78 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



no sadden change of air from warm to 

 freezing. If, in the winter, there was 

 rain and the limbs of some kinds were 

 soaked with rain, and the wind changed 

 suddenly from south to north-west, the 

 forest trees prevented a sudtlen cold till 

 the fiuit trees had time to dry out the 

 water ; then, after that, when the trees 

 froze they were not bursted, or swelled 

 by the ice, to shivers. The above is 

 why. If trees are protected on the 

 north-west side they will stand now 

 our changeable climate ; but of late 

 years the axeman and the fires have 

 devastated our forests, and now the 

 winds cause our country to have fre- 

 quent changes. Now, all loose, open, 

 soft, porous fruit trees will not live 

 many years in Eastern Ontario. Some 

 one may say, how do yon know that 

 one kind of apple wood is harder than 

 another 'I I here tell you how to prove 

 it. I am running a small nnrsery of 

 trees. The greater part is what is 

 called the Mcintosh Reds. Without 

 exception, they bear the best flavored 

 winter apple, and are the hardiest trees 

 to stand the climate known in Eastern 

 Ontai'io, the crab trees not excepted. 

 If planted on gravelly ground not one 

 bud will perish with our hard winters. 

 Now to insti act you how to know a hard 

 wooded tree from a soft loose wooded 

 tree : take your jackknife and cut off a 

 limb of the Mcintosh Ked tree, then 

 cut off a limb of the same size of any 

 other kind or kinds of apple tree, you 

 will find the Mcintosh Red limb cnt 

 harder than beech or maple, and several 

 of the varieties cut soft, or as easy as 

 to cut bass wood. Again, to prove that 

 the Mcintosh Reds are hardier than 

 any of the other kinds of fruit trees, 

 stand under a Mcintosh Red tree, take 

 hold of the smallest limb that will hold 

 you up without bending, then try to 

 hang on a limb of the same size of any 

 of the other kinds, and you will come 

 to the ground in a moment. If you 



prove the above and ascertain it to be 

 true, will you not acknowledge that the 

 Mcintosh Reds are tongher and hardier 

 than any of the other varieties that you 

 tried. Furthermore, to show you why 

 the Mcintosh K'eds do not freeze to 

 death ; the wood is so tight and hard, 

 and the bark is smooth, fine, and looks 

 tight enough to prevent rain from 

 soaking in. The wood is so hard, 

 although it rains all day, it will not 

 take much water in. This is why the 

 Mcintosh Reds are not affected by our 

 cold changeable winters ; while, on the 

 other hand, the loose soft wooded trees 

 are like a sponge. In winter, on a 

 rainy day, the limbs soak full of water, 

 if towards night the wind shifts from 

 south to north-west, the water that is 

 soaked in the limbs of the trees will at 

 once freeze to ice. which ice expands 

 the wood and bark, the limbs are 

 swelled and bursted to death, and 

 when the ice is thawed out the tree, it 

 carries the sap along with the water. 

 This is why the loose wooded trees will 

 not live in the Eastern Township of 

 Ontario. Furthermore, to ])rove that 

 the sudden change from warm to cold 

 is the cause why the soft, loose wooded 

 trees die. Along the bank of the river 

 St. Lawrence most any variety lives 

 several years, inland the same kinds 

 would not live one-fifth the time ; 

 along the river, though the change is 

 sudden, the fog or damp from the water 

 keeps it from freezing for an hour or 

 two, which gives the trees time to dry 

 the rain water out of the wood, and 

 there is no ice made in the wood to 

 swell and burst the wood to death. 

 The above shows you that there is no 

 ice in the top of those trees along the 

 river bank, and that is the cause the 

 soft kinds are not killed outright along 

 the river St. Lawrence, while those in 

 the country of the same kind will only 

 live a few years. The soil to plant 

 fruit trees on to do well, to form hard 



