78 



THE GARDENERS' MONTHLY 



[March, 



to accompany the king to the guillotine. His last 

 gift on earth was to this friend — -his watch, which 

 is still treasured as one of the richest possessions 

 of the family. It is a remarkable piece of mechan- 

 ism ; a small figure with a hammer in his hand 

 strikes the hour on a little bell, when it is desirable 

 to know the hour in the dark. It is an extremely 

 ingenious contrivance for a watch. Two such 

 treasures in members of one family ; the one a 

 natural wonder as in this apple tree, the other of 

 art as in this watch, is a fact of rare occurrence. 

 —Ed. G. M.] 



GRAPE ROT. 

 BY MR. DEI*yS ZIRNGIEBEL. 



In the October number of the Gardeners' 

 Monthly, inquiries are made about the cause of 

 grape rot, so prevalent in the Western States. 

 It is probably caused by planting on deep soils 

 and want of drainage, especially when grown on 

 level lands. At the time of ripening considerable 

 warmth at the roots is required to ripen the grapes, 

 which cannot be expected when the roots have 

 reached the cold sub-soil. The rot very seldom 

 makes its appearance the first few years after 

 planting, while the roots are near the surface. On 

 the thin soils of New England we are never 

 troubled with it. 

 V It was quite common once, in glass graperies, 

 under the name of " shanking," but experience has 

 taught gardeners the necessity of well drained 

 borders. The disease is not constant and will 

 vary with the seasons. On the whole, the success 

 of grape growing depends mostly on the location 

 of vineyards. Side hills and declivities, providing 

 for natural drainage, are more adapted to it than 

 level lands where drainage is difficult. In the latter 

 case, throwing up the land in ridges four to five 

 feet high and eight to ten feet apart, might obviate 

 the trouble somewhat. The growth would not be 

 so luxuriant, but the crop would be surer to raise 

 and be of better quality. Needham, Mass. 



experience the best results were obtained by plant- 

 ing where the sun would shine upon the plants 

 until about ten in the morning, and then they re- 

 quired the shade of a fence, house, barn, or trees. 

 1 grew only smooth sorts. 



Three years ago I received a new strain of the 

 English gooseberry, — at least new to me, — that 

 pleases me very much. It is large, oval, yellowish- 

 green when fully ripe, and of fine flavor. And what 

 is most commendable in it is, that it has neither 

 shown mildew on fruit nor foliage exposed to the 

 full rays of the sun, in Illinois, all day, without any 

 mulch. I cannot see why it is not as healthy and 

 hardy as the Downing, while the fruit is twice as 

 large. 



The friend who sent it to me is a successful 

 amateur grower of fruits and flowers, but does not 

 know the origin of his English gooseberry ; but 

 says it may be a sport from some old English sort 

 that he used to grow, or a seedling that originated 

 in his grounds. He has fruited it for eight or ten 

 years without mildew, but I think he generally 

 mulches to keep the weeds down. It has fruited 

 with me two years, bearing perfect fruit, simply by 

 frequent hoeing. There are no plants for sale. 



Washington Heights, III. 



ENGLISH GOOSEBERRY. 

 BY H. 

 In the February number of your useful journal 

 I observed an article headed, " Is the English 

 Gooseberry worth growing ?" I used to grow this 

 fruit quite successfully in Central New York, but 

 could not do it without mulching and shading. 

 The plants would not always suffer exposed to 

 the full sun, but the fruit would scald and fre- 

 quently mildew and thus be worthless. In my 



EMPIRE STATE GRAPE. 



BY JOHN CHARLTON. 



Like Mr. Geo. W. Campbell, 1 have my doubts 

 as to the ascribed parentage of this fine new, 

 white variety. I must confess, that 1 am at a loss 

 to understand how Hartford Prolific and Clinton 

 could produce such a remarkable result as is here 

 obtained. I have thought well of this variety, from 

 its first appearance. I told Mr. Ricketts at the 

 time he first exhibited it at the American Pomolog- 

 ical Society's meeting here in Rochester, that to 

 my mind it was a very likely candidate for public 

 favor ; and which now, after considerable further 

 experience and acquaintance with it, I am pre- 

 pared to say that I believe there is more commer- 

 cial value in it to the growers for market purposes 

 than there is in the whole of Mr. Ricketts' other 

 seedlings combined ; the awards of the committees 

 of the American Pomological Society to the con- 

 trary notwithstanding. Its merits are, as I have 

 observed them to be, as follows : The vine is a 

 free grower, witli dark colored healthy foliage, 

 producing firm, short-jointed wood, which does not 

 fail to ripen as thoroughly or better than the Con- 

 cord, and so far has not exhibited the slightest 

 tendency to mildew. It bears very handsome 



