Annnal Meeting at St. Josepli. 197 



I had specimens, that measured a foot around. Keas Mammoth, 

 as well as Champion I have on trial, but am not yet prepared to 

 express my opinion as to their value. I fork in all the bones I 

 can get hold of, as well as a good supply of lime and salt. I have 

 also found that soap suds are excellent for them. The Quince 

 deserves more attention, than it generally gets, because it is one of 

 our finest and best paying fruits we have. I think it is best to 

 plant near the house, where they can be watered with soap suds. 

 Mine are growing in the bush form, but what I plant after these, I 

 shall train in some shape with a central stem, if I have to tie them 

 up. Leading horticulturists of Europe ( Wm. Loebe of Leipzig 

 and others ) recommend to graft them on the pear some five or six 

 feet from the ground. But as the Angers Quince is the only one 

 that forms a perfect union with the pear tliat will last, they would 

 have to be double worked m ray opinion. 



Peaches — I have nearly all of the leading varieties besides 

 many new ones. My trees had a very severe pruning last spring, 

 which I think saved a good many of them, as they certainly were 

 injured to a great extent last winter. They look very promising at 

 present. My experience is, that lime and wood ashes are the 

 best manure for them and they will not flourish on too rich nor too 

 wet soil. I am training Heath on the north side of a building as a 

 square espalier, thinking it can be protected in that way. I al&o 

 ■expect to protect a few trees by putting a shock of fodder around 

 them : the trees were trained for that purpose. 



Plums — I have Wild Goose, Prince Imperial and a few others 

 fruiting, but find they draw too many curculio to suit me. I think 

 that I will have to make war against the little rebels, or we have no 

 plums. I have some Wild Goose that I have grafted on small peach 

 trees underground, and they are doing fine. Lombard, Bradshaw, 

 Yellow Egg, Washington, German Prune have not fruited yet, 

 and I could not say much about them at present. 



Cherries — Early Richmond and May Duke are my best. Reine 

 Hortense, does also fine. Black Tartarian and Governor Wood are 

 making fine growth and I think will fruit some next year. 



Apricot. — My experience is that they are too tender to grow 

 them in the common way, and agree with Mr. Stark that, as he 

 says, "it is a favorite tree for growing on trellis," and no fruit 

 garden is complete without it ; can easily be protected with mats. 

 That is the way I am training mine, except the Russian, which I 

 have on the peach, it made fine growth last summer. That is all I 

 could say about it at present. 



