1859. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



17 



THE PEACH. 



Among all the fruits natural to the growth of 

 our soil, there is not one that will compare favor- 

 ably with a well ripened peach of one of the fin- 

 est varieties. The grape and the pear must yield 

 the palm to the peach, and so must the plum, 

 even if we should select for a comparison the 

 Green Gage, the Washington, Jefferson or Co- 

 lumbia. 



The pear, the plum and the grape are excel- 

 lent dessert fruits, and are grateful to evei-y taste ; 

 but the peach, while it claims just as high rank 

 as a dessert fruit as any of those, may be made to 

 serve as a nourishing, substantial food in situa- 

 tions where they can be raised cheaply in large 

 quantities. We have never known a person who 

 did not like the peach. It is palatable and whole- 

 some when ripe, and uncooked, and when cut 

 and served up with sugar, one of the most de- 

 licious sauces that ever came upon the table. In 

 their ripe state they also make the finest pud- 

 dings and pies, always being in demand at the 

 table, even though epicures surround the board. 

 When quartered and properly dried in a kiln, 

 prepared for that purpose, they are just as suita- 

 ble for a sauce, and in the estimation of many. 



quite as good as when fresh from the tree, for 

 pies or puddings. 



We believe the peach and grape to ^e the 

 most easily digested and the most wholesome 

 fruits we have, and that if we used them as arti- 

 cles of food to a much greater extent than we do 

 — not as articles to please the appetite merely — 

 there would be much less sickness among us 

 than usually prevails in the autumnal months. 



If this be so, is it not worth while for every 

 person cultivating a piece of land, to introduce a 

 few peach trees, sufficient, at least, to supply his 

 own table, provided his location is suited to their 

 growth ? 



It is not our purpose now to speak of the va- 

 rieties of this fruit, or of the mode of culture, or 

 the soils most suitable for them. That has often 

 been done in these columns, and probably will 

 be again. 



The beautiful figure above, which we now pre- 

 sent the reader, is an illustration of Van Zandfs 

 Superb, a very light colored and handsome peach, 

 originated some years ago by Mr. Van Zandt, of 

 Flushing, Long Island, It is one of the most 

 beautiful dessert peaches, though only of medi- 



