RUSSIAN APPLES. 107 



reeeiveu some ten years since from Prof. Biuld, and the only 

 Russet that passed through last winter unharmed. From Soutli- 

 ern Minnesota, Giant Swaar and RoUin's Pippin (received from 

 A. W. Sise, of Rochester, Minn.) seem uninjured. The Giant 

 Swaar is a very valuable apple — as good, I think, in every way 

 among the yellow apples as Wealthy is among tlie reds. I am 

 much pleased with it. The Wealthy was not in every case un- 

 harmed, though only a few were hurt, and these were trees wliich 

 had previously been hurt in the trunk by "sun bark blight," i. e., 

 injury from tlie strong action of the sun on the southwestern 

 side. The large majority of my Wealthys are uninjured and 

 bearing a good crop for the off year. Wolf River, from Wis- 

 consin, shows itself, much to my surprise, to be vulnerable, though 

 not seriously harmed. 



And now for the Russians, wliieh must, I am sure, be the best, 

 if not the only reliance for the severest spots. We ought never 

 to have placed the Red Astraehnn among these. Its liardiness is 

 below that of Fameuse, and about equal to that of Tolman's 

 Sweet, Blue Pearmain and Westfield Seek-no-Further. None of 

 these die, but all are practically wortliless here. Astraclian is 

 only politically a part of Russia, with a climate like that of 

 Southern New York. There is no other amoirg the more than 

 fifty Russian apples I have tested tliat shows any defect in hardi- 

 ness except Alexander, which is much hardier than Astrachan, 

 though not ranking with Fameuse. Nevertheless, I have no 

 doubt that degrees of hardiness under extreme expo.sure will be 

 found among the Russians, perhaps even here, but certainly in 

 Dakota, Minnesota, Northern Wisconsin and Michigan, Manitoba 

 and Canada. But for my location, the cpiestion of liardiness is 

 eliminated from the consideration, and we are left merely to se- 

 lect our sorts among the Russians on other considerations. The 

 best so far in my orchard, in order of season, are Yellow Trans- 

 parent, Tetofsky, Duchess of Oldenburg, St. Peter, Prolific 

 Sweeting and Golden White. These are all summer and fall 

 kinds. It is not yet time to determine in regard to winter kinds, 

 as we have not had them long enough to judge them certainly. 

 Those I have in bearing, Borsdorf and Little Seedling, though 

 good keepers, are too small. 



The later importations, Antonovka, Titovka (suppose we call 

 them Antony and Titus), Arabka, Bogdanoff, the Winter Aports 

 and Anises, and the Longfield, are all api)les of good size and 

 quality, and from them and others of the same season, there is 

 no doubt that good selections can be nuide, which will succeed in 

 all parts of America likely to be inhabited by white men. 



As regards other tree fruits, last winter wiped out all pears ex- 

 cept the small Russians from Budd and Gibb; all cherries except 

 Lieb, Large Montmorency and Minnesota Ostheim Seedling of 

 Mr. Myers; all plums except Arctic (injured), and the blue and 

 yellow Orleans of Canada, and the Eastern and Western natives, 



