Notes and Gleanings. cj 



Cider and Vinegar. — The price of these articles has never been so higli 

 as it is this year. Good cider is now selling for thirty-five to forty cents per 

 gallon ; and cider-vinegar, which is very scarce, readily brings half a dollar a 

 gallon. Perhaps it cannot be expected that either of these articles will be very 

 low while apples sell from four to five dollars a barrel ; but it would seem 

 reasonable that those who are fortunate enough to have apples would make 

 their poorest apples into cider, and send it forward to market, where it always 

 commands a ready sale. It is true that cider is more highly et.teemed than it 

 has been for some years, and is sought for by persons of bilious habits, it being 

 regarded as a healthful beverage for such. 



The best cider is made from tlie russet or the crab-apple. There is a vcrv 

 great diflference in the quality of that offered for sale, some barrels being worth 

 double the price of others. We have known some wild apples to yield a cider 

 hardly worth making, and not fit for drinking. It should be made from good, 

 sound, ripe fruit, and then run through sand to remove all impurities ; and 

 after it has worked a little, if it is intended for drinking, it should be nicely 

 bottled. We hope apples may be more plenty in years to come, so that cider 

 may be made in sufficient quantities for vinegar, if not for drinking. 



Propagating Correas, Acacias, and Cytisus. — Correas and acacias 

 are increased by cuttings ; and the points of the shoots, when the wood becomes 

 a little hardened at its base, should be taken, — about three inches of the mod- 

 erately-vigorous shoots. The foliage should be removed from the cuttings for 

 half their length from the bottom ; and the base of each should be cut trans- 

 versely below the lowest joint with a sharj) knife. They should then be inserted 

 in a pot half full of crocks, filled to witliin an inch of the rim with a compost of 

 sandy peat two-thirds, and one-third sandy loam and silver sand, and then to the 

 rim with silver sand. The cuttings should be inserted round the sides of the 

 pot, and up to the leaves in the sand. Give a gentle watering, and place the pots 

 in a house with a gentle heat, covering the cuttings with a bell-glass. A slight 

 bottom-heat will facilitate rooting. Shade should be given from sun ; and the 

 atmosphere must be moist, the cuttings not being allowed to flag from the dry- 

 ness of the soil ; and the latter must not be made sour from constant watering. 

 The cytisus may be increased from cuttings as above described. May and June 

 are a good time to put them in. 



Blackberries. — An intelligent farmer, and one who has been quite suc- 

 cessful in the cultivation of this fruit, recently said to me, " It is no use to try to 

 raise blackberries, unless you are willing to take the trouble to lay them down 

 in winter." It is a fact, that the wood is often so injured during that season ot 

 the year as to cause almost an entire failure of the crop. The plants are not 

 easily handled, and it is a good deal of work to lay them all down : still, if there 

 is no other way, then, for the sake of the berries, every one should be willing to 

 take that trouble. The plants are not generally trimmed severely enough, but 

 are left to run wild and take their chance. This fruit requires good cultivation, 

 and the best results cannot be attained without it. 



