THE ITASCA PLUM. 427 



at both ends, skin a nearly unifortn deep dark red, without dots, a little paler on 

 the shade side; cavity small and reRiilar, suture very obscure; ilesh rich yellow, 

 tender, juicy anil sweet, with scarcely a trace of astrinjjency or acerbity; skin re- 

 markably thin and tender, so much so that it may be eaten with perfect impun- 

 ity ; stone larjie, but remarkably thin, obscurely margined.' " 



Are there any of the cultivated varieties of the native plum which 

 have originated so far north? As seen on the grounds of Mr. Un- 

 derwood, at Lnke City, two years since, topworked on other native 

 plum trees, it appeared remarkable from the extraordinary size 

 of the leaf which far surpassed that of any other plum within the 

 writer's observation. A variet}' combining so many good points 

 is likely to become a valuable addition to our list of hardy culti- 

 vated fruits. Sec'y. 





r^ctober ^^aler^dar. 



J. S. HARRIS, LA CRESCENT. 



The present month may be said to close the season in the orchard 

 and garden, and it offer.s an opportunity for looking back over the 

 successes and failures of the l:)U9y growing months that are past. 

 It is a time when the lesson to be drawn from the past may be a 

 guide and inspiration for the future. In the retrospect it may be 

 found that the failure iu one case may have been due to imperfect 

 preparation of the soil ; in another the soil was not good or not 

 adapted to the use to which it was put; in another case the varieties 

 have not been j udiciously selected, or they maj' have failed because 

 cultivation was neglected, and the crop harvested was rank weeds 

 instead of luscious fruit. Whatever was the cause, now is a possible 

 time to investigate, find it out and prepare to guard against it in 

 the future. 



The Occbard. — In this climate we do not approve of setting trees 

 in the autumn. In an occasional season, they will come through 

 the winter all right, but ordiuarilj'^ the roots do not get thoroughly 

 established in their new qixarters and cannot supply to the tree the 

 moisture and life that is needed to replace that which is drawn out 

 through the trunks and branches by the long, steady arctic weather 

 of the winter. But it is in order to prepare the ground where an 

 orchard is to be set in the spring as early as circumstances will 

 permit. No damages arises from plowing it too deep or fitting it 

 too thoroughly. If the land is level, it is best to plow by back fur- 

 rowing in lands just as wide as the rows of trees are to be apart, and 

 so that the open dead furrows will come just midway between them. 

 If the soil is inclined to a stiff clay, the surface should be left rough 

 until spring, that it maybe better ameliorated by the action of frost. 

 It is not advisable to j»lough the old orchard during this month, or 

 not until it is positively known that trees have gone into their win- 



