GOOSEBERRIES WITHOUT MILDEW. 



119 



GOOSBBERRI3S WTTHOUT MILDEW. 



BY DAVID MILLER, Jr., CARLISLK, PA., AND J. M IVES, SaLEM, MASS 



The difficulty of growing the finest English 

 varieties of the gooseberry, in all but the 

 extreme northern pari of the Union, is fa- 

 miliar to every gardener in the United 

 States. Here and there, it is true, they 

 succeed well ; but for the most part, the 

 mildew seizes upon the berries before they 

 are half grown, and renders them worthless. 



We have just received two communica- 

 tions, relating to this subject. The first is 

 from a practical cultivator, Mr. Miller, 

 of Pennsylvania. His method, it will be 

 seen, is an entirely novel one, and consists 

 in grafting upon a sturdy native variety, 

 much more easily propagated than the 

 gooseberry from cuttings. If it proves 

 equally successful in other parts of the 

 country, it will be quite a boon to the cul- 

 tivator of gooseberries. The following is 

 his account : — 



Carlisle, Pa., July 24, 1848. 



Dear Sir — As there has been a great deal 

 said with regard to mildew on the goose- 

 berry, I have a brief suggestion to make 

 on this subject. 



There has been a large variety of goose- 

 berry cultivated in this section, which was 

 so attacked by the mildew that it was alto- 

 gether abandoned, until it occurred to me 

 to graft it on the Yellow Flowering or Mis- 

 souri Currant, [Ribes aureumJ] Grafted oil 

 this stock it does well, even in unfavorable 

 situations. I have one stock worked in this 

 way, which is about 8 feet high ; and its 

 numerous shoots are fairly bent down with 

 the weight of its enormous crop of fruit. 



Yours respectfully, David Miller. 



The second communication is from J. M. 



Ives, Esq., of Salem, Mass. Accompany- 

 ing it was a small box of Houghton's Seed- 

 ling Gooseberry, a variety which Mr. Ives 

 has cultivated for some years, and which 

 he commends highly as being wonderfully 

 prolific, of good quality, and entirely free 

 from mildew in every soil. 



This variety, we learn, was raised from 

 seed by Mr. Abel Houghton, of Marlbo- 

 rough, Mass. Mr. Ives suggests that it was 

 raised from the native species of the goose- 

 berry found in our woods ; and of this, after 

 examining the fruit and leaves, we have 

 not the slightest doubt. We are, indeed, 

 exceedingly glad to find that our indigenous 

 gooseberry so easily improves by reproduc- 

 tion and cultivation, and can scarcely doubt 

 that the seeds of the present variety, if 

 planted, would soon give new varieties 

 nearly or quite equal to the Lancashire 

 berries, and also, (which is the great gain,) 

 with a constitutional habit adapted to our 

 climate, and therefore not liable to mildew. 

 We extract from Mr. Ive's letter as follows : 



" This is certainly one of the most valua- 

 ble gooseberries. It is entirely free from 

 blight ; the plants are very hardy, and bear 

 great crops of fruit. It has never as yet 

 blighted in our locality, is exceedingly luxu- 

 riant in growth, with long pendant shoots, 

 similar in habit to the ' Crown Bob.' You 

 will see by the foliage that it is a native 

 seedling, as I suspected ; and from an exa- 

 mination of the flowers last spring, I found 

 them to resemble the wild gooseberry in 

 the calyx, etc. Yours truly, 



''Salem, Aug. 1, 1848. J. M. Ives." 



The fruit is very thickly set upon the 



