DOMESTIC NOTICES. 



397 



and soil best suited to each variety; and I cannot 

 but hope that the labors of the standing oominil- 

 tee of tlie late convention will be directed, in no 

 small degree, to this end. Respectfully yours, 

 S. L. Goodale. Saco, Maine, Dec. 8, 184S. 



Remarks. — We find, by reference to Liegel's 

 work on the pluai, that the Prune de St. Jean is 

 a distinct variety, — " a blackish-blue i)luin, of the 

 size of the ' Gros James de Tours,' and one of 

 the best early pluins. The twigs arc pubescent. 

 Ripens tlie end of July and beginning of Aug." 



Mr. Knevels, in a note latcl}' received, re- 

 marks that " this is probably either the Morocco 

 or the Early Orleans. In the L. H. Society's 

 Catalogue, it is marked as an 'outcast;' from 

 whence I conclude, either that the society had it 

 incorrect, or that the climate of England is not 

 as congenial to the plura as that of Germany, or 

 our own. This inference is supported by the low 

 grade they assign other fine plums." 



We may add, that there is little doubt that the 

 Prune de St. Jean, (or St. John's Plum,) is a dis- 

 tinct variety; and as Mr. Goodale's description 

 appears to correspond with the German one, he 

 has probably, the correct fruit. Though too ten- 

 der in the climate of Maine, it will, no doubt, be 

 perfectly hardy here, and may, from its earliness, 

 prove a decided acquisition. 



Horticulture in Iowa. — Dear Sir: I re- 

 ceived the November number of the Horticultu- 

 rist last night, and read it after the rest of the 

 household were in bed. Ten — twenty dollars — 

 no sum of money could buy the satisfaction and 

 enjoyment of that midnight hour. The account 

 of the Horticultural Festival, among other things, 

 much interested me. 



We are endeavoring to do something in the 

 great work of horticulture, in this (to you) far- 

 off-land, though we are only following you in the 

 east, at long intervals with " unequal strides." 

 Nature has done everything for us. The soil — 

 all ready for the spade and plough — needs no 

 manures to render it fertile. Tlie climate is rot 

 surpassed, in the same latitude, on the Mississippi. 

 We are at the level of the greatest valley of the 

 greatest * river in the world ; but we want the 

 master workman to take these advantages of na- 

 ture, and marshal them into greater order and 

 loveliness. We hope you will sometime take a 

 " pufl'" up this great '•' father of waters;" and if 

 you do not pronounce the site of this little village 

 by nature the most beautiful spot in all Uncle 

 Sam's vast garden, then wo will frankly confess 

 that our partiality wholly misleads our judgment. 



We have just organized a society here, the 

 proceedings of which will be sent to you by our 

 secretary. You will see that the subscribers of 

 the Horticulturist were active in getting up the 

 meeting ; and the gentlemen interested have been 

 kind enough to make me president, which I think 

 an indirect compliment to you, as all my know- 

 ledge is the result of three years' reading, with 



some practice, of your precepts. We have made 

 your work our standard, and wish now a copy of 

 the latest edition of the " Fruits and Fruit Trees," 

 coloured. 



Of course, a state of only a few years' growth, 

 not yet " twenty-one," indeed not half out of 

 minority, cannot be expected to have made much 

 progress in fruit culture. But our season of en- 

 jojanent has already begun. Of peaches and ap- 

 ples we have many. Pears have been tried suf- 

 ficiently to prove that some " outcasts" from so- 

 ciety with you are destined to hold the front rank 

 in tlie circle of fine fruits among us. Dr. Weed. 

 of Bloomington, (25 miles east of this place,) 

 took some Barthtts to St. Louis, which were 

 pronounced superior to anything ever seen there. 

 Our plums cannot be surpassed; but, as yet, we 

 have failed with cherries. They grow so rapidly 

 that they are killed in winter. We are now ex- 

 perimenting with buds on the common red cherry, 

 which is quite hardy, and hope by this means to 

 succeed. » * * Your obedient servant, Jas. 

 Grant. Davenport, Iowa, Nov. 20, 1848. 



Packing Trees and Hedge Plants. — What 

 is the best, and safe»t, and cheapest mode of pack- 

 ing fruit trees, and especially Osage Orange hedge 

 plants, to send long distances, where no moss can 

 be obtained? An explicit answer would much 

 oblige your friends hereabouts. Yours, J. W. 

 Turner. Illinois College, Jacksonville, Illinois, 

 Dec. 28, 1848. 



Answer. — Where trees are to be sent on long 

 journeys, the whole secret of success in transpor- 

 tation, consists in keeping them in a cool and dor- 

 mant state, and away from contact with fresh air. 

 Hence, experienced packers, abroad, always use 

 but little moss, and that perfectly dry, and put up 

 their trees in tight boxes or bundles. If they are 

 sent with a packing of wet moss, they almost in- 

 variably grow on the way, and half or more are 

 lost ; while, on the other hand, for short JL,urneys, 

 damp moss is the best of all substances. 



Where, as Prof. Turner suggests, no moss can 

 be obtained, the fjllowing is one of the best modes : 

 Take up the trees before the buds swell, and dip 

 the roots several times in liquid compost of loam 

 and eow-droppings, until a coating an eighth or a 

 tenth of an inch thick is formed all over the roots. 

 Then lay them in the shade and allow them to 

 dry perfectly. 



Next, take a box of the proper size, put a layer 

 of dry straw in the bottom, then a layer of young 

 trees, (such as hedge plants,) and another layer 

 of straw, till the box is full. If the trees are 

 large, you can only fill in the void spaces with 

 straw. Press the whole down as closely as pos- 

 sible, (so that a box of moderate size will hold 

 several thousand stocks, or small hedge plants,) 

 and nail the lid down firmly. Finally, make the 

 box as air light as possible, by stopping the seams 

 or cracks with pitch, a mixture of tallow and 



