THE GENESEE FAEMER. 



373 



SCATTEEED NOTES ON HORTICULIUKE. 



J. J. Thomas, of the Coaidry Gentleman, has recently 

 visited some places in the West, and communicates to that 

 jounial some interesting "Scattered Notes of Travel," from 

 wiiicii we make a few extracts. At Cleveland, Ohio, Mr. T. 

 visited Dr. Kiktlaxd, justly celebrated for the number of 

 seedling cherries of great value that he has oi-iginated. 

 Mr. Teomas says : 



" Dr. KiRTLA.N'D informed us, in reply to a question as to 

 the secret ot his great success in originating new varities 

 of the cherry, that he began in 1812, and for several years 

 was quite unsuccessful. His knowledge of physiological 

 botany however, led him to adopt the practice of cross- 

 ing, and he had pi-acticed the modes of both Van Mons 

 and Knight before he had heard of either. After many 

 years of experimenting, he I'ouud that the Yellow Span- 

 ish cherry (iJigarreau of Downing,) alibrded the best re- 

 sults, and tbat the seed of this sort would grow freely, 

 while other improved varities did not vegetate. He there- 

 fore adopted the Fellow iS/Ja/cisk for seed, and planted on 

 one side of the selected tree, and in close proximity, a 

 Black Tartar Ian, on another a rich Mazzard, on the third 

 a May Duke, and on the fourth the early iSwedish. The 

 branches all intermingling, and bees being abundant in 

 the neighborhood, nearly every seed was a cross. The 

 young seedlings tiius obtained, were carefully examined, 

 and those only selected that exhibited by their large buds 

 and leaves a promising appearance. Only about two per 

 cent, were thus chosen. These selected trees, when of 

 suitable size, were transplanted for bearing, and given 

 freely to the neighbors on condition that they should al- 

 low them to fruit. The long line of trees which bordered 

 the fields and roailsides in the neighborhood, indicated the 

 extent of these experiments. Not more than one per cent, 

 of all that bore, proved of sutKcient value to recommend 

 for cultivation ; ttiat is, only one in Mve thousand of the 

 firstseedliugs." 



Dr. KiRTLAND regards the Cuyahoga grape as the best 

 of all the new American sorts, being superior to either 

 Diana or Delaware — vigorous, very hardy, as early as the 

 Diana, and as delicious as the best exotic kinds. Speci- 

 mens were sent last year to the New York State Fair, and 

 by an amusing but very natural mistake, pronounced by 

 the fruit committee the best new exotic variety. 



At Cleveland, as in this section, many pear trees have 

 been injured or destroyed by the fire blight. The North- 

 ern Spy apple, after being nearly rejected for its non- 

 productiveness, is bearing full crops this season, and 

 promises to be as valuable at Cleveland as in the most fa- 

 vorable localities in Western New York. The Porter suc- 

 ceeds finely and the Early Joe is excellent. 



Cleveland has long been famed for its fruits, and is sit- 

 uated in one of the best fruit regions in the United States, 

 ' the protection afforded by Lake Erie often saving the crop 

 when it is destroyed further south. The Heart varieties 

 of cherries flourish there with eminent success, while as 

 far south as Columbus they are usually attended with 

 failure. 



At Mt. Pleasant, Ohio, (ten miles from Wheeling, Va.,) 

 Mr. T. made a short call at the residence of James H. 

 Gill, who occupies a fine farm of several hundred acres, 

 and who also gives considerable attention to the culture 

 of fruit. 



"He finds the Duchesse cP Angouleme pear, (dwarf,) 

 which has been reported as a failure some parts of the 

 State, to grow and bear well, specimens sometimes weigh- 

 ing a pound and a quarter. The Louise Bonne of Jersey, 

 as elsewhere, bears profuselj-. The Catawba grape, which 

 until within a year or two has succeeded well, and always 

 ripened its crop perfectly, now rots badly. He thinks a 

 less luxuriant growth, with perhaps a dry bottom, would 



prevent it. His peach orchard, intended only for crops 

 for home use, is ke|it well enriched in vigorous growth; 

 and after using all he could in his family the present year, 

 sent the remainder to Wheeling, where the crop brought 

 readily two dollars per bushel, and occasionally five cents 

 a piece, while the market was flooded with less excellent 

 fruit at a dollar and half a dollar per bushel. Two hund- 

 red dollars were received from 11 ;j trees, after sui)])lying 

 bountifully his family— an illustration on a small scale of 

 the importance of thrifty growth and good sorts. 



'' The Ilainho apple succeeds well at this [ilace, in core 

 mon with many other parts of the West, where the win- 

 ters are not too severe. We examined a tree of this var- 

 iety, forty years old, on the grounds of Geo. K. Jknkins, 

 of Mt. Plea.sant, the crop from which for the last eighteen 

 years had averaged tm barrels annually. It was about .35 

 feet high, and eighteen inches in diametei-. The soil was un- 

 doubtedly well suited to it, possessing depth and fertility." 



Of the Columbus (Ohio,) nurseries of M. B. Bateman <& 

 Co., Mr. Thomas speaks of as the first, if not the most ex- 

 tensive in the State : 



"It is comparatively new, everything having been 

 planted within five years, and now numbers one hundred 

 acre.s actually planted with trees. The ornamental grounds, 

 specimen orchards, &c., with which the home residence are 

 surrounded, have made a fine progress in this shoit time. 

 The Osage orange hedge, enclosing forty acres, also five 

 years growth, we have never seen excelled. It is about sev- 

 en feet high, strong and dense, about four feet thick at bot- 

 tom, and tapering by straight sides to a sharp edge at 

 top, and not, as too often seen, broad at top, which always 

 makes a Ihin base sooner or later. We have seen 

 many Osage hedges in this State, which were worth no- 

 thing, having been carelessly transplanted or with gaps, 

 neglected in culture, and never properly cut back— which 

 render success simply impossible. Apple trees are large- 

 ly raised at this nursery, some three hundred thousand 

 being propagated annually. Dwarf pears succeed well. 

 The fire blight has not reached them this year, while so 

 destructive in many other localities. The Heart cherries 

 can be raised only as nursery trees for other regions — 

 after two or three years of age, they fail." 



At Cincinnati he found dwarf pear trees in excellent 

 condition, and bending under loads of large and smooth 

 specimens — some of them equal to any he had ever seen 

 at Rochester or Boston. The Duchesse d' AngouUme, Beurre 

 Diel, and Vicar of Wirikfield, were very large and fair. 



" The grounds of R. Buchanan possess great natural 

 and much artificial beauty. The view on two opposite 

 sides, over a broad and deep valley, in which could 

 be discerned distant villages, richly cultivated fields. 

 Spring Grove cemetry, and the grounds of the United 

 States Agricultural Fair, is extensive and magnificent. 

 He has added an artificial lake, and planted the slopes 

 with ornamental trees, orchards and vineyards. The ap- 

 ple trees, of which there were many varieties were bearing 

 heavy loads of fair fruit. The most profuse bearers were 

 the Willow I'wig, Winesap, Yellow Bdljiower, Bawles' 

 Janet, Belmont, and Romanite. He inform'ed us that if he 

 were confined to three varieties, he would select for early, 

 medium, and late, the Bed Astrachan, Afaiden' s Blush, and 

 White Pippin. His Gataiuba vineyard is the best we saw 

 in this region — the berries become more deeply colored in 

 the neighborhood of Cincinnati than any which are ripen- 

 ed at the east, being often of as deep a purple as the half 

 ripened iiaJe^te that are sometimes shown as fully ma- 

 tured. Pears, both dwarfs and standards, succeed'well ; 

 bu+ they will not bear the high culture and manuring 

 which we give them in New York and New England. 

 Standards do best when standing in grass, after attaining 

 considerable size. Among others, a Jaminette, some fii^ 

 teen 3'ears old, was bearing a most profuse crop. Dwarfs 

 need nioderate cultivation." 



"Latona Springs, Ky. — A pleasant carriage ride of five 

 miles up the picturesque and beautiful valley of the 

 Licking led to the residence of Dr. Mosher, at Latona 

 Springs. It is surrounded by a natural grove of three 

 acres, containing, as he informed us, no less than sixty- 

 three different species of forest trees. Dr. Mosher has 

 given much attention to proving the different varieties of 

 the apple. Among those which succeed well are the 



