SECRETARY'S REPORT. 251 



amateurs in this direction, thus far, is most gratifying, and 

 affords ample room for encouragement to further experiments 

 for the accomplishment of this object. 



The production of such varieties as the Isabella, the Catawba, 

 the Delaware and the Concord, from seed, ought to convince 

 the incredulous that immense benefits are to result from these 

 experiments. 



Those of Mr. Bull, of Concord, arc so much in point that I 

 cannot forbear quoting his own account of them : " Beginning 

 with the wild grape, the best I could find, I got from the seed- 

 lings of that grape, first, the mother of the Concord ; second, 

 out of that seedling, the Concord ; out of the seeds of the Con- 

 cord, many new grapes, nearly a score of which are great improve- 

 ments over the Concord, so that the pulp, which is one of the 

 distinguishing characteristics of our native grape, is lost, and 

 you have a grape of tender and delicate texture throughout, 

 like the hot-house grape." Here is marvellous improvement, 

 and the result is comprised in few words, but to secure it has 

 been no pastime of a day. He tells us that out of two thousand 

 seedlings he got nothing to surpass the Concord, and then, as 

 to the time required, he says you must be content to wait six 

 years for the first fruit, and two or three years longer to test its 

 best quality. 



But we turn from these speculations, interesting though they 

 are, and entirely germain to our subject, to its more practical 

 features. 



In selecting a piece of ground for his operations, the seed- 

 raiser should bear in mind one of the principles laid down by 

 Lindley, relating to seed, viz., " that the seed is nourished by the 

 same means as the fruit." He will see, then, that the land on 

 which his seeds are raised is well adapted to the raising of the 

 fruit from which the seed is taken. For instance, he will not 

 attempt to produce tomato-seed on a cold soil, because this plant 

 requires a warm one to bring it to its greatest perfection. Nor 

 will he depend on soil alone, but remembering that the " seed 

 will be more or less perfectly formed, according to the abun- 

 dance of its nutriment, he will take care that there be no starv- 

 ing process going on while nature, in her secret chambers, toils 

 to preserve her forms of life inviolate." 



