386 



DOMESTIC NOTICES. 



DOMESTIC NOTICES. 



'• The Early Jof. Arrir — Tlip " Early Joe" is a 

 most ilesirablo fruit. Spriplitly, -witliout unplea- 

 sant acidity, rich, but not cloyinp, jilontiful in 

 juico, but not watery; it combines in an eminent 

 ilepree all those qualities which arc acceptable to 

 most persons, in a ticssert apjile. AVe think it may 

 safely be set down as equal to the best of any sea- 

 son. It oripinated in the orchard of Oliver Ghapin, 

 East nioomfield. Ontario county, N. Y. 



Fruit, meiiium size, roundish, considerably flat- 

 feneil; skin smooth and shininfr? when well grown; 

 if crowded, black spots are not unfrequent; nearly 

 covered, where exposed to the sun, with irregular 

 stripes of deep and pale red, through which appear 

 numerous green spots. 



Stalk, rather slender, and inserted in a deep, and 

 generally russeted cavity. Calyx small, closed; 

 ends of the segments reflexed. 



Flesh white, extremely tender, of a mild, and 

 most agreeable flavor. liipe middle of 8th month. 

 Tree has slow growth, and dark colored wood and 

 foliage. W. R. Smith. Macedon, I2th mo. 1846. 



^^ 



[Mr. Smith also obligingly sent us, with the 

 above, an outline and descrii)tion of the Onondaga 

 pear, which, since it has been fully described in 

 our last number, we omit. — Ed.] 



The Pkar Blight — jjear Sir: I am inclined 

 to think that the opinion of your correspondent in 

 the December number of the Horticulturist, with 

 respect to Pear Blight, is plausible. So far as I 

 know, there has none of it appeared in this region, 

 for nearly twenty years. About that time, it made 

 its appearance in this city, and prevailed for two 

 or three years, during which time, it swept offal- 

 most all our trees. The disease did not exteml to 



my father's farm on the Mohawk flats, a mile west 

 of this city, until a year or two after it commenced 

 here. Antl out of about thirty fine young j)ear 

 trees, just beginning to bear, in two years, only 

 one, a St. Germain, was left; this tree yet sur- 

 vives. Every few years, the thrifty young branches 

 of the Plum and Quince, as well as tlie Peach, are 

 killed by the severe frosts of our winters: yet noth- 

 ing like the Pear blight, makes its apjiearance in 

 them the following summer, so far as I have no- 

 ticed. The Pear tree now thrives finely with us, 

 and we raise all the fine old varieties, viz : White 

 Doyenne, Brown Bextrre, St. Germain, Gansel's 

 Bers^amot, &.c., in great perfection. 



I have been told, that the late Rev. Dr. Ri;ed, 

 of Poughkecpsie, in several instances, restored to 

 health Pear trees diseased with blight, bj' putting 

 a peck or so of blacksmith cinders about the roots 

 of each tree. He was led to try this remedy by ob- 

 serving that the Pear tree flourished finely in the 

 iron region of Connecticut. 



I have kept a record of the weather for some- 

 thing like fifteen years, and if you think it worth 

 having, I will send you the time of the blossoming 

 of our fruit trees during that period. There has 

 been a ditrerence of about thirty days in the bloom 

 of the earliest and latest seasons. Yours truly, 

 Charles H. Tomlinson. Schenectady, Jan. 1847. 



Remarks — The account here given of the Pear 

 blight, would seem to indicate that it is the insect 

 blight, and not the frozen sap blight, which is 

 known in Schenectady; and indeed it is the former 

 which is generally seen in the middle and eastern 

 states: the latter being more prevalent in the west, 

 on account nfthe richn ess of the soil and coarseness 

 of the growth there. Hthe blight at Schenectady had 

 been owing to an atmospheric cause, as thcarticle 

 referred to suggests, it would not have been a whole 

 year travelling to an adjacent farm, one mile <lis- 

 tant; though this is a very natural result in the 

 migration of an insect. We shall be glad to hear 

 as many facts as possible, touching this disease, in 

 all parts of the country. 



We shall have more to say, soon, on this inte- 

 resting subject, which we have before alluded to — 

 the beneficial eflfects of iron upon the pear tree. 



The Nohthern Spy. — In looking over the back 

 numbers of the Horticulturist, I noticed some re- 

 marks which previously escaped my attention, 

 relative to the character of this apple. The opin- 

 ion stated by W. R. Smith in a former number, is 

 quoted with the approval of the editor, that this 

 fruit, " however valuable for the garden or the 

 small orchard, is worthless as a jnarket fruit, com- 

 pared with the Baldwin, Newtown Pippin, or 

 Roxbury Russet."' It is the more necessary that I 

 should notice this remark, as the " Fruit Cultu- 

 rist" is cited as "expressing the same opinion." 



In that work it was stated, that the deterioration 

 of this variety on old trees is " a drawback on its 

 value; and it was noticed solely to call the atten- 



