1878.] 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



83 



the smaller, old-fashioned kinds. A week or two 

 an watcliing the market in which you will prob- 

 iibly sell, is good practice for one who intends to 

 set out an orchard for profit. 



It is unfortunately the case that those who 

 have been the most successful in fruit-growing 

 seldom write books. Some of the best — at least 

 the most taking — of the literature of fruit-grow- i 

 ing in this country, has been the product of en. \ 

 thusiastic, well-meaning men, who earnestly be- ! 

 lieved in all they wrote, but whose orchards 

 (when they had any) afterwards proved disastrous 

 failures. With Barry's Fruit Garden andThomas' 

 Fruit Culturist in hand, and then some good 

 judgment in adapting their experience to your 

 surroundings and circumstances, you will, how- 

 ever, have as good a start as you will need on 

 your road to successful fruit-culture. — Ed. G. M.] 



Pruning the Old Canes of Raspbekeies. 

 — M., iJ'ewark, Ohio, writes: "There is a dis- 

 pute among our fruit-growers as to the best time 

 to prune out the RasiDberry canes that have done 

 bearing. Some say as soon as you have picked 

 the last fruit ; others, not till "Winter or Spring. 

 What is the practice in the East ? and which is 

 the best?" 



[Theoretically, df the old branches are cut 

 away, there will be moi'e " air and light," and 

 perhaps " food,'^' for the rest ; but in practice no 

 special benefit is found. Indeed, in some re- 

 spect, injury seems to result. The winter is 

 ■often very severe on the canes. The wind whis- 

 tles through and dries out the sap. To some 

 small degree the branches of the old canes help 

 to break the force of the wind, and so far protect 

 the young canes. We think, on the whole, there 

 is nothing gained either way. Tlie practice herr_ 

 :abouts is to cut away after the fall of the leaf 

 •or towards Spring. — Ed. G-. M.] 



Outside Grape Borders. — R. T. Littleton, 

 N. H.,asks : " Would you advise making a grape 

 border outside for forcing, in a cold climate like 

 Franconia, X. H..? I see you do in Pennsylva- 

 nia, in December number, page 307. I had 

 .thought the reverse the best in this cold climate." 



[Yes ; but cover the border in winter with leaves 

 or some other material. Frost will not injure 

 the roots of a grape vine ; but then it does them 

 no good. — Ed. G. M.] 



Linseed Oil for Pear Trees. — E. J. B., 

 Philadelphia, writes : " Please to publish the 

 following, in order to save others from the an- 

 noyance to which I have been subject, and the 

 destruction of fine orchards. We bought a farm, 

 with fine Apple, Pear and Clierry trees, about 

 twenty years old. They yielded quantities of 

 fruit, but wormy. Seeing in your Gardener's 

 Monthly, Vol. xix., Ko. 220, April 1877, page 

 115, Query, Oil for Fruit Trees, 'The writer of this 

 washed some hundreds of trees with linseed oil 

 a year ago ; it destroyed all insects, and the trees 

 were all the season and still are models of health. 

 It is far pri-ferablc to anything that we know 

 of.— Ed. G. M.' 



"My trees, perfect models of health, are now 

 all dying. The bark has split, and is now covered 

 with a white fungus growth to a height of twenty 

 feet, or as far as the oil went. When touched it 

 falls off, and the wood beneath is dead. It looks 

 as if I should lose thirty or forty well-grown, 

 handsome trees. No money could repay the 

 damage done in the loss of shade and comfort 

 afforded. Thinking it would be impossible to have 

 better authority, I had them carefully washed 

 at the end of March or beginnimg of last April. 

 Perhaps you may be able to suggest something 

 that will save our orchard and our bitter disap- 

 pointment in losing all our shade and fruit trees." 



[The trees referred to in the extract quoted are 

 still " models of health," though now two sum- 

 mers have elapsed. We feel quite safe in saying 

 that jOM?-e linseed oil will not only not injure, but 

 be of great advantage. Those who have had 

 losses must have used adulterated oils. We would 

 advise them to get some more of the same sort, 

 use a little to kill a branch of another tree, get 

 the balance analyzed, and then sue the seller for 

 damages. Any court would award it on such 

 evidence. — Ed. G. M.] 



Forestry. 



COMMUNICA TIONS. 



QUERCUS PHELLOS AND Q. FALCATA. 



BY J. M., PHILADELPHIA. 



Some of the Southern species of oaks, among 

 Hvhich are the two named above, creep up a con- 



siderable way towards a colder clime. lu 

 Wood's Botany the location of the Quercus 

 Phellos, Willow Oak, is given as from N. J. to 

 Fla., and Western States, and of the Q. falcata, 

 Spanish Oak, as from Va. to Fla. 

 I was pleased one day last fall, to find some 



