice. While this is true for most of us, it is not always the case with a wide section of the population.

These are people that are just not able to enjoy this simple luxury mostly due to physical limitations such as rheumatoid arthritis and other ailments. These people are simply unable to get into the bath tub without some special assistance. Others may not necessarily be suffering from any inflammation but they have simply succumbed to old age. This class of people finds it excruciatingly painful to make even the smallest movements. One of the most common inflammation that causes a severe limitation in movement is arthritis. This is a disease that affects the joints and has mostly been associated with old age.

But not everyone is limited in movement simply because they are old. There are others who are not old at all but are physically hindered in one way or another. The have been born with a crippling birth defect that does not allow them to make graceful movements like the rest of us.

Then there are those who have become paralyzed because of birth, sickness or an accident and are now wheelchair-bound. The one thing in common all these people have is that they are unable to get in and out of the shower or bath tub without special assistance. Walk-in tubs and baths are the answer for this class of people. Before their advent, people with these disabilities had to be physically carried in and out of the shower or bath tub.

A walk-in tub is a regular-looking tub that has a built-in side door closely resembling that of a car. A disabled person who in other occasions has to be physically carried into the tub can now ease themselves into the tub. Because different types of physical ailments cause different movement limitations, there are different types and sizes of walk-in tubs and showers.

The most common and most popular in the market is the Safety Tubs which is designed to fit into just about any space. They come in the 603 long x 323 wide walk-in tub and baths for the best and biggest experience. They also come in regular size tubs which are 513 long x 303 wide. Then for bathrooms that would benefit from a tub taking up less space, you can find a 513 long x 263 wide walk-in bathtub.

Other than there being different walk-in tub sizes, there are also extension kits that ensure that the tub fits in a standard of regular space. These can come in a 20 inch width panel which fits perfectly between the end of the tub and the wall.

There are different types of walk-in tubs and baths. This is just as there are different ailments and physical limitations. The most basic tub is the walk-in shower or bath and is also the easiest to operate.

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Glass Shelves Are Can Transform Your Interior Design

Posted in Home Improvement
by Garry Shamn

Today is an era where a book is often judged by its cover. Whether or not there is enough substance with respect to a subject, it is necessary to present it in a special way. The same thing applies to the home we live in. This is why maintaining a living room becomes a necessity in today’s world. Your living room reflects the way your home is not to mention the way your life is as well. And so it becomes your responsibility to give it a nice look by maintaining it in a proper fashion. Evidently, this will be a tough job as there will be huge amounts of accessories, stationary, furniture, and decorative items that have to be arranged to make a living room look perfect. An instant solution to this problem could be to dump unnecessary stuff into garage or a store room and simplify the necessary stuff. And for those who wish to arrange and organize their accessories, there are wooden, plastic or glass shelves.

Any conventional resident of the house would prefer wooden shelves because they get along well with the rest of the furniture taking into account that most furniture is in general wooden. For example, wooden tables, wooden chairs, wooden stools. However, as we look for an improved sense of beauty and architectural expertise, it is observed that glass furniture is showing new paradigms to design homes better. Glass furniture is gaining a lot of momentum these days as it has been observed that glass makes the living room look exceptionally good. Let us know how.

The very evident reason to begin with, is that they are beautiful. They make the living room look beautiful to look at considering that we have been using wooden furniture for decades and glass furniture blended with the furniture exhibits creativity which appeals very much to any human eye. A mere glance through any interior design magazine clearly shows how popular glass designs and shelves have given 21st century architecture a new dimension.

Apart from looking beautiful and improving the appeal of the living room, glass also meets the need to be strong. Ordinary glass, as we might expect would be brittle and might break off easily. But the kind of glass which is generally used for furniture is actually a different kind of glass which is both beautiful as well as strong. The kind of glass used for shelves is called ‘tempered glass’. It is processed or rather, ‘annealed’ properly in order to meet our exact needs and this makes the glass less brittle. This means, when a glass of this kind breaks, it doesn’t explode into tiny pieces of glass which are both harmful and cumbersome to deal with. Instead, they remain as big pieces and stay intact without releasing minute glass particles, which could scatter around on the floor or into food and drinks and cause harm. And hence this kind of glass is strong enough and can take enough stress to hold the kind of heavy books, or decoration pieces which are common in a living room. With advanced architectural and structural techniques, glass shelves have been designed to be able to bear more and more strain. Some people go to the extent of placing music systems and heavier electronic appliances on these shelves and they can take that strain too.

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Wall Mounting A LCD TV Or Plasma TV

Posted in Home Improvement
by Dave Anderson

Electronic media has met a never before progress with modernistic contraptions and gizmos. From LCD and Plasma TV to handheld TV’s and iPod’s, the roll is never ceasing. Keeping in mind the place restraint and the design predilection wall mount televisions have began to become fashionable.

You do not need a TV base or a separate nook to position your large Television. All you necessitate is a plane wall where u can easily set up the TV like a frame. The pattern of these TV’s itself is exceedingly tasteful and exhilarating.

The wall mounts produce an additional look to the room and fronts fantastically posh and splendid and nowadays it has become a style statement and an unavoidable evil. Could we place the TV on our own? Or do we require technicians to do the problem?

Putting and positioning the TV is simple and with very few instrument and skill it can be finished quickly. Initially, determine the place where you want to position the LCD and then determine on how many inches of screen width you would demand. Several times, the wall place will be less and you may end up getting a bulkier size. So pick the precise size first and then set out to mount.

The monetary value range of such TV’s could change according to the size and make that you choose. So if you are closed to a budget purchase stay cognizant of the rates. Do a small research on the diverse brands and the accessible selections before deciding ultimately.

Once the TV is obtained adjust it in the wall roughly by labeling the lineation. Next secure the details where you will require to screw the TV. First, look over the TV and ascertain where the screws can land and subsequently label the suitable point on the wall outline. After that, handle the TV to the point and start tightening the screws. Have someone direct you with the arrangement. Oftentimes, it could angle to the left or the right. So situate warily and correctly.

A single individual can’t fix this and so the family contribution is essential. If that is difficult, simply employ a technician manage the chore in no time.

When you get the TV, the industry may offer to come and do it for you. You could also avail their services for the chore. Whatever the method, through it all, total amusement is what is ensured.

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Ready to Switch From Gas Cookers to Electric Cookers?

Posted in Home Improvement
by Rick Jarman

When it comes to cooking and baking appliances, many homes now use either electric cookers, gas cookers or coal. Some units especially those used by major restaurants actually do both. But we can comfortably say that in modern homes,electric cookers and gas cookers are the most widely used. In the United States, electric cookers are predominant in apartments, town homes and condominiums while gas cookers can be seen mostly in homes. There are however many exceptions to this rule. Coal is no longer widely used in homes because gas and electric cookers are faster, cleaner and safer. Coal is only used either outdoors or in less developed countries but this is also lessening in these countries.

There has been debate regarding which is better; the electric cooker or the gas cooker. The gas cooker is more or less preferred by professional chefs because they feel that it is easier to regulate the flame of the burner and thereby cook better food than if they were using electric cookers. Gas cookers are freestanding stove/ovens which have a burner which can be ignited by a match or a lighter. A gas lighter pumps a gentle stream of gas onto the burner and this can also be regulated using a series of control knobs or buttons on the stove.

In many countries, there are two ways to get the gas to the burner. In developing countries the stoves can be purchased as a freestanding unit which is complete but minus the gas. Then there is a place where the gas cylinder can be inserted and its nose attached to a faucet which then propels the gas to the burner. The stove will then function as perfectly as any other as long as the gas cylinder has gas. This types of stoves are still very much in use in the Third World but in the First World, they are more or less used either backyard barbecue purposes or for outdoor picnics. In the developed world, there is an intricate network of pipes that runs under most homes much in the same way as water pipes run. Gas is then pumped through these pipes by a gas utility company much the same way as electricity is transmitted or water is pumped. This means that if the customer does not come good on his or her bill then the gas company can actually turn off the gas just the same way as the electric company would turn off the power.

Electric cookers rely solely on electricity. They are easy to operate and cheap to buy. They are also considered safer by many people. This is because when it comes to gas, it is very easy to accidentally turn on the gas without cooking. Gas is highly flammable and there have been numerous accidents associated with gas fires and explosions in recent times. There is no such danger with electric cookers If someone accidentally leaves the cooker on, the coils or surfaces will only get hot but there is little risk of a fire.

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The Amount of Electricity Generated by Wind Turbines

Posted in Home Improvement
by John Ashbury

Wind powered systems generate electricity that is garnered from the wind. The amount of energy that is generated will depend on factors such as the wind itself, the type of generator that you use, what the energy that is generated is used for, etc. These factors need to be considered when you decide to use wind turbines.

With the amount of damage done to the environment becoming more and more evident and impacting our lives in ever greater ways, many people are trying different ways that do not harm the environment. People use many different ways of generating power. We burn coal, petroleum, and propane but there are other ways that do not negatively impact upon the environment, namely solar energy and wind power. Because the wind is a very cost efficient way of generating electricity, more and more countries around the world are using it for their energy needs.

Wind generating systems depend on one primary factor that will not provide any energy unless you have it. This factor is the wind. There is no guarantee every day that the wind will blow. The more the wind blows throughout the days the more energy that can be created and stored in the system. You cannot have a wind powered system without the wind blowing. This means that you cannot rely on this type of energy by itself but it may be an excellent supplement. However, there are places that you may rely on this type of energy if the wind blows often and the energy consumed is not a large amount of energy.

Another factor that wind energy relies upon is the generator that is used for the system. Generators actually vary in size and the amount of energy that they have the ability to store. The larger the generator is the more energy that can be stored for use. Smaller generators don’t provide a lot of energy.

Kinetic powered watches are a good example. Inside is a small generator that is able to store small amounts of energy. Because watches are small they do not require much energy to operate. These watches rely on the movement of your arm but if your arm is not moving much not much energy will be stored and the watch will not function properly. Eventually it will run out of energy and cease to function at all.

The power that the energy is used for is usually a defining factor how much energy is provided through a wind generated system. In most cases, it is said that people should expect that they can reduce their dependency on other electricity resources by approximately 20% when using a wind generating systems. If the energy is used for a household the amount of energy can be expected to lower the energy dependence of a traditional electricity bill.

These factors that influence the amount of electricity that is generated through wind powered systems must be taken into account when you decide to “go green”.

When it comes to sourcing electricity wind energy is a great way to go. It is totally harmless to the environment and saves you money each and every month. It makes ecological and financial sense to install one on your property.

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How Do You Correctly Report a Car Accident for Insurance?

Posted in Personal Finance
by Graham McKenzie

Every driver at some time or the other gets involved into some type of car accident. It’s essential to be let the other vehicle driver know your details so that they can contact you later. If you just drive away from the spot after an accident, although it is small, it is considered as a hit and run case. It might be that you hit a car when there is no one inside, still it is necessary to leave behind your details so they can get in touch with you. On the other hand, if the accident is of a serious nature, then your first priority should be to get someone inform the incident at 911.

The foremost step, which almost everyone forgets in such a case, is to not confess fault. Although the accident was caused due to your mistake, you must not admit it immediately in front of the other person. This is so because even if afterwards it is found that the fault was not yours, still you may be forced to pay the bills as you had earlier admitted it. Do not loose your calm and manage the condition in an organized way so that there is not much fuss created.

Immediately exchange your insurance information with the car?s driver. Make certain that you provide all details like phone numbers, names, and addresses so that both parties can contact each other. This is the reason why it is essential to always carry your insurance proof in the car. In case you carry them with you, then you might have to give it to the other party afterwards.

If everyone is willing to wait you can call your claims representative to come and access the damage. Sometimes this isn?t possible, but you should call them as soon as you have a chance. Your claims representative will take pictures if you are still around, fill out your claims form, talk to all of the parties involved with the crash, and even talk to some of the people who saw the accident.

You must also remember to take some shots of the damage and the nearby area before the vehicles are moved aside. This is quite convenient these days with most people having camera mobile phones. So, take good pictures that clearly tell the damage done to both party cars, and also take other pictures that may help in reporting the accident.

After you have made a call to your claims representative, clicked pictures, and taken each other?s contact information, you may usually leave the spot. In most cases, a police officer arrives by this time to assist in clearing up the mess and getting your vehicles removed from spot by tow trucks. Sometimes when the crash is not so serious, tow trucks may not be required at all. Also it may take weeks or months to get your insurance money, so you may have to bear the initial repair charges yourself.

The fund you receive is decided by the lowest fixing quote provided to the insurance company. If they total your car then you will get the ?blue book value? for your vehicle. The ?blue book value? is your car?s standard price set after taking into account the age, state, and model of the car. If you had made any alterations in your car, then you will not be paid for that.

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Species Of Chestnut

Posted in Home Improvement
by Thomas Fryd

Chestnut Tree

Local business man sampled his first Chinese chestnut at a produce dealers booth. He purchased 5 pounds and said, “I am buying these for my father. He never got over the loss of the native chestnut and these are the first Ive found with the oldtime flavor.”

This incident probably better illustrates the nostalgia of an old man rather than the worth of the Chinese chestnut but it does give an appraisal of its flavor by one who knows.

The destruction of the American chestnut, Castanea dentata, by an oriental chestnut bark disease is an old story that need not be repeated here for this article deals with two species which can be grown in this country in spite of the blight.

These two exotic species which are now also being crossed with the native chestnut to develop new varieties are the Chinese Castanea mollissima and the Japanese Castanea crenata. Both have a high degree of resistance to the blight having been exposed to it for unknown centuries in their native lands.

My own personal experience with these began about 1928 when I secured a small quantity of seed from the government planting at Glen Dale, Maryland. My efforts have been in the direction of nut production rather than timber as this seemed to offer more promise of immediate reward.

Practically the first thing I learned about chestnuts was that the species cross-pollenize and hybridize about as readily as pop corn with field corn. The offspring of that seed were an interesting lot of hybrids.

One bore nuts the third year; another, very vigorous, never bore more than a few nuts and those only after many years; a vigorous, upright tree ripened large, glossy nuts in August; a small, shrubby specimen insisted on blooming from June to frost, setting abundant clusters of burs that produced very small nuts. This was probably a hybrid of the Chinese chinkapin, C. seguini. Thus, I learned the importance of planting pure strains.

Both the Chinese and Japanese chestnuts are trees of moderate growth and size but more spreading than the American species. Neither is as winter-hardy as the American. Both will grow wherever peaches are hardy.

Neither is particular as to soil as long as it is reasonably fertile and well drained. As a safeguard against late spring frosts, air drainage is important but on the whole, the climate, soil, site and culture suitable for peaches suits the oriental chestnuts fine.

With me, the Japanese has been more precocious and prolific and has generally produced larger nuts. Select strains developed in Japan have nuts more than 2 inches across”the largest known. In contrast to the select strains, seed of a shrubby wild chestnut I imported from Japan produced very small nuts with some plants maturing nuts when only knee high and 18 months old. The Chinese, however, has proven to be the more vigorous and blight resistant of the two and to have higher quality nuts.

At the present time, the Chinese species is considered to be the more desirable for both home and commercial plantings. In the South the trees grow more rapidly and are larger than in the North and so should be planted spaced not less than 40 feet apart.

Seedling trees vary widely in precocity, productiveness and size and quality of nuts. Under favorable conditions of culture, seedlings of good parentage have been known to produce an average of 40 pounds of nuts per tree at ten years from setting. Select trees, in some cases, have produced more than twice that amount.

Out of the thousands of seedling trees distributed by the Department of Agriculture and set out in small plantings throughout the eastern part of the United States, some selections have been made and a few have been given variety names and are being propagated by grafting and budding.

Among the named varieties selected from government plots are Meiling, Kuling and Nanking. Those selected from private plantings are Abundance, Hemming and Hobson. These may be expected to be superior to average seedlings in productiveness, early bearing and size and quality of nuts.

Under good conditions Chinese chestnuts are very regular bearers. Hobson, a medium sized nut of good quality, usually bears for me the second year after grafting if left undisturbed in the nursery row. A tree on my home grounds, top-worked in 1932 to the Hobson variety, has borne 16 consecutive crops. A nearby tree of the same age, of the Carr variety, however, has failed twice during the same period due to late spring frosts.

A tree usually ripens its crop in about one week but individual differences in trees extend the harvesting period over a month or more. In Georgia, harvest begins in August. In the north, it may extend to October.

Ripe nuts generally fall free from the spiny burs. Those of the Chinese species average somewhat larger than those of the American but not as large as the European and Japanese. Color varies from a bright mahogany red to a dull gray or brown.

With all the chestnuts the kernel is covered with a skin or pellicle which carries a bitter and indigestible substance known as tannin. In the American and Japanese chestnut this pellicle adheres closely to the kernel and is very difficult to remove.

In the best selection of the Chinese, however, the pellicle separates freely from the kernel leaving it clean, bright and free from bitterness. This characteristic, coupled with the sweetness and texture equal to the American species, makes the Chinese the best of all chestnuts for culinary purposes.

Today prospective chestnut planters have little to fear from blight. Ten years ago, I had a Hobson, Carr and a number of seedling trees tested for blight resistance by having cultures of Endothia parasitica, prepared by the U. S. Division of Forest Pathology, injected beneath the bark. No infection resulted except in a few seedlings. Most of those infected recovered”only one or two died.

The other great pest of theAmerican chestnut was the weevil that infested the nuts soon after they ripened. Where present, this weevil also attacks the Chinese species. Almost perfect control of this pest has been achieved, however, by thorough spraying of bearing trees. Spraying should begin six weeks before the ripening of the earliest nuts and be continued at two week intervals until harvest.

The only hazard commercial growers have to face is competition offered by the European species. But since in the East, the home grown crops can be placed on the market a month ahead of the European whether grown abroad or on the Pacific coast, there is little to fear from such competition.

This is attested to by the fact that local dealers eagerly took my crop at the wholesale price of 35 cents a pound. Later, in November, European chestnuts were being offered on the local market at 20 cents a pound retail!

Moreover, the chestnut blight has invaded Italy and threatens all of Europe. Castanea sativa, the European species, is fully as susceptible to the blight as was the American. Whatever the outcome, it would seem as if importation of European chestnuts faces curtailment in the coming years.

As an orchard crop the Chinese chestnut undoubtedly has a future in this country though it must be admitted that it is still in the Johnny Appleseed stage. Some commercial plantings have been made in Georgia and a few as far north as Erie, Pennsylvania, where the lake somewhat tempers the winter climate.

Many general nurseries are now offering seedling trees like flowering fruit trees although named varieties of grafted trees are, as yet, available only in limited quantities from nurseries specializing in nut trees.

As more are made available, the home owner will get them. Wherever the peach survives the winter, he can enjoy his own fruitful “spreading chestnut tree” within a few years from planting. He will probably have two or more for chestnuts are self-sterile and more than one seedling is needed for cross pollination.

With plenty of room and left to itself, the Chinese chestnut assumes something of the size and form of a large apple tree and is as inviting to children to climb in. It makes a pleasing shade tree that is very decorative on the home grounds. It is lovely in late spring when the feathery tassels of blossoms appear, beautiful all summer and interesting in fall when loaded with burs.

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