RUSSIAN AND OTHER FRUITS. ^ 315 



reached, since it may be fairly assumed that their surroundings here of cli- 

 mate and soil can not be completely identical with those yvhence they were 

 taken; and, if so, that new characteristics, only to be acquired through repro- 

 duction and selection, are likely to b^ found needful for their proper adap- 

 tation to the new surroundings. 



Viewed even in this light, the labors of Messrs. Budd and Gibb must be 

 deemed to be of great value to the pomology of the north, since even should 

 these introductions fail to realize the sanguine hopes of the introducers, tht^y 

 will surely afford the foundation, otherwise wanting,' upon which the more 

 certainly and rapidly to build a satisfactory superstructure in a nearer future. 



THE APPLE. 



The apple of Europe and America {Pyrus mnlus) was introduced in North 

 America from Europe by the early settlers. It is believed to have sprung 

 from the wild crab of Europe, and was extensively cultivated by the Romans, 

 who are supposed to have introduced it into England, whence it was brought 

 to this country. The Siberian crab {Pyrus haccata), in various improved 

 forms, is more or less common in this country, especially in regions in which 

 superior hardiness is requisite. A kindred species, known botanically as 

 Pyrus pruni folia, is also a native of Siberia. .China also has an allied 

 specif s, known as Pyrus spedabilis. 



Our wild and uneatable native crab {Pyrus coronaria) is common in the 

 northern United States, and a species known as Pyrus rivularis occurs west 

 of the Rocky Mountains. The dwarf, or Paradise apple, used mainly as a. 

 stock for dwarfing the apple, is considered to be a avariety of the common 

 apple. 



1. In treating the subject with more especial reference to the apple, it 

 appears more convenient to consider the region in question as divided into 

 district?. In so doing it seems proper to commence at the east, designating 

 northern Xew York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine as the northeast- 

 ern district. 



While the Champlain valley is found to be more congenial to fruit culture 

 that most other regions in that latitude and vicinity, the favored location is 

 of but limited extent. Throughout northern New York, Vermont, and New 

 Hampshire generally the climate is quite too severe for the great mass of 

 popular apples, fameuse here being one of the most satisfactory of such, 

 although even this is by no means exempt from occasional injury in winter, 

 while its tendency to scab and crack is a serious drawback upon its useful- 

 ness. There is in this northern region an apparent improvement in the 

 texture and glossiness of its foliage, which may be supposed to the more per- 

 fectly adapt it to a dry climate, as well as to increase its ability to fully mature 

 its wood in preparation for the occasionally exceptional severity of winter. 

 Even with such preparation, however, it occasionally fails to withstand the 

 trials of a crucial winter, and for these reasons there is here as elsewhere an 

 anxious casting about for a hcped-for substitute. 



Several recent varieties have been tested by Dr. T. H. Iloskins, of New- 

 port, Vermont, and others, among which Scott's Winter, at present, is 

 thought to be the most promising, at least for the region in question. 



The importations by the Agricultural Department at Washington, and 

 the more recent ones by the Agricultural College of Iowa, have been wttchedi. 



