1 888. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



247 



Points on Lettuce Culture under 

 Glass. 



[Discussion at the meeting of the Boston Gardners' 

 Association.] 



After listening to a short es.say by Mr. 

 Philbrick of Newton Centre, the discussion 

 was continued by several of tlie principal 

 gardeners of the vicinity of Boston. 



Mr. Allen considered "mildew" one of the 

 principal difBculties to tje encountered, which 

 could be prevented in a meastire by the sprink- 

 linK of sulphur upon steam pipes, if culture was 

 in the green-house. In hot-be<i culture it could 

 be prevented by good strong bottom heat. The 

 best fertilizer is well-rotted stable manure. Did 

 not consider wood ashes of much account. 



Mr. Leonard considered Bowker's Hill and 

 Drill as the best fertibzer, wood ashes is good. 



Mr. Frost mixed his sulphur with water before 

 applying to steam pipes to good effect. Lice in 

 seed bed were caused by running the bed too hot. 

 Could not remove lice from hot-bed when the 

 plants were partially headed without pulling the 

 plants up and throwing away and smoking the 

 bed. He recommends changing the soil of the 

 hot-bed yearly. 



Mr. Sullivan owing to the heavier soil, he had 

 obtained better success by raising his bed some- 

 what. He summer fallows his soil and caits 

 into his beds for winter lettuce, changing it 

 yearly, as a preventative for mildew. The burn- 

 ing or rotting of Lettuce heads is caused by 

 watering with too cold water, he recommends 

 passing water through a portable heater. 



Mr. Philbrick recommended changing of the 

 soil as a preventive of mildew; he has been led 

 to this belief by e.xiierience this past year of 

 changing the soil, and has not been troubled with 

 mildew. He was not troubled fifteen years ago: 

 he thought the soil had become worn out. In 

 watering would give good drenching and not 

 too frequent. 



Mr. Kirby would not recommend running 

 glass too early in season, and that Black seeded 

 TonnisbaU gave better heads than White seed at 

 that season of the year, for he could remove the 

 glass from the beds in the day-time, putting it 

 back at night, for be 'it known that Black seed 

 grown on bottom heat, unless the glass can he 

 removed in the day-light, forms no heads. With 

 White seed the beds can be run closer. Sul- 

 phate of ammonia as a fertilizer had the bad 

 affect of running up too rank growth, the sun 

 burns the edge of the leaves. In watering use 

 caution not to have it to cold, he spoke of the 

 destruction of a bed by not having water at a 

 high enough temperature. The effect of cold 

 water was the rusting of outer leaves. 



Mr. Wellingttin thought that Lettuce grown 

 at the season mentioned by Mr. Kirby more pro- 

 fitable, but uses White seed, a strain or improve- 

 ment of the old White seed, he obtained it from 

 Portland a few years ago. When watering was 

 necessary would shade crop directly after, with 

 use of straw mat. 



Mr. Derby thought damp, cloudy weather 

 caused both burning and mildew, he changed 

 his soil yearly and finds it.a preventative of both. 



Mr. Hill for twenty years has needed no dres- 

 sing. It depended upon what was left in the soil 

 from the last hot-bed. He would call attention 

 to the Lettuce grown in the green-houses of Mr. 

 Coolidge of Watertown, as being the best, taking 

 one year with another, that he knew of. Mr. 

 Coolidge changes his soil yearly. 



Mr. Rawson can not raise us good Lettuce as 

 he could twenty years ago, the longer he gi-ew 

 it, the less he found he knew about it. Damp, 

 cloudy weather and not the sun caused both 

 burning and mildew, 



Mr. Tapley was not so sure that new soil was a 

 preventative for mildew; was not successful last 

 year by so doing. 



Culture of Standard Pears. 



[J. J. Thomas, before the Western New i'ork Horti- 

 cultural Society,] 



My orchards consist of over three hundred 

 trees, occupying the ground somewhat 

 Irregularly, being mostly the remains of a 

 nursery some twenty years ago. A part 

 stands in the grass, cut annually for hay, 

 and another portion in cultivated ground 

 in which crops of Potatoes, Corn, Parsnips, 

 Turnips, Corn fodder, and Sorghum are 



continually raised, with an occasional crop 

 of Rye for plowing in as manure. A third 

 portion has been in grass or Clover a part 

 of the time, and at other times cultivated 

 with Corn and Corn fodder, after plowing 

 in a crop of Clover. 



Grass vs. Caltare. The difference between 

 growing in permanent grass, and in ground 

 yearly cultivated, afforded rather interesting 

 results. Several years ago, when the blight, as 

 an epidemic, swept through the country, it 

 destroyed more than one-half the trees that 

 were not in the grass -the trees in both portions 

 being the Lawrence. Notwithstanding, this re- 

 sult apiiears to be adverse to cultivation, I have 

 found cultivation to be the most profitable, and 

 recommend it. The cultivated trees make the 

 finest growth, and on those which bore heavy 

 crops last season, I now find the annual shoots 

 from si.\ inches to a foot in length, the trees ex- 

 hibiting a \'igorous and healthy appearance. 

 Those growing in grass are stunted with annual 

 shoots, not over an inch or two long. Both sorts 

 bore heavily, but the Pears on cultivated trees 

 were large, fair, and so free from defects, that 

 in carefully sorting for market, not one bushel 

 in twenty was thrown out, and nearly all were 

 classed with the "best," while of those from the 

 trees in sod, a much larger portion was rejected, 

 and those which remain were one-half of the 

 second (piality as to size and appearance. 



I fomid, therefore, that more money is made 

 from an orchard well-tilled, even if one-half is 

 destroyed by blight once in ten or twelve years, 

 than from a greater number of stunted trees 

 bearing low-priced fruit of second quality. I 

 shall plow up the remainder of the sod at proper 

 depth, and run the risk of losing the trees by 

 some epidemic attack. Through nearly all the 

 years, both alike escape. Both have been ma- 

 nured, one as a top-dressing on the grass, and 

 the other with the usual application for culti- 

 vated crops. The portion In grass would doubt- 

 less do better if the grass could be well grazed 

 by sheep, but this part is so situated that 

 animals cannot be introduced. 



A third portion of the orchard was cultivated 

 in hoed crops a part of the time, and at other 

 times was occupied with Clover, to be plowed in 

 the second year. The trees here did well. 



Yield. The whole orchard jielded over six 

 hundred bushels the past season, nearly all of 

 which were sent to commission men in New 

 York and Philadelphia, and were sold at fair 

 prices— mostly yielding a dollar a bushel on the 

 tree, after deducting the expenses of gathering, 

 assorting, packing, shipping, f reiglit,commission, 

 and cost of the half barrels in which packed. 



Varieties. The following varieties were 

 mostly raised: Bartlett, Lawrence, Howell, 

 Anjou, Seckel, and Clairgeau. The heaviest 

 crops were borne by the Anjou trees. Flemish 

 Beauty and Virgalieu, which for many years 

 past were spoiled by scab and cracking, were 

 fair the past season and sold at good prices. 

 Both would doubtless prove an excellent 

 market Pear, but being so excellent in quality, 

 the few bushels which were raised were naturally 

 reserved for home use, by those who, of course, 

 had the privilege of the "first pick." There 

 were about three hundred bushels of Lawrence, 

 which, haring proved an excellent late autumn 

 and early winter variety, were freely disposed 

 of at that season of the year. The sorts which 

 sold at highest prices were Bartlett, Seckel and 

 Clairgeau; the Bartlett for its general ]iopu- 

 larity; the Seckel for its surpassing beauty of 

 appearance. It may be well to state that the 

 reason why the fruit was so fair, was the spray- 

 ing with Paris green given to the whole orchard 

 when the fruit was as large as Marrowfat Peas. 



President Watrous before the Soci- 

 ety of American Nurserymen. 



The opening statement was that the meet- 

 ing was held under circumstances of great 

 encouragement. 



In the matter of transportation alone, the 

 association has accomplished more during the 

 past year than in any three preceeding years in 

 its history; nursery products now lx;ing trans- 

 ported, as third-class matter instead of first. In 

 the matter of securing reduced postage on cut- 

 tings, roots, seed, and bulbs, though not com- 

 pleted, the year's work shows great promise. 

 The work of the year has more than repaid all 

 the association ever cost its membei'S. 



In spite of the drought in Mississippi Valley 

 and other drawbacks, the year has not been an 

 unfavorable one to the nursery trade. The 

 results of losses in this and i)revii>us yeui*, show 

 that indigenous fruits and their derived varieties 

 are what are want<.'d. In sections where fruit 

 descended from foreign ancestors such have 

 been sc'verely crippled, while native derived 

 varieties have been hut little hurt. 



No fruit is more open to improvement than 

 the Ai)ple, and there is reason to believe that in 

 the coui-se of the present generation, the uni- 

 ^■ersally propagated varieties throughout the 

 Northwest will be dcscendents of the native 

 Crab. There has lioen exhibited two diH'erent 

 varieties bearing unraistakalile proof iif legit- 

 imate descent from native thickets, which has 

 excited favorable attention. The Cherry is also 

 amenable to the ssuue laws, and the best author- 

 ities agi-ee, that American trees are best for 

 America, whether fruit, shade or ornamental. 



President Watrous acknowledged that a great 

 work before the association is how to discover to 

 place products in the hand of the planter under 

 their correct names, and without fraud. 

 While tree peddlers might never be taught 

 not to exaggerate the iiuality of their trees, the 

 dishonest ways of filling ordei-s with trees differ- 

 ent in nature and name from those ordered, 

 should be vigorously discouraged. If nui-sery- 

 men refuse to sell trees to agents suspected f)f 

 being dishonest, the evi\ might be abated. 



The experimental sbitions established by the 

 Government were also highly commended. 



Propagation of Ornamental Shrubs 

 and Trees. 



[Oeo. W. Sturlz. Read at Iowa State llorticutlural 

 Society's Annual Meetiny.] 



This paper is part of a thesis written on 

 the Propagation of Ligneous Plants. Being 

 an amateur propagator, I have taken the 

 opinion of the best authorities. 



Alnus, The Aldei-s.— Some varieties arc orna- 

 mental, Almis incaiia lacintata. Propagated th 

 same as the Birches, which see under Betula. 



Amorpha, False Indigo. — A hardy native 

 shrub. Propagated from seed mi.xed with sand 

 and allowed to fi-eeze in winter. 



Bauberis, Barberry .—Some species are quite 

 ornamental. Grown from seed, stolons, or cut- 

 tings of the new wood. The Ixjrry shoidd be 

 washed off, the seed mixed with sand and allowed 

 to fre'eze, but not absorb too nuich moisture. 

 Plant, sand and all, in nurseiy. Cut the stolons 

 in short pieces, keep in sand and iilant in 

 spring, like Corn. 



Betula, The Birches.— G rown from seed kept 

 dry until spring, then sowed in drills and covered 

 very lightly. When the plants get above gnnuid 

 they should be shaded, and dry sand spread 

 around them topreventdampingoff. Also grown 

 from cuttings. Make the cuttings in the fall, 

 and set in a bo.x with about an inch of moss in 

 the bottom, and on this two inches of sjoid. Bore 

 holes in the box for drainage. Stick the cuttings 

 in the sand, and water them every three or four 

 days. Keep where they will not freeze, but 

 do not keep too warm, or allow too much 

 light. Plant out in June or July where they will 

 be slightly shaded. Tiiey may also lie budded or 

 grafted on the common varieties. 



Caraoana.— A number of small trees. Quite 

 ornamental. Keep the seed dry until time for 

 planting, then soak a little in scaUling water. 



CataIjPA.— A fine ornamcntjil and timber ti'ce. 

 Propagated from seed gathered about the 1st of 

 October, and kept dry during the winter. Soak 

 for about two hours, and mix with sand before 

 sowing. Take up the plants in the fall and heel 

 them in, or pack away in the cellar. 



Celastrus. — Celostrw scatuUns^ Climbing Bit- 

 tersweet. A very desirable climber. Grown 

 from seed mixed with sand, and allowed to freeze. 



Chionanthus, White Fringe.— Easily propa- 

 gated from seed. Can be budded on Green Ash. 



Cladastrus.— Oatlaslnis tinctnria. Yellow 

 Wood.— A small ornamental tre'C. Propagated 

 the same as Caragana, e-xcept that it will not 

 stand as much scalding. 



CoRNUs, Dogwood.— Propagated from cuttings 

 of the new wood, put out in the fall. 



CoTo.NEASTER.- Propagated same as the Apple, 

 and may be inter-grafted with it. 



CvTistis. — Flowering shrubs. Grown from 

 seed, or may be grown from stolons. 



Dectzia.— A very beautiful shrub, but must 

 be covered during the winter. Propagated the 

 same as the Philadclphus. 



