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POPULAR GARDENING. 



March, 



Horticultural Notes by Samuel Mil- 

 ler of Missouri. 



Plums of 1888. Wild Goose and Mari- 

 anna ripened about the same time, the first 

 as usual a full crop, and many went to 

 waste. The Marianna is no earlier nor as 

 large, and is inferior in quality, while it is 

 much more injured by the curculio than 

 Wild Goose. Deep Creek came next, and is 

 a superb Plum; Louisa two weeks after 

 Wild Goose, and a much better fruit, about 

 the same size, darker in color. De Soto, 

 although not as large as the pictures repre- 

 sented it, is of good size, very nearly as large 

 as Wild Goose, while it is so much better 

 that if they ripened at the same time the 

 Wild Goose would hardly be touched. The 

 common Blue Damson and the Freestone 

 Damson ripen with the former. 



But the crowning one is the Golden 

 Beauty. Young trees here in the bottom 

 lands are dropping some damaged speci- 

 mens that are half decayed, and some are 

 cracking, which I attribute to much rain and 

 the rich soil in which the trees stand. The 

 trees on a hill of about 1.50 feet elevation 

 are loaded with their bright fruit about an 

 inch in diameter, round, as bright and clean 

 as gold, sweet and pleasant, almost a free- 

 stone. The tree is a rapid grower and very 

 ornamental. My intention is to graft this 

 and the Blue Damson on alternate branches 

 of a tree to see the contrast, as they ripen 

 about the same time. The yellow and blue 

 would make a picture. Last year I grafted 

 Purple-leaved Plum on the Golden Beauty 

 for the contrast in foliage, but for some 

 reason they faUed to grow. 



Kelset's Japan. A friend of mine had 

 several specimens on a bud but one year old 

 and when they were the size of a common 

 hen's egg he thought it would be a show. 

 But the curculio had done its work so that 

 they all dropped prematurely. This refutes 

 the idea of its being curculio proof. Golden 

 Beauty is the only curculio proof Plum that 

 I have formed, not that the curculio does not 

 attack it, but it is so firm during the season 

 when the insect does its mischief, that the 

 puncture don't amount to anything, and if 

 it did, there is always enough for them and 

 us both. A neighbor recently sent me some 

 very fine blue Plums that are new to me, 

 and look very much like a cross between 

 our common Damson and the German 

 Prune. Hardy and productive, with no 

 marks of curculio on them. 



The Kieffer Pear and Others. Close 

 observation and repeated tests of the above 

 Pear for the past two years, convince me 

 that it has come to stay, and those planting 

 for profit will do well to set it out freely. 

 My impression is that it will soon take the 

 place among Pears that the Ben Davis now 

 holds among Apples. The Garber is another 

 that will soon come to the front, on account 

 of the beauty of the tree, the large size of 

 the fruit, as well as its excellence for pre- 

 serving and canning, and it is also good to 

 eat fresh. My Garbers sold at retail for 

 $1 per bushel the present season, while mo.st 

 others only brought $3 per bushel. 



Another old variety, the Clairgeau, has 

 not received the attention that it deserves. 

 For five years in succession my trees have 

 done nobly, and always command the high- 

 est prices. When we grow fruit for profit 

 we must grow such as pleases the public 

 eye as well as taste, for appearance more 

 than quality, takes among the masses. 



What Grapes to plant. Prom my 

 standpoint I would advise the following: 

 White, Martha, Lady, Pocklington, Moore's 

 Diamond, Empire State and Niagara. These 

 are all healthy, vigorous vines, productive 

 and hardy. Moore's Diamond is the best in 

 quality; Empire State is an excellent Grape 

 also very handsome and an good keeper; 

 Niagara is late and valuable on that account, 



while Moore's Diamond and Empire State 

 are both early. Rid, Delaware, Brighton, 

 Catawba, Vergennes and Jefferson; the lat- 

 ter the best of the lot, but not entirely 

 hardy here, nor is the Brighton. We lay 

 them down and cover through the winter. 

 Black, Jewell, earliest and best; Early 

 Victor, nearly as early, excellent also; 

 Moore's Early, Worden, Defiance, Norton and 

 Cynthiana. If a man has all these there 

 will be a succession from early to late. 



Pecans on Hickory Failing. In an ar- 

 ticle last spring I stated that the time would 

 come when the Hickory trees would be con- 

 verted into choice nuts and Pecans,and men- 

 tioned what I had done in that line. But 

 unless better success attends the operation 

 hereafter, it will be a long time before that 

 takes place. Two years ago two out of five 

 grafts of Nusbaumer's Hybrid Pecan grew; 

 while the past spring out of at least one 

 hundred grafts set of different Pecans on 

 Hickory of improved varieties, not a single 

 one is alive to day. Why this is so I cannot 

 tell, hut this spring it will be tried again. 



Persimmon Trees from Root Cuttings. 

 One asks whether these can be so grown ? 

 Yes, easily, and such trees can be trans- 

 planted with as much success as any ordin- 

 ary tree. Take roots one-third to one-half 

 inch in diameter, cut in pieces three inches 

 long and put them upright in sand, covering 

 two inches and most of them will grow. 

 The general impression that this tree is diffi- 

 cult to transplant is an error, for I have done 

 it successfully with a tree four inches in 

 diameter, that took four of us hours to get 

 it out of a land slide in the Missouri river. 

 It remained fresh in the wood but did not 

 put out a single leaf the first summer. The 

 following spring I sawed it off at the ground, 

 and thought our labor had been in vain, but 

 to my delight it sent up three shoots from 

 the stump, and in this, its third year, has 

 borne a few dozen of the finest of fruit. It 

 is an early one ripening before frost. 



I gathered from a young tree of the Ruby 

 half a bushel on the last day of December, 

 1888. It is the smallest of my collection, 

 but is considered a good one. That there 

 may be a cross produced between our natives 

 and the Japanese I think possible; and if 

 we can get a hardy one with the size of the 

 foreign and the quality of our own, it will 

 be a treasure. 



How TO Use Apples. I have hit upon a 

 good plan— bring up a good sized basketful 

 every morning, and have them where the 

 family can see them all day; and when 

 strangers come in there is a free lunch for 

 them. As the post office is in my room, 

 it comes very handy to those (and there are 

 plenty such) that have none at home. 



New Vegetables. Of new Sweet Corns, 

 Perry's Hybrid is an excellent one with good 

 sized ears. But the best, in point of flavor, 

 is one, the name of which I do not know; 

 the ears are of good size. The Polaris Potato, 

 which I had from the Agricultural Depart- 

 ment last season, and from which we raised 

 half a bushel, has done better this season 

 that Early Rose, and is a week earlier. The 

 Early Ohio is becoming a great favorite 

 here, and this season I invested a couple of 

 dollars in the Chas. Downing, but the Col- 

 orado beetle and the black backed bug are 

 so numerous that with all my warfare they 

 did not have a fair chance. 



Starting Early Vegetables. Any time 

 after the middle of February seed can be 

 sown in boxes in the house, such as Cab- 

 bage, Cauliflower, Egg Plant, Pepper and 

 Tomatoes. Inordinary cases narrow boxes, 

 say six inches wide and five inches deep, 

 long enough to fit on a window sill or on lit- 

 tle shelves in the window are very handy. 



The seed can be sown in these boxes, 

 which are filled with rich garden soil mixed 

 with well decomposed manure or leaf mould 



but not sown too thickly nor too deep — one- 

 half inch being sufficient, in drills half an 

 inch broad and one inch apart. The boxes 

 can be placed near a stove or under it if con- 

 venient; with a damp cloth laid on the top. 

 It will hurry them up, but as soon as they 

 show themselves the cloths must be re- 

 moved and the boxes set by the window, 

 where they can get all the sunshine possible. 



When they are half an inch high the boxes 

 should be turned every day or they will soon 

 be "leaning towers," and when one inch 

 high draw a finger or a pointed stick along 

 between the rows, going half an inch deep. 

 This will hill the ground up to the plants a 

 little, then fill up the little furrow with fine 

 manure. One important thing is too give 

 the plants just enough water, which com- 

 mon sense will teach any one; for if too dry 

 they will wilt, and if too wet will damp off. 

 When these plants get two inches high they 

 can be filled up a little more. 



These will be in admirable order to set in 

 the hot-bed as soon as the weather will per- 

 mit, which is usually about the middle of 

 March in this latitude. In the hot-bed they 

 should be set one inch by two, and if well 

 attended will give their first ripe fruit long 

 before they could be raised in the open 

 ground. If no hot-bed is provided they can 

 be set in larger boxes, and these set out in 

 the sun on warm days. 



My living room faces the south, the door 

 of which is open, and a sash placed upright 

 on the outside. This door frame has a num- 

 ber of shelves with boxes and pots with 

 flowering plants that makes the house look 

 cheerful. On cold nights these are taken 

 dowTi and the door shut, and the fire in a 

 big stove kept all night, even if I must at- 

 tend to it several times. Those who have 

 no flowers during the winter miss a great 

 pleasure in my opinion. 



Persian Rose Tobacco. While not a 

 smoker, and never before raised Tobacco, I 

 last spring sowed a small packet of the 

 above that a friend in the East sent me. It 

 is a very handsome plant in leaf and in 

 flower, and will answer as an ornament in 

 the lawn or flower garden. 



What A Vegetable Garden Should 

 Mean. 



WM. H. TEOMANS, TOLLAND CO., CONN. 



It is a great mystery why there are so 

 many owners of land having the oppor- 

 tunity, that are so careless and appear to 

 have so little thought regarding the vegeta- 

 ble garden. When given that attention that 

 it ought to have, and when made what it 

 ought to be, to entitle it to its name, there is 

 no more profitable portion of cultivated 

 land upon an entire farm. 



But a vegetable garden is unworthy of 

 the name that produces only a few hills of 

 Corn, Beans, Potatoes and Cucumbers. An 

 ideal garden should contain a full supply of 

 all that can be grown in the vegetable line. 

 Nor is it sufficient that it have only such as 

 may be supposed to be necessary from one 

 planting. The very thought of a vegetable 

 garden should carry with it the idea of a 

 constant and liberal supply of every kind 

 that may be produced successfully. 



Vegetables of some kinds arrive at their 

 best condition and then commence to de- 

 cline rapidly in their desirable qualities. 

 In such cases the planting should be made 

 at such intervals of time as will be likely to 

 secure a succession of the product. How- 

 ever desirable earliness may be, nothing is 

 gained by planting before the soil gets suf- 

 ficiently warm to cause a speedy germina- 

 tion and a rapid development of the plant. 

 A slow unnatural growth is very likely to 

 produce undesirable vegetables. 



Sweet Corn is an important factor in a 

 vegetable garden, and should be planted for 



