HORTICULTURE. 369 



handling apples in the orchard. Relative to the storage of apples in cellars, the author 

 states that it has been found that the apples kept much better if stored in bulk in the 

 cellar than if put into barrels, and the larger the bins and more apples that are put 

 together the better they keep. The author has never had apples, even Greenings, 

 scald when stored in bulk in large bins. Apples which are intended for barreling 

 and immediate shipment are barreled as rapidly as picked, instead of being allowed 

 to lie and sweat, as was at one time thought desirable. 



Keeping- quality of apples, F. H. Hall {New York stats Sta. Bui. 248, popular 

 ed., pp. 11). — This is a popular edition of Xew York State Station Bulletin 248, by S. 

 A. Beach and V. A. Clark, on Xew York apples in storage, previously noted (E. S. R., 

 16, p. 50). 



A horticultural freak {Orange Judd Farmer, 37 {1904), No. 16, p. 359, fig. 1; 

 Amer. Agr., 74 {1904), No. 16, p. 324, fig- !)■ — This is a discussion of the merits of 

 the seedless apple, an illustration of which is given showing a cross section. It is 

 pointed out that while a certain class of apples may be seedless, they contain the usual 

 "core" or carpels. This class of apples, while they have long been known, have not 

 been disseminated to any extent, largely on account of their poor quality. 



The claim that these apples are bloomless relates only to the petals; stamens ami 

 pistils are present, and are just as liable to injury by late spring frost as are blossoms 

 with petals. The blossom end of the apple, instead of being closed, is more or less 

 open, and this opening extends a considerable distance toward the center of the fruit. 



Fruit growers are cautioned against paying fancy prices for seedless apple stock, for 

 at present there is nothing to warrant planting them, in a commercial way at least. 



The western sand cherry, N. E. Hansen {South Dakota Sta. Bui. 87, pp. 64, pis. 

 20). — The sand cherry, Prunus besseyi, is a native northwestern prairie fruit which is 

 being cultivated on an extensive scale at the station for the purpose of meeting the 

 demand for a hardy cherry or a satisfactory substitute for it. It is a small fruit and 

 not an orchard fruit, the plants varying from 1 to 4 ft. in height. In cultivation it 

 is recommended that the plants be set 3 ft. apart in rows 6 ft. apart. The plant 

 is perfectly hardy throughout the Northwest. The wild fruit is exceedingly variable 

 in size and quality, but all of it is acceptable for culinary uses. Up to 1903 the author 

 had grown 47,397 sand cherry seedlings. Of this number 31,897 were selected for 

 fruiting and for use as stocks, and from these over 100 varieties have been selected 

 and are now under propagation for preliminary trial. 



"Some of these bear fruit from f to § of an inch in diameter, and of quality accept- 

 able for eating out of hand. It hybridizes readily with several other members of the 

 genus. The fruiting of our numerous hybrids with Japanese plums, native plums, 

 Prunus sirnoni, peaches, nectarines, cherries, and other species is awaited with inter- 

 est. Some of these hybrids are combinations of at least three species. 



"Seedlings fruit well the third year, and under favorable circumstances the second 

 year from seed. When worked on strong native plum {Prunus americana) stocks, 

 fruit is borne in abundance upon shoots one year old from the bud or graft. The 

 species responds readily to cultivation. . . . The third generation is decidedly more 

 variable than the first. 



"The fruit averages larger when the sand cherries are budded on native plum 

 stocks. ... It also appears probable that when grown on native plum stocks sand 

 cherries bear better on heavy soils than when on own roots. The plants are remark- 

 ably productive when young or on young shoots, but for older plants some system 

 of renewal pruning may be advisable. This species deserves special attention as a 

 dwarf stock for peaches, apricots, Japanese and native plums. Tame cherries unite 

 with difficulty. The past three seasons peaches of normal size have been raised at 

 this station from trees on sand-cherry stocks. These were trees grown in pots, tubs, 

 and boxes, wintered in a cool cellar, and fruited under glass. For orchard purposes 



11584— No. 4—04 5 



