I/O STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY, 



varieties? And will you state if black knot has abated its former 

 virulence, or if a remedy for this fearful disease has been found, 

 and if salt is applied now more or less than it once was, say 50 

 or 30 years ago in the culture of this to me favorite fruit, and 

 much oblige." 



So far as known nearly or quite all of the varieties named in 

 our premium list thrive in the State, and many more. For 

 various reasons those on which premiums are offered are con- 

 sidered with most favor. The Abundance and Burbank have 

 "both been doing well in the State, and some of the trees are com- 

 ing into bearing. The fruit is very handsome and some of the 

 trees have borne very heavily for young trees. In some cases 

 the winter of '96 and '97 was too severe for these trees, as it was 

 also for some of our tenderer varieties. As many questions are 

 "being asked concerning the Japanese plums, which are difficult 

 for Maine people to answer we publish an article from the New 

 England Homestead, written by H. E. Van Denian, late pomol- 

 ogist. It should be borne in mind, however, that none of these 

 plums have been grown in the State long enough to make 

 positive statements of their value. They certainly deserve further 

 trial. 



Mr. VAX DEMANS ARTICLE. 



The introduction of the Japanese plums in America is one of 

 the notable pomological events of the present century. It has 

 opened a new field, because the varieties imported direct from 

 Japan, good as they are, are only the stock from which to propa- 

 gate numerous seedlings and crosses with other species of the 

 plum family, and some of these are already beginning to appear. 

 The large size and handsome colors of the Japanese plums make 

 them very attractive, and the good quahty of the most of them 

 pleases the taste. The firmness of the flesh enables the fruit to 

 be carried almost without injury over long distances. . The trees 

 are mostly of good shape and sturdy habit, and bear almost too 

 well. In fact, they must be carefully watched and the fruit 

 thinned, or the trees will be greatly overloaded and injured. The 

 varieties range in color from almost white to dark purple, and 

 some are as red to the stone as any cherry. The season of ripen- 

 ing extends from very early to very late. All varieties, except 



