THE CANADIAN H0RTI0ULTURI8T. 



229 



first time last summer. These trees 

 have already attained a height of fif- 

 teen feet or sixteen feet, with a straight, 

 clean stem covered with thin, smooth, 

 light-colored red bark, similar to that 

 of a thrifty young cherry tree. The 

 leaves are five or six inches in length, 

 accuminate, wedge-shaped at the base, 

 coriaceous. The flowers are small and 

 white, and are borne in immense pan- 

 icles, eighteen inches to two feet in 

 length and three-fourths as broad. These 

 panicles are borne in profusion, and the 

 flowers open during the first week in 

 July and remain in bloom a long time. 

 The tree is considered perfectly hardy 

 here, and grows rapidly. What height 

 it will attain is not certainly known. 

 It promises to be a splendid ornamental 

 tree for this country. The time of its 

 blooming is later than that of most 

 other trees and shrubs, and this feature 

 gives it additional value. — Vick^s Maga- 

 zine. 



THE DUCHESS OF OLDENBURG 

 APPLE. 



Were we writing for the orchardist, 

 as distinct from the people, there would 

 be little need of referring to this excel- 

 lent Apple here, as its merits are 

 widely known to the regular fruit 

 gi'owers. But a kind that is so univer- 

 sally esteemed by orchardists every- 

 where, and especially in the North and 

 West, should be better known by the 

 average amateur. 



A leading merit of this fine Apple is 

 its great hardiness - sufficiently ac- 

 counted for by the fact that it is a 

 Ivussian variety. Added to this, the 

 ;rf'e is a strong grower, forming a 



undish spreading head, and it is an 

 xcellent bearer. What would strike 

 most people as a good characteristic of 

 the tree, is, that it requires but little 

 pruning; at any time — much less than 

 I lie average of orchard trees. 



The fruit is from medium to large 



size, of a handsome, regular form, and 

 is streaked, the ground color being yel- 

 low, with red streaks. The flesh, while 

 not of the highest quality, is sufficiently 

 pleasing to the taste to insure a ready 

 sale for the fruit in market. It is a 

 fine cooking apple. The flesh is a hand- 

 some yellowish white, juicy, slightly 

 sub-acid. There is a faint blue bloom 

 diffiised over the fruit. 



The subject of our article is an early 

 autumn fruit, being at its best in Sep- 

 tember. Possessing, as it does, such a 

 number of good points, it should find a 

 place in the lists of all who set out 

 apples in the northern belts of this fruit. 

 In moderate proportion, it would rarely 

 if ever disappoint the grower. — Popular 

 Gardening. 



GERANIUMS FOR WINTER BLOOM- 

 ING. 



We notice every year advice to ama- 

 teur florists to use only young plants of 

 geraniums for winter blooming. We 

 have tried both young and old plants, 

 and are in favor of old plants every 

 time. A young plant — meaning by 

 that a plant started in the spring — will 

 not have many branches for the first 

 year, consequently it will not have 

 much blossoming surface. It may 

 bloom well, but if many flowers are 

 wanted you must depend on old, well- 

 branched plants for them. Some plants 

 will not bloom well after a certain age 

 is passed, but the geranium will bloom 

 for years, and as long as plants keep in 

 a healthy condition I would not throw 

 them aside for young ones, unless they 

 become too large for the space allowed 

 them. We have plants six and seven 

 years old, and they give us a profusion 

 of flowers every winter. One such plant 

 is worth a dozen small ones. 



In spring we })ut them out on the 

 veranda and cut them back well ; indeed, 

 we cut ofl* at least two thirds of their 

 branches, trimming them into as sym- 



