84 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



have the matter settled once for all, 

 and either let the Philadelphus be 

 known by the common name of Mock 

 Orange, or have the generic name of 

 the Lilac changed to something else 1 



Some nurserymen advertize the Sy- 

 ringa or Mock Orange, some the Mock 

 Orange (Syringa), others the Philadel- 

 phus (Mock Orange), or Philadelphus 

 (Syringa), and Syringa (Philadelphus); 

 while we rarely find the name Lilac 

 accompanied with its generic name, 

 Syringa ; yet if you send to some of the 

 best American nurseries for Syringas 

 you will certainly receive Lilacs. 



Correspondent. 



GOOSEBERRIES AND CURRANTS. 



I notice discussions upon the above 

 fruits in the Annual Report. I would 

 like to give some of my experience. 

 My soil is called a sand, but is largely 

 made up of pulverized shale. We get 

 immense crops of Houghton gooseber- 

 ries, but rarely get beyond 5 or 6 cents 

 per basket for them. Last summer, 

 for the first time, they were scarcely 

 . saleable. As the anti-Scott wine and 

 beer advocates claim that the low price 

 of grapes was caused by the Scott Act, 

 we suppose that the Scott Act also 

 ruined the gooseberry trade. In times 

 of great glut we find that housewives 

 demand larger fruit, which involves 

 less labor. The quality of the Hough- 

 ton is better than that of the larger 

 varieties. Downing does well with 

 me, and sells more readily. Smith's 

 Improved mildews, and loses its leaves 

 by a species of blight, probably of fun- 

 goid origin. It started with the Smith's 

 in one patch, with me, about 3 years 

 since. From them it has apparently 

 struck the Downings and Houghtons, 

 though with diminished power. 



When the fruit is about half grown, 

 the leaves which seem quite contented, 

 one day will be found green and fresh, 

 and upon the ground the next day. 



They have struck, never again to return 

 to their old work. 



Black currants, with us, are not pro- 

 fitable. The same may be said of 

 cherry and white grape currants. The 

 old Red Dutch is reliable, but for eleven 

 years past I have largely grown the 

 Raby Castle, which beats it in every 

 way. Its greatest merit is its power 

 to hold its black currant style of foliage 

 through the heat of summer. This 

 enables it to ripen its immense crop of 

 fruit perfectly, and to hold it securely 

 until the berry season is nearly past, 

 when it sells readily for good prices. 



The plant is a very strong, rapid 

 grower, and takes the tree form quite 

 readily. The fruit is good, but not 

 much larger than the Red Dutch. The 

 bunches, when weather is favorable, 

 are very long. 



As yet, I do not know what the 

 newer larger kinds can do. 



The tree form has great advantages 

 in the cultivation and picking. As the 

 " tree " is short lived, we must plant 

 as often as once in every seven years. 

 This is a good plan, even where trees 

 are not indulged in. 



E. MORDEN. 

 Niagara Falls South, Ont. 



BIGNONIA RADICANS. 



Mr. Editor, — One of your corre- 

 spondents, Mr. Mackenzie, of Dundas, 

 writes that the Bignonia radicans does 

 not flower, and is cut down every win- 

 ter. This should not occur at Dundas. 

 But if your correspondent will lay the 

 vines down in the fall, and cover them 

 with a light mulch, the result will, in 

 all probability, be different. A lady 

 friend of mine pursues this plan, and 

 under her judicious treatment the Big- 

 nonia flowers abundantly, even al- 

 though occasionally the thermometer 

 goes down to twenty-five degrees below 

 zero. 



I may add that in this quarter grape 



