THE GENESEE FARMER. 



157 



THE LAWTON BLACKBERRY. 



OuK engraving is a drawing from nature of the 

 ISaf and fruit of this valuable variety of the black- 

 beriy, Avhich must be elevated to at least an equality 

 ■with any of the productions of the fruit garden. Its 

 history may be given in the following extracts from 

 fjie official reports of the proceedings of the Farmers' 

 Club of the American Institute, at a regular meeting 

 held at their rooms, No. 351 Broadway, in the city 

 of New York, August 2, 1853: 



" A splendid specimen of the blackberry was pre- 

 sented to the Society by William Lawton, Esq., of 

 New Rochelle. Many of the berries were from tliree 



me without any name to distinguish it from the Wild 

 Bramble, I beg leave to introduce it to the notice of 

 the Club as the JVew Rochelle blackberry, and at the 

 same time present as a specimen a few quarts of the 

 fruit, gathered this morning, precisely as they came 

 from the bushes, without being selected. I have ex- 

 amined many works with a view to ascertain if there 

 ever has been any improvement on the well-known 

 wild varieties, but without success. The Double 

 Floivering, Dwarf or Deivbernj, American Up- 

 right, and the White Fruited, are all that are named. 

 The Dewberry is the first to ripen, and the best fla.- 

 vored fruit. The White Fruited seems to be culti- 

 vated as a novelty more than for fruit. The UprigH 



THE LAWTON BLACKBERRY. 



to four inches in circumference, and a large basket of 

 them was pai-taken of by the members of the Club. 

 Mr. Lawto.v named the fruit the JVeiv Rochelle black- 

 berry, but the Club changed its name to the Lawton 

 blackbeiTy, and tendered to him the thanks of the 

 Association, the following paper having been read 

 jM"eviously by Mr. Lawtox: 



" ' This Blackberry — to which I have before called 

 tlie attention of the Club — has been cultivated in 

 ^all quantities for several years in New Rochelle, 

 Westchester county, where I now reside. I have not 

 Ijeen able to ascertain who first discovered the plant, 

 4Cad brought it into garden culture, but am informed 

 It was found on the road-side, and from thence intro- 

 daced into the neigbboi-iBg gardens. As it came to 



variety fruits late in the season, is of vigorous growth, 

 and under favorable circumstances produces large, 

 mulberry -shaped berries, but the seeds are not thickly 

 imbedded in the pulp, and are so abundant as to im- 

 pair materially the quality of the fruit. The black- 

 berry seems to adhere to its original character with 

 singular tenacity ; or, from the many millions of 

 plants which spring up from seeds annually distributed 

 in almost every diversity of climate and soil, we should 

 constantly find new varieties. Improving the wild 

 plant by careful cultivation is one thing ; to produce 

 a new variety is another. The fruit now before you 

 I believe to be of the last-named character. It is not 

 like the Dewberry, or long and mulberry-shaped like 

 the Upright blaclibeny, aad the setiis are so imbedded 



