.32 Mississippi Valley Horticultural Society. 



2. Those who have such an inherent love of the old that they would not give 

 you a fig for anything better than used to grow on the borders, or in one 

 corner of their good mother's garden; 3. Those who hold fast to all that are 

 good of the old, while tliey cautiously test those of the new claiming supe- 

 rior merits. During the past ten years we have tested on our grounds 

 about forty varieties, covering many of the old and well tested standards, and 

 such of the new as seemed to give greatest promise; and while we are free to 

 say that among the new there are to be fouud many charming and valuable 

 acfjuisitions, we are equally free to say that, up to the present time, we have 

 found no single variety to be trusted so implicitly as Wilson's Albany, and to 

 admit that any other variety yet fully tested deserves to be classed as its rival, 

 is to ignore all the facts that have come under our observation, as well as all 

 that can be gathered from other sources. The great ease and facility with 

 which it adapts itself to latitudes, soils and seasons is wonderful. Wherever 

 •other varieties do well, as a rule it does better. Where have we, or where 

 can we find another single variety that has stood the test so long, that has 

 fought and won so many battles, and to-day, after a test of nearly thirty 

 years, with the whole list of new and old, stands grandly and far in the lead 

 of all, with the distinguished position of furnishing nearly, or quite three- 

 fourths of all the strawberries grown and consumed in the United States ? 

 No parallel like it can be found in a single variety in any other department 

 of fruit growing. 



As we remarked in a former paper on this subject, " banish it from our 

 lists and culture and you remove the 'beacon-light' that lures us on to the 

 ;goal of success and noble daring in strawberry culture." When allowed to 

 iuUy mature on our Southern soils, where the saccharine elements are more 

 liberally developed in all our fruits than in higher latitudes, its proverbial 

 acidity is so blended with the sweet that it deserves high rank as a home and 

 local berry. 



Next in rank as a commercial berry, we give the place to Newman or 

 •Charlestown. It is a hardy plant, a profuse bearer, and fir.st-class shipper. It 

 has, however, the serious drawback of making too many new plants and 

 sending out too large a percentage of its unprotected fruit buds in the early 

 •part of the season when liable to be killed by spring frosts. When not dam- 

 aged by frosts, it gives more early fruit than the Wilson, but fails in good 

 fruit much sooner. After a few heavy pickings, the berries are too small. 

 On the lower Atlantic coast, we understand, it is liked better and grown 

 more liberally than Wilson ; we believe it will increase in popularity in local- 

 ities bordering on the Gulf coast. 



Charles Downing, during the past few years, has steadily and justly gained 

 in public favor, and is now grown more generally for home and local use 

 than any other of its class. It seems to possess in a larger degree all the ele- 

 ments that give success to both plant and fruit than any other of the larger 

 and more tender varieties. While in this latitude it is not a profuse plant- 

 maker, it gives sufficient supply for increased culture. It bears large, regu- 



