518 



CINCINNATI STRAWBERRY REPORT. 



unlettered market gardener, but a practical 

 observing- man, discovered* the important 

 fact, that, while in some plants the flowers 

 are apparently perfect in both sets of or- 

 gans, one set is really defective, to a great- 

 er or less extent ; and in others, the flowers 

 which we style pistillate, have the stamens 

 so imperfectly developed as entirely to elude 

 a casual observation, and only to be disco- 

 vered to a critical observer ; and then, in 

 most instances, found to be wholly abortive. 



" 5. That no pistillate plant will bear a 

 perfect fruit if kept entirely apart from 

 staminate varieties. 



" 6. That no staminate plants, which we 

 have yet seen, can be depended upon by 

 the cultivator as heavy bearers ; though, 

 from some unknown causes, the pistils may 

 be so well developed as to be followed by 

 a good crop, in some years, and in some 

 situations. 



" 7. That there is no such thing known 

 to us as a perfect flowered strawberry plant, 

 in which the blossoms will all be 2inifornily 

 so well provided with both sets of organs 

 as to be followed by perfect fruit every 

 year. 



" 8. That the only method of producing 

 this delicious fruit, with anj'' degree of cer- 

 tainty as to the result, is that now adopted 

 by our intelligent cultivators, namely, — to 

 set out plants of both the sexual classes; 

 the relative proportions of which to be de- 

 termined by experience, selecting such pis- 

 tillate kinds as may prove of good size and 

 flavor, and only so many staminates as may 

 be necessary for impregnation. 



" 9. That the runners from a strawberry 

 plant are as integral portions of itself, as the 

 branches and buds of a tree ; and therefore 

 we may always propagate any variety by 



* We say discovered, because we are unable to learn that 

 Mr. AasiGUsT ever heard of Mr. Keese, or Mr. Duchesne, 

 or that he was at all in the way of reading anything upon the 

 subject. 



this means, with as much certainty as we 

 perpetuate any variety of apple or other fruit 

 by grafting or inoculating." 



The foregoing, we say, is the pith of the 

 report, and is already familiar to the coun- 

 try at large, both by the numerous articles 

 published on the subject by Mr. Longworth, 

 and others, and still more by the now wide- 

 ly extended reputation of the most abun- 

 dant and excellent crops of strawberries, 

 with which the Cincinnati market is annu- 

 ally supplied, by following this course of 

 culture. 



We have already stated in this journal, 

 that whatever may have been our doubts, 

 originally, as to the practical results of the 

 Cincinnati mode, tliRt is, in planting mainl}'' 

 pistillate sorts, with only about a fourth 

 staminates to fertilize them, we have, after 

 a fair trial, no longer any doubts upon the 

 subject. 



It is, we believe, m this cliviate, the only 

 mode which can he depended on for obtain- 

 ing every season a heavy crop of the large- 

 fruited strawberries. We have, therefore, 

 recommended it repeatedly of late in this 

 journal, and have just re-written that por- 

 tion of the eighth edition of our work on 

 Fruits, in which a contrary ground was 

 taken ; adding, also, to the description of 

 the varieties in that work the characters- — 

 pistillate, or staminate, — to designate their 

 habits to the cultivator. 



We say, in this climate ; for it should be 

 added, that though the Cincinnati mode re- 

 pudiates many of the large pine strawber- 

 ries, such as Keen's Seedling, as plants not 

 to be relied upon for regular crops, yet they 

 very wisely add — " that from some unknown 

 causes, the pistils may he so well developed as 

 to give a good crop, some years, and in some 

 situations.'" 



Now this is perfectly true ; and it also 

 explains what seems to be the stumbling 



