THE GRAPES OF NEW YORK. 57 



bilities in his Vine Dresser's Guide} In 1S30, Prince discussed the whole 

 matter and gave specific directions for hybridizing.- Indeed it is not 

 unlikely that Prince, who says he grew ten thousand seedling plants "from 

 an admixture under every variety of circumstance" grew the first such 

 hybrid but we have nothing more definite as to this than the above 

 statement. 



In 1854, two years following its report of E. W. Bull's 'new seedling," 

 the Concord, the Massachusetts Horticultural Society showed in its exhibits 

 another grape scarcely less worthy of note than the Concord. It was a 

 hybrid between the Golden Chasselas and the Isabella produced by John 

 Fisk x\llen of Salem, Massachusetts. The new variety, the Allen's Hybrid, 

 mentioned in a preceding paragraph, had some intrinsic value but, of more 

 importance, was the first introduction of its kind and started similar work 

 which gave us many interesting and some valuable grapes. 



uncultivated nature that we are to obtain vines worthy of cultivation. Were this the case, Europe 

 would to the present have known no other Malus than the worthless austere crab, in place of the 

 finest apple; no other Pyrus than the acerb and inedible Pyraster or stone Pear, from which cultiva- 

 tion has obtained all the other varieties. It is from seed that new and valuable varieties are invariably 

 to be obtained. There is however at the present time, a variety of one of the native species cultivated 

 under the name of ' Bland's grape ', a hybrid no way in my opinion inferior to some of the best 

 European grapes." 



' " People who have a good deal of leisure time, ought to make those experiments which take 

 many years to know the result. If any where in the United States a public Botanic garden should 

 be established, there would be the proper place, to have a corner of it appropriated solely for the 

 purpose of trying the raising of new species of grapes, either by seeds or grafts; and if there was a 

 green or hot house, several species of the best grapes, and even a male plant of the most vigorous 

 indigenous ought to be introduced in it, and trained so that the crossing of the breed may be easily 

 done, by bringing two different sorts of grapes together in time of blossoming, and sow the seeds. 

 I think we may anticipate some very good results from such an arrangement." Vine Dresser's 

 Guide: 228. 1826. 



^ Of hybridization he says: " In all attempts at artificial fecundation, I would recommend 

 that one of the varieties selected be of native origin, as there exists no want of hybrids between 

 European varieties alone; a large proportion of those now in cultivation having been doubtless pro- 

 duced by natural admixture of the pollen, in the vineyards where they originated. For the purpose 

 of hybridizing, the varieties of Vitis aestivalis should be selected in preference to those of Vitis 

 labrusca, on account of the much higher vinous properties of the former; and there cannot exist a 

 doubt but that we may readily produce well acclimated hybrids between the native and foreign 

 varieties, without the trouble of continuing the course of reproduction for many generations, although 

 such reproduction from species so dissimilar may continue to present additional modifications of 

 character." A Treatise on the Vine: 253-254. 1S30. 



