866 



THE QARDENEB'S MONTHLY 



[^December, 



Late Gkates. — One of the most strikinjj; fon- 

 tiires in the way of fruit nt South Kensington 

 the other day was n splendid collection of Griipes 

 from Mr. Wildsmith, gardener to Lord Eversley 

 nt Heckfield, who has exceUent clusters of Ali- 

 cante, perfect in berry and bloom, and Lady 

 Downes Seedling, also well finished. Trebbiano 

 and Burchardt's Prince were likewise represented 

 by large bunches, as were I\Irs. Pince's Black 

 Muscat, Muscat of Alexandria, and Raisin de 

 Calabre; and there were enormous clusters of 

 Barbarossa (well colored), White Nice, and the 

 best Gros Colman we have ever seen, the ber- 

 ries being mostly over 1 in. in diametef. Mr. 

 Wildsmith likewise showed excellent bunches of 

 White Tokaj', each bunch being almost faultless, 

 as were also Bowood Muscat — in all, thirteen 

 sorts ; and it would have been difficult to have 

 found at this season finer bunches than those 

 shown of Gros Colman, Alicante, and Barba- 

 rossa. — Garden. 



NoMEROus Varieties of Apples. — Mr. Bate- 

 ham says in Country Gentleman: — "I am often 

 asked to give an assortment of apples for a 

 family orchard, and on doing so, the remark is 

 almost invariably made : ' What is the use of so 

 many kinds?' Then comes the old complaint, 

 that nurserymen are fond of multiplying names 

 of fruits, so as to make a great show in their 

 catalogues. But, as an ex-member of the pro- 

 fession, I assert this is mere slander ; for no in- 

 telligent nurseyman wishes to grow more varie- 

 ties than he believes will be useful to, or desired 

 by his customers. 



Will it Pay to Thin the Fruit ?— That 

 this severe thinning will change the bearing 

 year there is sufficient testimony, but there is one 

 point on which we lack evidence— will it pay? If 

 any of our friends have tried thinning to induce 

 annual bearing, or to reverse the bearing year on 

 full grown treeSjWeask in behalf of many inquirers 

 that they will give their results. With young or- 

 chards, just coming into bearing, the case is very 

 diflferent, and whoever will take the pains and give 

 the young trees the needed care, can make their 

 orchard bear annually. The education of the trees 

 must begin with their first fruiting, as the first ex- 

 cessive crop, though small in itself,starls the tree 

 on the wrong track. When the trees are young, 

 the quantity of fruit to be removed is small, and 

 all within reach. Of course the cultivation of the 

 soil must not be neglected, but a healthy growth 

 maintained. Whoever will start right with his or- 



chard, and treat it fairly, will have no reason to 

 com])lain. Among the varieties of apples that 

 are naturally annual bearers, though they may be 

 starved into bearing biennially, or not at all, are 

 Vandevere; Sops of Wine; Grimes' Golden, a 

 comparatively new ap]ile of great excellence; 

 ^lilani; Minklers'; Rawles' Janet, for the south; 

 Benoni ; Hubbardston Nonsuch ; Domine; 

 Iligby Sweet and English Sweet (Ramsdell's 

 Sweet at the south). If any of our fruit growers 

 can add to this list of annual bearers, we hope 

 they will do so. — American Agriculturist. 



Nut Farming in California. — Experienced 

 horticulturists of this State say the cultivation of 

 the almond and English walnut is extensively 

 profitable. Some of them aver that an almond 

 orchard fourteen years old and Avell cared for 

 will average a production worth $250 per acre a 

 year, Avith an increasing tendency of fifteen per 

 cent, for seven or eight years. The cost of plant- 

 ing and tending for half a dozen years will 

 hardly exceed the cost of planting an equal 

 number of acres of wheat. The cost of gather- 

 ing the crop will not exceed twenty per cent, of 

 its gross market value. The net return of an 

 average acre of four-year-old almond trees 

 would at this rate be equal to the average twelve 

 or fifteen acres of wheat. Moreover, the nut 

 crop does not depend on the home market. It 

 is as portable as wheat or flour, and the East- 

 ern States would take all we could produce. The 

 same may be said of the English walnut, save 

 that the tree requires a longer time to mature 

 than the almond tree. Both do well almost any- 

 where ten miles from the harsh sea winds and 

 below an altitude of 2,500 feet. Los Angeles 

 and Santa Barbara counties have achieved the 

 best reputations in this branch of farming, so far, 

 only because they have paid more attention to 

 it. San Joaquin, Sacramento, Solano, Yolo, 

 Sutter, Butte, Colusa, Tehama, and all the lower 

 foothill region, where water for irrigation can be 

 obtained, are as well adapted by soil and climate 

 to the almond and walnut as Los Angeles. — San 

 Francisco Chronicle. 



SCRAPS AND QUERIES. 



How TO Make a Grape Border. — Amateur, 

 Hazleton, Pa., says : — " Can you give some direc- 

 tions for making a grape border? My house will 

 only be fifty feet long, as at present advised I 

 shall only set out the Black Hamburg kind." 



