THE CANADIAN HORTIOULTUKIST. 



273 



HEN DAVIS AND STONEWALL JACK- 

 SON APPLES. 



An esteemed subscriber residing in 

 Nova Scotia asks for information con- 

 cerning the above named apples. It is 

 not known where the Ben Davis origi- 

 mited, but the tree has proved itself to 

 be very hardy, a free f^i-ower, coming 

 into bearing early and yielding abund- 

 ant crops. It seems in some measure 

 to take the place of the Baldwin where 

 tliat tree will not floui-ish. Its habit of 

 blooming late makes it specially valu- 

 able in places liable to late spring frosts, 

 because even these have generally passed 

 before the blossoms have opened. The 

 fruit is of a good even size, free from 

 blemish, and bears transportation well. 

 It is roundish, and conical in form ; in 

 color yellow, overspread and striped \ 

 with red. The flesh is white, tender, , 

 juicy and pleasantly subacid, but by no j 

 means high flavored. In use from Jan- 

 uary to May. In the Report of the 

 Fruit. Growers* Association for 18S2, 

 page 82, it is said to be gaining in popu- 

 larity, finding its way very generally 

 through the Province, and looked upon 

 as very hardy and a fine shipper to the 

 British markets. In the Report for 

 1880, at page 24, Mr. P. 0. Dempsey, 

 of Trenton, says of the Ben Davis, that 

 tlie tree is hardy, and commences to 

 bear at three or four years from the 

 graft ; that the fruit is large, and will 

 save until July with ordinary care, and 

 (jommand a better price than the Golden 

 Russet. 



The Stonewall Jackson was found 

 growing in a stone wall on the farm of 

 Silas Jackson, in Clarence, Annapolis 

 County, Nova Scotia. The tree is said 

 t > be a strong, upright grower when 

 young, and a good bearer. The fruit is 

 d«*scril)e<l as medium in size, roundish 

 and slightly conical ; in color yellow, 

 shaded with light and dark red ; the 

 flesli whitish yellow, tender, juicy, sub- 

 acid, and of very good quality. In use 



in January to March. So far as we 

 know its reputation is purely local. 

 We have never seen the fruit, and do 

 not know of a bearing tree in Ontario. 

 There is another Stonewall Jackson 

 grown in Southern Alabama that is 

 quite distinct from the one of Nova 

 Scotia, to which latter fruit we pre- 

 sume our correspondent refers. 



THE PROFITS FROM GKOWING SMALL 

 FRUITS. 



In treating of this subject the Prairie 

 Farmer remarks that if our farmers 

 were asked from which the most bushels 

 could be raised, an acre j)lMnted to coin 

 or one planted to straw IxM-ries. they 

 would probably reply without he.^ita- 

 tion, from the acre planted to corn. 

 And if told that an acre planted to 

 strawberries would yield three times as 

 many bushels as could be raised from 

 an acre devoted to corn they would pro- 

 bably be inclined to doubt the state- 

 ment. Now how many of our farmei"s 

 grow an average of sixty bushels of 

 corn to the acre] However, the writer 

 has grown as many as eighty, and 

 ninety, and occasionally a hundred 

 bushels to the acre. Sup{)ose we accept 

 these figures as the maximum quantity 

 that one can raise with careful cultiva- 

 tion and favorable weather, and that 

 the average price of the corn in our 

 market is fifty cents a bushel, we shall 

 then have fifty dollars as the gross 

 value of the crop of corn. Now if our 

 readers will turn to page 171 of this 

 sixth volume of the Canadinn Ilorti- 

 adturist they will see that Mr. ^mith, 

 of Wisconsin, 8tate<l after more than 

 twenty years' experience in the grow- 

 ing of strawberries, in that climate .so 

 similar to our own, that he does not 

 consider two hundred bushels j)er acre 

 an extra crop, that he lias repeatedly 

 raised much more, sometimes even 

 double tluit quantity. Mr. Parker 

 £arle states, see page 172, that one 



