1879. 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



337 



objects to white-washing the trunks and main 

 branches of trees in tliese days. — Ed. G. M.] 



A New Plum.— -C. B., Hightstown, N. J., 

 writes: "We send you by mail a small box of 

 plums of the Chickasaw family we think, also 

 one Miner, marked so on the wrapper, to test. ' 

 The plums are nearly all too hard yet; let them 

 lipen before testing. This plum has been grown 

 here for years, and ts as near curculio-proof as 

 possible, much more so than Wild Goose; it i 

 beai's enormous crops of fruit, and when fully 

 ripe is of very fair quality ; our object in send- > 

 ing this is for you to compare it with Bassett's 

 American, which we presume you have seen 

 and tested; we never have, and would like to 

 know if it is any better than the one we send ; 

 there are only two points it can excel it in, are 

 size and flavor, and this is what we wish you to 

 decide. It was brought to our notice some years 

 ago; we never have sent it out, but have 

 seen none of its class yet that excels it in every 

 quality." 



[This is a very pretty plum, the color being 

 deep crimson. The flavor was very good; indeed 

 it is the first native plum brought to our atten- 

 tion that it seems fair to compare with some of 

 the good plums of the foreign race. Whether 

 these plums were exceptionably sweet from 

 some unusual cause we cannot decide, for plums 

 will often change their general character for bet- 

 ter or for worse when kept some time. We may 

 at least say if it is always as good as those before 

 us it is a good addition to our list of native 



plums. It is much darker than Bassett's Plum, 

 and about equal to Bassett's in size. As to com- 

 parative flavor, we have none at hand to compare 

 it with. — Ed. G. M.] 



Seedling Grape. — Daniel Shelley, Cumber- 

 land Co., Pa., sends a sample of a " seedling 

 grape" which was also on exhibition at the State 

 Fair. We can only say it was of a Catawba 

 color, intermediate in size between Delaware 

 and Catawba, and of very good flavor. It is but 

 justice however to say that very good seedling 

 grapes are now so numerous, that no editor nor 

 any committee can decide from a mere bunch 

 the true value of a grape. 



The Wager Peach.— A. R. P., Honeoye, 

 X. Y., writes : " I send you this day by ex- 

 press, samples of Wager Peach, which on ac- 

 count of over-loaded trees, are not quite as large 



! as common. The)' are noted for their hardiness 

 as well as their sure-bearing qualities, having 



1 been grown in this section for upwards of twenty- 

 five years. One orchard near us having borne 

 large crops when all other varieties have failed." 

 [These were of middle size, and of fair flavor. 

 If these, and the merits Mr. Pennell claims for 

 it, were all its recommendations, we hardly 

 know whether there may not be some other:- 

 that would successfully compete with it ; but it 

 has in addition a beautiful golden yellow tint. 

 more like that of an Apricot than an ordinary 

 peach ; and this beauty is all in its favor. — Ed. 

 G. M.] 



Natural History and Science. 



COMMUNICA TIONS. 



CURL IN THE PEACH. 



BY PROF. T. J. BURRILL CHAMPAGNE, ILLS. 



Reul l>ef')re the Illinois Horticultural Soei.'ty. 



This disease was more than ordinaril}- notice- 

 able during the early part of the past Summer. 

 Aftlicted trees present a most pitiful appearance ; 

 their young leaves were distorted and swollen, 

 to the touch rigid and brittle, to the eye dis- 

 colored or miscnlored. Sometimes ])arlicular 

 branches alone showed the distroyers' attack, 



and often certain trees were affected in tlic 

 midst of healthy ones of the same variety. 



The cause of this malady has been assigned to 

 many and widely different agencies; but insects 

 of one kind or other have had most often to boar 

 the obloquy of the mischief. Xow it is an aphis, 

 long-legged and long-beaked: now a thrip^, 

 running and jumping and sucking, by turns ; now 

 it is a mite too small to be noticed ; now a plant- 

 bug too ill-smelling to be unnoticed. Otiirrs 

 have imagined the cause to be in the constitu- 

 tion of the tree, or the food it had or did not have, 

 or in the conditions of trainintr and culture. It 



