HORTICULTURAL BULLETINS. 289 



GRAPES (Vitis). 



The number of varieties of grape now growing upon the Station premises is o"ne 

 hundred and sixty-seven. 



Last spring proved unfortunate for the grape. The earlier part of May was 

 rather mild, though with occasional paroxysms of cold, dangerously near the freez- 

 ing point. Yet the young grape wood had made satisfactory growth, and in most 

 cases the incipient clusters were already formed when, after several threatenlngs, 

 a severe frost occurred during the night of May 21 and 22, killing nearly the entire 

 new foliage and wood, and thus ruining the prospect of a season's crop of fruit. 



The v.'avni weather which followed, however, soon forced new gi'owth from dor- 

 mant buds, while more or less of the older buds upon the new canes proved to be 

 so far uninjured that they finally burst into growth. It soon became obvious that 

 so many young canes were being started that at least very many were liliely to be 

 too weals to become satisfactory fruiting canes for next season. 



To at least partially escape'this danger, a large portion of the wealier canes was 

 pruned away, the result being the increased growth of those remaining. Still, it 

 seems possible, if not even probable, that a still better result might have been se- 

 cured by at once removing all the frosted young wood. 



While this subsequent growth has produced a small crop of secondary clusters, 

 which a very favorable summer and autumn has ripened fairly well, its amount 

 will scarcely be claimed to have exceeded one tenth, pei'chance not above one 

 twentieth, of a full crop. 



Aside from this, the relative dates of ripening, as well as the comparative pro- 

 ductiveness, are, as an unavoidable result, so seriously disarranged that any at- 

 tempt to tabulate them seems likely to prove rather misleading than beneficial. 

 This, therefore, is omitted for the present season. 



PLUMS iPrunus). 



The plums upon the station grounds, both trees and fruit, have been notably 

 exempt from attacks of fungi during the year. 



Among insects, the curculio has been present as usual, also the rose chafer, the 

 latter perhaps in somewhat reduced numbers. The cherry slug, though attacking 

 the cherry, pear, and quince, has not been observed upon the plum this season. 



The spray of copper sulphate applied while growth was yet dormant, included 

 the plums. No subsequent applications were found to be needful. 



May 29, the crescent mark of the curculio beginning to appear upon the young 

 fruits, jarring was commenced, and was continued daily with only occasional inter- 

 missions until June 29, when the insects had become so rare that it seemed no 

 longer needful. 



The same process was adopted against the rose chafer, its season being mainly 

 coincident with that of the curculio, although more or less hand-picking was found 

 to be necessary in the case of the chafer. 



Plums bloomed from the 1st to the 6th of May, and the young fruits were there- 

 fore yet enclosed in the remains of the calyx during the frost of the 21st and 22d, 

 which was probably the reason why they escaped the calamity which befell the 

 grapes on that occasion. 



The bloom of many varieties was very profuse, notably that of most of the Jap- 

 anese varieties, some of which, although hand-thinned while yet small, were still 

 so borne down by the weight of the fruit when fully grown, that more or less of 

 them were broken, although carefully supported. 



Several of the more heavily laden trees were given a thorough drenching with 

 water to enable thm to carry through and properly mature their heavy burdens 

 of fruit during the heat and unprecedented drouth then occurring. This was done 

 by forming a trench about the tree, filling it with water, and replacing the earth 

 after the water had been absorbed. This process was repeated once or twice per 

 week while the necessity continued. 

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