FRUITS AND FLOWERS. 293 



FRUITS AND FLOWERS. 



ESSEX. 



From the Report of the Committee on Fruits. 



In arranging the list of fruits for which premiums were 

 offered, the object was to induce the farmers to cultivate the 

 best standard varieties, those particularly well adapted for 

 culture in our county. To this list we would hereafter recom- 

 mend some other varieties, which were accidentally omitted. 

 It is certainly good policy to cultivate the best sort of apples, in 

 preference to many indifferent ones that have been, and are still 

 raised in our county. The Hubbardston Nonesuch, Minister, 

 Danvers Winter Sweet, Seaver's Sweet, Porter, Rhode Island 

 Greening and Roxbury Russet are certainly preferable to the 

 York Russet or Cat Head, Blue Pearmain, and some others with 

 local names and indifferent fruit. In our list of apples for 

 cultivation, we did not include Newtown Pippen, Esopus Spitz- 

 enberg, nor Williams' Early, from the fact that the first two, 

 excellent as they are at the South, are indifferent in our soil and 

 locality, and the last named, requiring deep soils, high manuring 

 and the best garden culture, to produce good marketable fruit. 

 In pears, the selection is more difficult than in apples ; many 

 sorts producing well in our sheltered gardens, do not flourish in 

 the open country, such as Easter Beurr(i, Marie Louise, Long 

 Green and Broca's Bergamotte. Then again other varieties that 

 fruit well upon strong land with a clay bottom, are almost 

 worthless upon a light, dry, sandy loam, and others again are 

 destitute of flavor upon moist, retentive soil. In the cultivation 

 of this fruit, we would recommend the fine American Seedlings ; 

 they are generally hardy and of thrifty growth. The following 

 descriptive catalogue of many of these sorts we append to this 

 Report : — 



Lewis. — This fruit is of a medium size, a great and constant 

 bearer. In eating from November to January. Originated in 

 Roxbury. It requires strong and rather moist land. A fine, 

 melting pear. 



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