1878.] 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



XX 



which he in a thousand ways can so pleasurably 

 and pi'ofitably apply, have no charms and attrac- 

 tions tor him, he had belter give up gardening; 

 for assuredly, in most cases— even to 99 in 100 

 instances — the market gardener will bring the 

 vegetables to his own door cheaper than he can 

 grow them. Amateur gardening should prima- 

 rily be pursued for the lessons it teaches, and 

 the pleasure it affords ; when it ceases to d') this 

 it should be abandoned. 



COMMUNICA T/ONS. 



CRAPE CHAT. 



BY REV. AV. H. W., READING, MASS. 



The grape crop here in Xew England has been 

 in some respects exceptionally good. Our warm 

 and dry October has ripened up many varieties 

 to an unusual excellence, and made us appreciate 

 them more highly than ever before. And yet 

 the amount of our crop, in some cases at least, 

 sadly diminished by the unprecedented number 

 of rose-bugs. Xever, in all my experience, have 

 I seen such swarms of them before. I have re- 

 peatedly taken from one to two dozen from a 

 single cluster. The consequence was that, not- 

 withstanding my utmost efforts, some of my 

 vines were entirely stripped. Some large vines 

 did not ripen a single berry, while on others I 

 succeeded in saving from a tenth to a half of 

 what they would have borne but for the bugs. 

 How shall we get relief? 



Miner's New Seedlings — It has been known 

 for some time past, that Mr. T. B. Miner, 

 of Linden, N. J., has several white seedlings of 

 Concord, which have been pronounced, by those 

 who have seen the vines and tasted the fruit, 

 exceedingly promising. If I am not mistaken, 

 Mr. Andrew S. Fuller has commended them 

 quite warmly in the N. Y. Tribune. Mr. M. 

 sent me a box of the fruit for exliil)ition at our 

 Mivssachusetts Horticultural display in Septem- 

 ber, but they reached me hi such impaired con- 

 dition as to be utterly unfit to place upon the 

 tables. I could, however, get some idea of the 

 quality of the fruit. The berries that I tasted 

 were very sweet and delicious, but not so free 

 from toughness of pulp as is desirable. But I 

 ought to add that I had no such specimens of 

 fruit to test as were adapted to do tlie variety 

 Justice. 



Brighion. — Xo fruit of this new variety was 

 shown at our annual exhibition, and I canot speak 

 of its quality. But I am very much jjlcascd with 



the vigor and healthfulness of the vines. It i& 

 a strong grower, and yet not rampant, and bids, 

 fair to prove hardy and prolific. Its fruit is^ 

 highly praised by those who have eaten it. 



Lady. — This still proves with me a very feeble 

 grower. A splendidly-rooted two-year-old plant, 

 received last spring from Mr. Campbell, and; 

 planted with extra care, in good soil, has grown 

 only about twelve inches. My vines that have 

 been planted two years grew this year only three? 

 or four feet, while Brighton, Black Eagle, and 

 Delaware, beside them, have made from twice to 

 four times the amount of wood. Lady, however, 

 seems entirely healthy, so far as my brief expe- 

 rience enables me to judge. 



Early Champion. — There are two grapes of 

 this name in the market. One originated in New 

 York, and is an early, hardy, vigorous grower,, 

 and probably identical with the Tallman. In 

 quality it is only tolerable. The other originated 

 in New Orleans, and is a much better gi-ape. It 

 is very early, more so than Hartford, vigorous,, 

 healthy, productive, and of very good quality.. 

 Both are black. The latter is one of the most 

 promising grapes we have for early market. But 

 in some way the difference between the two. 

 should be indicated by a change of name in one 

 or the other. 



I.ady Washington. — It is very agreeable news 

 to all lovers of choice grapes, that Mr. Ricketts, 

 of Newburgh, has at last decided to ofler this 

 splendid variety to the public. He deems it, 

 all things considered, one of the best of his entire 

 collection. If the vine shall prove healthy and 

 hardy, so that we can all raise such fruit as Mr. 

 R. does, then indeed the grape millenium wilL 

 seem to have come at last. 



EDITORIAL NOTES. 



Orchards in Grass. — When, at the commence- 

 j ment of the Gardener's Monthly, we showedi 

 j that the best kind of cultivation for orchards was 

 to well care for them in grass, few of our3'ounger 

 readers can have any idea of the storm of indig- 

 nation on the one hand, and ridicule on the other, 

 which we had to encounter. (Jur advice was 

 contrary to that given in "the books;" but we 

 knew, from the lessons of experience, that the 

 advice of the books was wrong, and dared to say 

 so. "VVe lost some subscribers by telling the 

 truth as we found it, but we quieted our (then) 

 publishers by the assurance tliat it would all. 



