i8g8. 



GARDENING. 



281 



spring, then planted in a bed prepared 

 for that purpose, giving close and careful 

 cultivation. The first year small, poor 

 looking potatoes result. The second year 

 we find a great variety in form and color. 

 From three to five years are required to 

 develop these seedling potatoes. As the 

 tendency of potatoes after a few years of 

 cultivation is to deteriorate, it becomes 

 necessary to have new varieties to take 

 their place. Most of the kinds cultivated 

 twenty years ago are now superceded by 

 recent varieties. The introduction of the 

 Early Rose marked a new era in potato 

 culture. Recent introductions of value 

 are New Queen, Early Essex, Carman 

 No. 1, Carman No. 3, Banner, Somerset 

 and Enormous. 



Early varieties of potatoes are desirable 

 to escape the beetle and the blight. Two 

 other advantages in an early crop are 

 that the price of potatoes is much higher 

 than later in the season, and the land can 

 be used for a second crop of celery or late 

 cabbage. I also plant squashes eveiy 

 third row, and get about as large a yield 

 as if no other crop had preceded it. 



As a vegetable second in importance to 

 the pototo we may reckon the cabbage. 

 New varieties can be produced by cross- 

 fertilization, either by transferring the 

 pollen from one kind to the other with a 

 camel's hair brush or setting two kinds 

 side by side, when the bees or the wind 

 will make many crosses by carrying the 

 pollen from one to the other. Varieties 

 can be greatly improved by careful selec- 

 tion of the best type of heads for seed. 

 and continuing thus for a number of 

 years the grower will find much improve- 

 ment on the original variety. European 

 cabbages are imported to this country 

 and bring a high price. Two European 

 varieties which I have grown with best 

 success are Amager and Solid Emperor. 



Every market gardener needs to plant 

 early and late squashes. The best early 

 variety is the Marrow; the best strains 

 are the Boston Morrow and Dunlap's 

 Prolific. In passing over a field of Ameri- 

 can Turban squashes in 1879. I found 

 a vine with a number of handsome 

 squashes; from their form, color and 

 hardness of shell they seemed to be a 

 cross between the Turbans and Hub- 

 bards growing in a field near by. This 

 accidental cross was trained to retain the 

 hard shell, delicious flavor and sweetness 

 of the Hubbard and the form and golden 

 color of the Turban, and was introduced 

 under the name of Essex Hybrid. 



I have every reason to believe that the 

 Bay State squash is simply a sport back- 

 ward, so to speak, showing a stronger 

 and more marked development of its 

 Hubbard parentage. When first found it 

 was growing in a field of pure Essex 

 Hybrid squashes, without a single Hub- 

 bard squash having grown in the vicinity 

 for a number of years. It is a singular 

 fact that the original plant of both the 

 Essex Hybrid and the Bay State had each 

 three squashes growingon the vine within 

 the length of three or four feet, and 

 almost identical in form and size, the 

 only apparent variation being the color. 

 The color of the Bay State was distinct 

 from every other squash then known, 

 being a blue shade with a peculiar green- 

 ish tinge. As a late winter squash the 

 Hubbard takes the front rank 



I think that in the entire list of culti- 

 vated vegetables, there is no other family 

 so hard to preserve in its purity as the 

 Cucurbitacex. From the peculiar forma- 

 tion of the blossoms they are not readily 

 fertilized by the wind. To remedy this 

 defect nature has furnished another way, 

 by means of the bees that are continually 



passing from one blossom to another, the 

 pollen adhering to their legs and bodies 

 and being thus carried from one field to 

 another quite distant. Therefore, al- 

 though we may isolate fields of squashes 

 as far from other fields as possible, «>■ 

 are not sure but we may have more or 

 less of this cross-fertilization by the bees, 

 and the very means by which nature 

 insures perfect fertilization of the blossoms 

 may be the chief cause of the sports and 

 crosses so common in squash culture 

 by which new varieties can be multiplied 

 at will. 



During the summer and early fall there 

 is quite a large demand in the market for 

 melons, and on laud adapted to grow 

 melons, they are often very profitable Of 

 the different varieties. Extra Early Hack- 

 ensack, Montreal Nutmeg and Arlington 

 Nutmeg, of the green fleshed and Im- 

 proved Christiana, Emerald Gem, Shum- 

 way's Giant, and Tip Top, of the salmon 

 flesh varieties, are the most desirable. In 

 some markets the green flesh melons are 

 most in demand, but the salmon flesh are 

 considered the best flavored. 



I have no doubt it is within the memory 

 of many of those present when the tomato 

 was first introduced as an article of food. 

 At first, from the beauty of its bright red 

 fruit, called "Love apple," it soon became 

 more widely known and used in various 

 ways upon the table. Its cultivation 

 rapidly increased, and many improved 

 varieties were introduced. One of the 

 first was Trophy. This was a very large 

 solid-fleshed red tomato of excellent 

 quality, but not coloring well round the 

 stem. In 1860 the Essex Smooth Round 

 Tomato was brought out and is still one 

 of the best forcing tomatoes known. In 

 1870 the Paragon was introduced, and 

 has proved an excellent tomato. In 1878 

 I introduced the Essex Hybrid, the first 

 large purple tomato known. This has 

 proved one of the best and most profita- 

 ble tomatoes grown. Other good varie- 

 ties are Acme, introduced in 1875 by 

 Livingston; Perfection, in 1880; Beautv, 

 in 1886; Stone, in 1891; Royal Red, in 

 1892; and Buckeve State and Dwarf 

 Aristocrat, in 1893. In 1S92 I had the 

 honor of bringing out a new early tomato, 

 the Comrad. A late variety, of my intro- 

 duction, is the G. A. R. tomato. As a 

 late tomato there is no other variety 

 which will produce as large a yield of 

 first-class tomatoes as this. There are 

 many other tomatoesof merit, but to the 

 market gardener the above varieties are 

 as good a collection as can be made. 



The tomato can be improved by two 

 methods — by cross-fertilization and sow- 

 ing the seed thus fertilized, selections be- 

 ing made of the best plants produced, or 

 by selecting the most perfect fruit for a 

 number of years, following on that line 

 persistently until the desired object is 

 accomplished. 



In this manner new varieties can be 

 produced from all classes of vegetables, 

 simply by following the laws which 

 nature has made to attain given results. 

 There is a peculiar facination in the 

 evolvement from the multiplicity of 

 nature's crosses of new varieties and the 

 establishing of such with fixed and per- 

 manent qualities which shall add another 

 to the food products of the world. 



If anyone desires to produce new varie- 

 ties, let him study into the methods 

 which nature takes to perform its won- 

 drous works and the better he can under- 

 stand its unchanging laws and infuse 

 into his own soul the inspiration of the 

 wondrous life on every hand, the greater 

 will his success and the more complete 

 his triumph be. 



THOMAS CARTLEDGE. 



WORKERS IN HORTICULTURE, X. 



Thomas Cartledge, who died at his 

 home in Philadelphia on May 17, had 

 been actively engaged in horticulture for 

 more than two score years. He was 

 born July 8, 1831, in the house in which 

 he died and to which he brought a wife, a 

 daughter and a son. His apprenticeship 

 was served with William Hall, of Anda- 

 lusia. After the Civil War Mr. Cartledge 

 became foreman for Pennoek Bros., with 

 which firm he was identified until a short 

 time ago when he handed his interest in 

 the business to his son, A. B. Cartledge. 

 Thomas Cartledge has always been a 

 willing worker in the ranks of those who 

 strive for the advancement of horticultural 

 interests. He has been for twenty eight 

 years an active member of the Pennsylva- 

 nia Horticultural Society and was for 

 three years its treasurer. He was promi- 

 nent in the affairs of the Soeiety of Amer- 

 ican Florists and was, from its organiza- 

 tion until last fall, treasurer of the Phila- 

 delphia Florists' Soeiety. 



Miscellaneous. 



SUMMER PRUNING OP TREES AND SHRUBS. 



Within a few years past horticultural 

 periodicals have so often referred to the 

 fact that shrubs shoiddbe pruned as soon 

 as their flowers disappear, that it is now 

 fairly well understood by all that have 

 the care of grounds. In nearly all cases it 

 is the growth made this season that will 

 give flowers the next, therefore but little 

 of this new wood must be cut away. 

 Thin out the shoots that have just flow- 

 ered, which will give greater strength to 

 the new ones forming. After the leaves 

 fall there is no objection to a little prun- 

 ing to shape the bushes, but the cutting 

 away must not be to much extent of the 

 latest shoots. 



Deciduous hedges should have two or 

 three prunings a season. A hedge closely 

 clipped at all times is not always an 

 addition to the beauties of a place. On 

 the contrary, it gives a formal appearance 

 at times which is out of place. But with 

 the Japanese privet in mind as an illus- 

 tration, pruning of the growing shoots is 



