Notes and Gleanings. 185 



of the sun. Vegetable growth has been luxuriant ; but there has been a uniform 

 lack of flavor in all our fruits. Perhaps the pear has suffered in quality as much 

 as any fruit ; being watery, and lacking in the high flavor of former years. Many 

 kinds have'cracked worse than ever, owing to the stagnant action of the roots 

 in the cold, wet ground. As we should expect, grapes have been subject to the 

 different forms of mildew ; which cause, in addition to the unusually late start in 

 the spring, has prevented many kinds from ripening. It seems evident that 

 moderate dryness is essential to the development of the highest quality in fruit. 

 Along the shores of Lake Erie, the showers which are generated by the lakes are 

 carried over and empty themselves upon the interior hill-country, while the shore 

 belt and the islands are favored with a gentle humidity and a uniformity of tem- 

 perature which insure the best results. In the vicinity of Boston, where the 

 average rain-fall during the three summer months is about 12^ inches (an inch 

 more than at Cleveland, O., and from three to four inches more than in the 

 wine districts of Europe), we must choose dryer and more porous soils, 

 steeper declivities ; we must see that drainage is perfect ; in a word, we must 

 make it the great problem to counteract the effect of a superabundance of rain. 

 The difficulty is that our rain is most unequally distributed, excessive drought 

 following excessive rain. Belts of evergreens have a surprising effect in modi- 

 fying these extremes, and preserving a uniformity of temperature and moisture. 

 But we have exceeded our limits in these speculations, and now turn to record 

 the work of the season. 



On the 16th of January, your committee visited the fruit-house of E. S. Con- 

 verse, in Maiden, constructed on the plan of Prof. Nyce. Mr. Converse gave 

 us most liberal opportunity for testing the keeping qualities of various fruits, and 

 also for inspecting the plan and merits of the house. Well-known principles 

 of science have been applied in the construction of the house, so that the results 

 are highly satisfactory. While there are some exceptions, the strawberry being 

 an example, the great majority of fruits may be kept as in a dormant state for 

 a great length of time. In most cases, the flavor of the fruit is not materially 

 affected, though the change is generally rapid when brought into the open air. 

 With good judgment in the selection of varieties, there can be no doubt of the 

 practical value of these fruit-houses ; though it is to be borne in mind that fruits 

 out of season are often out of place. Bartlett pears sold at lower rates in No- 

 vember than in September. Were they brought in as abundantly in the latter 

 month, the market would be quite over-stocked. This law of the market is 

 recognized by every dealer ; no enterprise for securing the earliest fruits being 

 considered hazardous, while the late varieties of a given kind of fruit have to 

 meet a satiated appetite. This accounts, in a degree, for the neglect of the so- 

 called ever-bearing, or fall-bearing, varieties of fruit. At the Pomological Con- 

 vention of this year, there was a disposition to condemn the entire list. The 

 Catawissa Raspberry, at least, deserves to be excepted, since it is so entirely 

 separated from all the other crops of small fruits as to be called an independent 

 crop. Under good management, it will yield a large crop in September ; not 

 valuable for the market, it is true, but supplying a tea-table want which has httssi 

 met only by peac'.ies. 



VOL. "1. 24 



