214 



THE STRAWBERRY CONTROVERSY, 



is only amusing. We liave not, ourselves, 

 supposed his remarks in any way worthy of 

 serious attention, but since Mr. Beecher, 

 who is probably ignorant how little Mr. H. 

 represents the views of any portion of the 

 horticultural public, has chosen to look 

 upon his opinions in a graver light, and has 

 manfully defended Mr. Longworth, we 

 willingly give his remarks a wider circula- 

 tion. — Ed.] 



No man will deny, that in their cultivated 

 state, strawberries are found, in respect to 

 their blossoms, in three conditions : first, 

 blossoms with stamens alone, the pistillate 

 organs being mere rudiments ; second, blos- 

 soms with pistillate organs developed fully, 

 but the stamens ver}' imperfect and ineffi- 

 cient ; third, blossoms in which staminate 

 and pistillate organs are both about equally 

 developed. 



There are two questions arising on this 

 state of facts ; one a question of mere ve- 

 getable physiology, viz.. Is such a state of 

 organization peculiar to this plant originall}', 

 or is it induced by cultivation ? The other 

 question is one of eminent practical impor- 

 tance, viz., What effect has this state or or- 

 ganization upon the success of cultiva- 

 tion i 



Passing by the first question, for the pre- 

 sent, we would say of the second that a 

 substantial agreement has, at length, been 

 obtained. It is on all hands conceded that 

 staminate plants, or those possessing only 

 stamens, and not pistillate organs, are un- 

 fruitful. Any other opinion would now be 

 regarded as an absurdity. It is equally well 

 understood, that pistillate plants, or those 

 in which the female organs are fully, and 

 the male organs scarcely at all, developed, 

 are unfruitful. No one would attempt to 

 breed a herd of cattle from males exclusive- 

 ly, or from females; and, for precisely the 

 same reason, strawberries cannot be had 

 from plants substantially male, or substan- 

 tially female, where each are kept to them- 

 selves. 



But a difference yet exists among culti- 

 vators, as to the facts respecting those blos- 

 soms which contain buth male and female 



organs, or, as they arc called, pafcd flow- 

 ering plants. 



Mr. LoNr.wonTH states, if we understand 

 him, substantially, that perfect flowering 

 varieties will bear but moderate crops, and 

 usually of small fruit. 



On the other hand. Dr. Bkinkle, whose 

 seedling strawberries, we noticed in the last 

 number, Mr. Downing, and several other 

 eminent cultivators, adopt the contrary opi- 

 nion, that, with care, large crops of large 

 fruit may be obtained from perfect flower- 

 ing plants. The question is yet, then, to be 

 settled. 



It is ardently to be hoped that, hereafter, 

 we shall have less premature and positive 

 assertion, upon unripe observations, than 

 has characterized the early stages of this 

 controversy. We will take the liberty of 

 following Mr. Hovev in his Magazine, be- 

 tween the years 1842 and 1846, not for any 

 pleasure that we have in the singular vicissi- 

 tudes of opinion chronicled there, but because 

 an eminent cultivator, writer, and editor of, 

 hitherto, the only horticultural magazine in 

 our country, has such influence and autho- 

 rity in forming the morals and customs of 

 the kingdom of horticulture, that every free 

 subject of this beautiful realm, is interested 

 to have its chief men of such accuracy, that 

 it will not be dangerous to take their state- 

 ments. 



In 1842, Mr. Longworth communicated 

 an article on the fertile and sterile charac- 

 ters of several varieties of strawberries, for 

 Mr. Hovey's Magazine, which Mr. H., for 

 subject matter, endorsed. In the November 

 number, Mr. Coit substantially advocated 

 the sentiments of Mr. L. ; and the editor, 

 remarking upon Mr. Coit's article, recog- 

 nized distinctly the existence of male and 

 female plants. 



He, Mr. H., says, that of four kinds men- 

 tioned by Mr. C. as unfruitful, two were so 

 '■'from the want of staminate or male plants,^* 

 and " the cause of the barrenness is thus eas- 

 ily explained.'" And he goes on to explain 

 divers cases upon this hypothesis ; and still 

 more resolutely he says, that all wild straw- 

 berries have not perfect flowers ; " in a do- 

 zen or two plants which we examined last 

 spring, so?ne we>e perject, (the italics are 

 ours,) having both stamens and pistils; 



