bV-:3::5^ 



ijao EDITOE'S TABLE. 



i 



pKiTisn QiEEN Strawukhries. — On the 14tli of June, while on n visit nt Ncwlmrgh, we 

 went in company witli Mr. .Saul to 300 tlic famous Jlritinh (Jiicc/is, of Dr. IIii.i.. Tlio 

 l>lace lias now passed out of tlio Doctor's liands, but the Strawberry beJs arc tlicre a.s usual, 

 under the care of the same man who was gardener for tlie Doctor. AVo found a very fair 

 croj) on the plants, a good crop indeed for this country, although a considerable quantity 

 had been gathered. The jilantswcrc set in rows 15 to 18 inches apart, and the ground was 

 covered with straw between the rows to keep the fruit clean. The gardener informed us 

 that the crop was smaller than usual, as the bed was old and many of the best plants had 

 died out. lie said they had not been mulched with tan, nor had any special care or appli- 

 cation of any kind. lie spoke unfavorably of the use of tan — thought it killed the plants 

 in many cases, and said that Dr. Ilri.r, had changed his views in regard to its effects. He 

 thinks (and we i)rctty much agree with him), that one of the chief causes of Dr. Ilru.'s 

 success was his deep trenching (four feet) of the ground, and enriching with well jircpared 

 composts, and afterwards working in poudrette and street sweepings. Mr. Downino, it 

 will be remembered, thought that the great point in the American culture of these Pine 

 Straicien-ics, was to keep them warm in winter and cool in summer, by means of mulch- 

 ing. One thing is very certain, they cannot be grown so easily as the Scarlets ; but when 

 Dr. nri.L succeeds on the top of a high hill on very dry ground, we know of no good rea- 

 son why others cannot succeed in more favorable locations. 



Caterpillaes. — About the middle of June, the trees in Xew York and Brooklyn were 

 infested with swarms of caterpillars. Elms were everywhere comjdetely stripped, but 

 Lindens, Horse Chestnuts, and in ftict all save the Ailantus, had suftercd seriously. The 

 air was filled with the caterpillars suspended by their silken invisible threads, so that 

 persons walking in the parks and along the side walks, often found themselves in very disa- 

 greeable company. We were surprised to find that no special effort was made to abate 

 such a nuisance. The workmen employed in dressing the grounds in the Park, at the 

 Battery, were in the midst of the insects, without seeming to be aware of their existence ; 

 and we saw them along tlie streets of Brooklyn, dangling in thousands by the doors and 

 windows of elegant residences without being molested. It is a great pity that some de- 

 structive measure had not been taken while the insects were young, and before they had 

 scattered themselves over the trees. As it is, we should think something might be done. 

 A powerful stream of water, turned upon the trees by means of a garden engine and a piece 

 of hose, might be effective to some extent in bringing them them down. It is certainly too 

 bad to permit them to defoliate the trees, and accomplish their transformation undisturbed. 



"Wisconsin Strawberries. — We are indebted toourfiiend A. 0. Babcock, Esq., of East Troy, 

 Walworth Co, for a very acceptable mess of lipe Strawberries, tlie first \vc have seen this season. 

 Tliev were mostly Burrs Xetv Pine, with a few Early Scarlets, and in size and flavor not easily 

 matclieil anywhere. Mr. Baucdck informs U9 that lie picked his first mess of Strawberries on the 

 31st of May, and that he has now fourteen different varieties growing in his bed. Of these, for 

 ahardv, productive, aud early plant, he gives the preference to Burrs New Pine. We have 

 rarely seen or tasted berries of as large size, or fine flavor, as the specimen he sent us. — Milwau- 

 kee Daily Sentinel, June 8. 



The varieties noted above were not ripe at Rochester until about the 13th or 14th of 

 June. Our first picking of Farhj Scarlet was on the 13th. There is not usually so wide 

 a diftcrence between the climate of that part of Wisconsin and Western New York 

 there the spring was earlier than usual, and here later. 



