December lu, 



JOURNAL OF HOKTICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GABDENEE. 



521 



other fruits, such as Cherries, Peaches, Grapes, Gooseberries, 

 Strawberries, &c., alec as to certuin shrubs and flowers, such 

 as Ehododendrons, Hollyhocks, Dahlias, &k. 



It might bo difficult and perhaps presumptuous for any 

 private individual to carry out such elections at his own hands, 

 but if the Editors of your periodical could undertake it, or 

 could name parties suitable for the duty, and thereafter pub- 

 lish the results in your columns, it would prove both inter- 

 esting and useful to your numerous readers. — An Amateur, 

 Fiffsliiir. 



;Another correspondent, " C. T. H,," urges an election of 

 Apple trees. We cannot undertake to arrange returns from the 

 fruit-growers of our islands, but if anyone will undertake the 

 task we will aid him in every way within our power. Will our 

 correspondent oblige us by a list of the fruits he has elected 

 for Fifeshire ? — Eds " 



A REMABKABLE COLLECTION OF NEW 



CEOSS-BRED GRAPES. 



It was the writer's fortune this fall to examine a collection 

 of new hybrid Grapes, of such remarkable characteristics and 

 superior excellence, that one may be justified in calling it the 

 choicest now extant in America. 



Ten years since Mr. .James H. Hicketts, of Newburgh, New 

 York, owning a little cottage and garden on the hillside in the 

 city, with practical love of horticulture, in the leisure moments 

 spared from his business occupation began the study and ex- 

 periment of hybridising Grapes, both native with foreign, and 

 foreignwith each other, and testing their seedlings in the open 

 air. If there were any place more unfavourable for such a 

 test we have never seen it. In the summer time with ex- 

 posure to intense heat ; in the winter to severe cold, with 

 ground poor, and sloping to the north-east, it seemed as if any 

 Vine that succeeded here ought in all fairness to do well in 

 the average climate of the United States. His experiments 

 have yearly grown in interest, and the fame of some of his 

 successes have already been known to some of the most obser- 

 vant horticulturists ; still it has remained to the trials of the 

 present fall to give a reliable verdict. His methods of hybrid- 

 ising are of course known only to himself, but all kinds of 

 experiments have been tried, the poUen sometimes being kept 

 till two or three weeks old, and then applied. Again, the caps 

 have been taken off four days in advance of the time usually 

 taken by nature. One other person in Canada, pursuing his 

 trials, studies, and experiments in almost the same track, has 

 yet made a complete failure in every case, and where the secret 

 of Mr. Kicketts' success can be doth not yet appear. It is 

 sufficient only to judge of the results as we now find them. 

 Mr. Kicketts' collection may be divided into three classes : — 

 1, Black Grapes. 2, White Grapes. .S, Wine Grapes. There 

 are now seventy-five seedlings in all growing in his garden, 

 and of them all, we may truthfully say not one is an inferior 

 variety. A large portion of these Vines ai'e but two years old, 

 some three to four, while but few are older. Still, the sorts 

 which exhibit most marked excellence are the older varieties, 

 and the newer ones develope traits more valuable with each 

 year of increasing age. About one-quarter of the collection 

 may be classed fully as hardy as the Concord, and the rest not 

 yet fully determined, although they have been largely exposed 

 to the winter for the past two years without suffering injury. 



The Secretary is a large, beautiful, black Grape, which has 

 already become known. It originated with Mr. Kicketts in 

 1867. The original Vine fruited the next year after the seed 

 was planted. It is a seedling from the Clinton and Muscat 

 Hamburgh. A large Vine is trained upon a trellis near Mr. 

 Eicketts' house, and some of the bunches were nearly a foot 

 long and well shouldered ; the flavour is excellent, sweet, 

 vinous ; bunch hangs well, berry firm. Good market sort. 



It is a little curious to note here the following incident : Mr. 

 Eicketts taking one day to Charles Downing seven of his seed- 

 lings, and requesting an opinion, was surprised and delighted 

 to find him class five of them as better in flavour than the 

 Muscat Hamburgh itself. An opinion from so high a source 

 gives decided character to the value of the collection. 



The finest white Grape of the collection is No. 93, A. Im- 

 perial, a white seedling from lona and SarbeUe Muscat. The 

 berry is very large, of a fine white colour, with considerable 

 bloom ; bunch quite large, regular, with slight shoulder ; no 

 pulp, no seeds, splendid flavour, with traces of the loua Mus- 

 cat aroma. Vine exceedingly vigorous grower ; ripens about 



the time of the Isabella ; oldest plant is now four years. Mr. 

 Eicketts has given mo the pleasure of bestowing upon it a 

 becoming name, which in honour of its superior merit I now 

 name " I'he Imperial," for it seems thus far to be the best 

 White outdoor Grape yet originated. Perhaps its most valu- 

 i^le feature is its hardiness ; standing the winter well when 

 Concord was killed. 



No. 207, H. — White Grape, slightly yellow, quite sweet, 

 thick pulp, bunch nearly as large as the Catawba. A seedling 

 from Concord and Allen. Vine now two years from seed, and 

 bearing this season five bunches ; fully as productive as the 

 Eebecca. From the same origin came other seedlings, all of 

 uniform excellence. 



No. 72 B.^^A seedling from Hartford Prolific. Black, rich, 

 red pulp, mii^y flavour, sweet, pulp small, very productive ; 

 ripens between the Concord and Isabella. 



Don Juan. — A very large bunch, amber berry. Panents, Jena 

 and General Marmorica; very hardy, ripens with Isabella, 

 vinous, but not very sweet, bears a few very large bunches. 



No. 37. — Vine is four years old ; bears forty bunches this 

 season ; extra large berry ; a seedling from Concord and Jury 

 Muscat, exceedingly productive, a good market Grape, carries 

 well, berry firm, soft pulp, flavour fair, not sweet. A very 

 strong-growing sort. 



No. 176. — Dark amber colour, six weeks earlier than lona, 

 flavour sweet and richer than lona. A seedling from Delaware, 

 but has more life and spirit than its parent ; in size of bunch 

 also superior. 



Clinton Seedling, No. 6. — Foliage wonderfully hardy, thick 

 pulp, slightly acid, but exhibits strong vinous quality, and in 

 the wine-Ecale test it ranks ahead of the Delaware ; immensely 

 productive. 



No. 186. — White, seedling from Clinton, considered a good 

 wine Grape, large berry. 



No. 207, 13. — A capital eating Grape, white, sweet, very hardy, 

 extra stout canes, beautiful coloured fruit, bunch moderate 

 size, loose but well shouldered. 



No. 12, B. — Black, bunch extra large, 1 foot long, one shoot 

 often bearing three bunches, strong canes, wonderfully hardy, 

 moderately sweet and vinous, thick pulp. Consider it an extra 

 good variety ; the sweetest grown in the collection. 



No. 12, A. — Has more juice, less pulp, and really more en- 

 joyable as a family Grape. 



Adelaide. — Black, sweet, vinous, strong, heavy foliage, thick 

 leaf, as large a berry as the Union Village, good bunch, very 

 productive. 



Eicketts' No. 1. — Plump berry, very large, long bunch, very 

 firm, keeps growing till cut off, not a sweet flavour, still not 

 acid. 



No. 157, D. — White, seedling from Concord, earlier than the 

 Hartford by ten days to two weeks, thin skin, large berry, 

 round bunch, sweet flavour, juicy, wood like the Concord, very 

 hardy. 

 No. 157, A. — A brother of 157, D — very late. 

 No. 158, B. — Black, transparent, loose bunch, large, excel- 

 lent flavour, juicy, quite as good as Senasqua. 



No. 14. — White, seedling from Israella and White Tokay, 

 ripens with Isabella, largest of all the white varieties ; hangs 

 firmly, both bunch and berry firm, tough skin, quite sweet, 

 bunches extra large, some will weigh nearly 2 lbs. ; reaUy a 

 first-class variety. 



Quassaic. — Black, very regular bunch, a seedling from 

 Clinton and Muscat Hamburgh ; novel flavour ; a trace of the 

 CUnton, but more pleasant ; no more acid than is agreeable ; 

 its fine looks and its firmness are its best characteristics. One 

 of the prettiest Vines ever seen, filled with large bunches ; one 

 Vine has grown as much as 25 feet from a young plant in a 

 year. 



Concord, No. 1. — Enormous berries, each a mouthful, flavour 

 moderately vinous and sweet ; when well ripened quite 

 pleasant ; large, well-shouldered bunches, moderately pro- 

 ductive. 



Earitan. — An accidental seedling ; best wine Grape in the 

 world ; was tested with thirty and forty others, including 

 Delaware and Walter, and ranked 112' ; 'The Walter marked 

 llj per cent, acid ; Earitan marked six per cent. No European 

 variety has ever ranked as high in the wine scale as this. 



No. 10. — Very good flavour, juicy, large plump berry, hangs 

 on firmly, tough skin ; seedling from Hartford and Purple 

 Damascus. 



Advance.— A natural wine Grape ; the only wine Grape 

 which has a natural effervescence ; a good eating Grape, very 



