1877.] 



AND HOBTIGULTURIST. 



173 



grape for the million. It must be admitted that 

 this grape is not so early as some others, but its 

 hardiness and vigorous habit, its large bunch and 

 berry have rendered it a general favorite. What 

 we need at the North, is a grape as early as the 

 Hartford, as good as the Delaware, and as vigor- 

 ous and productive as the Concord. When such 

 a grape appears, then will northern fruit-growers 

 be ready to invest largely in it for profit, and 

 then our tables and the market will be supplied 

 with better fruit. We are anxiously waiting for 

 the appearance of such a grape, and we expect it 

 will some day make its advent, for great has been 

 the improvement from the native grape to the 

 delicious Delaware ; and why may we not expect 

 still greater improvement, and that in time a 

 grape will be produced that will ripen at the 

 North even in such frosty and unfavorabl e seasons 

 as 1875. 



APRICOTS IN BOSTON. 



BY J. C, CHELSEA, MASS. 



In an Editorial in a late number of the 

 Monthly, it was stated on the authority of E. S. 

 Rand, Esq., that among other fruits in our mar- 

 kets, there were Apricots in abundance last sea- 

 son. I am safe in saying that few of New Eng- 

 land growth has been shown on the tables of the 

 Mass. Hort. Society, except by myself two years 

 ago — the mistake being that the great abundance 

 was from California, and good for little when they 

 arrived here. We cannot brag of large quanti- 

 ties of that fine fruit here. 



THE BIRKETT PEAR. 



BY W. 



This variety comes from a little scion produced 

 from an unknown source by the late John Bir- 

 kett, and grafted in an apple root the Spring of 

 1826, in Peoria, 111. The original tree still lives 

 at the old Birkett homestead, and has borne im- 

 mense quantities of pears during the last forty 

 years, never missing a season. 



It has never shown the least indication of 

 blights of any kind, and has withstood all the 

 severe Winters since the country was settled. 

 Young trees of it, one to three years old, with- 

 stood the severe Winter of 1872 and 1873 per- 

 fectly, or as well as the hardiest of the Siberian 

 Crabs, and all the old trees bore a fine crop of 

 fruit the succeeding Summer. There are two 

 trees, propagated from the old tree, growing near 



Washington, Tazewell Co., 111., now forty years 

 old. The largest of these two trees, belonging to 

 Wm. Birkett, is one of the finest specimens of 

 tree growth in the West. Mr. Birkett says 

 of it :— 



" My tree of the Birkett Pear has always been 

 free from blight, and has never been injured by 

 cold. It is six feet and three inches in circum- 

 ference two feet from the ground, thirty-nine feet 

 in height, with forty feet spread of branches. 

 The fruit is of medium size, of fair quality, and 

 excellent for baking, canning, and preserving. 

 My books show that I have sold from this one 

 tree, in Peoria market, along with my dairy 

 products, at wholesale during the last eight 

 years, an average of $45 per year, besides what 

 was used at home. I have lio Birkett trees for 

 sale, and have sold all my scions to the Lacon 

 Nursery for the next five years. 



" William Birkett." 



Mr. Birkett has a thorough personal know- 

 ledge of the three original trees, and so have we, 

 and we have no hesitancy in recommending it 

 to the people of the Northwest as a pear that 

 will grow in every reasonable situation, remain 

 healthy, and bear pears. It will prove of the 

 very greatest value for top-grafting some of our 

 hardiest, healthiest and choicest pears upon. 

 Give the pear one more trial by planting this 

 " iron-clad " variety. It will also be found of 

 great value to plant for purposes that shade and 

 ornamental trees are planted for. Its great vigor 

 and complete health, even without taking into 

 consideration its fruit, makes it one of the most 

 valuable of trees, and at the end we have a tim- 

 ber of the most valuable qualities for many pur- 

 poses 



EDITORIAL NOTES. 



Trained fruit trees. — In small gardens the 

 training of fruit trees after the fashion so com- 

 mon in Europe, might surely be adopted with 

 advantage. The espalier system, especially, is a 

 good one for this purpose. The trees are kept 

 about as high as an average man, and the 

 branches led out horizontally on each side. The 

 trees make capital " fences" to keep people from 

 running across lawns or grass-plats, and, besides, 

 protect the flower borders that may be in front 

 of them. 



The fruit from these trees is generally much 



