68 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



February, 



Yellow Transparent Family. 



J. L. BUDD, AMES, IOWA. 



Beyond all reasonable doubt the Yellow 

 Transparent will prove a valuable addition to 

 the Usts over a very large area of the United 

 States and Canada, but J wish to keep the idea 

 before the reading public that the Thaler Apple 

 will succeed grandly in parts of the West and 

 the cold North where the Yellow Transparent 

 will fail by bUght or winter killing. 



The Thaler is a better tree and with us it is 

 quite as early, fully as laige in size, and we 

 think better in quality, as it retains its rich- 

 ness of flavor and juiciness longer after it be- 

 comes fit for dessert use. 



A member of this interesting family a week 

 later in ripening, known as "Blushed CalvUle," 

 is best of all in quality of fruit. Though it 

 has a German name it is a true Russian variety, 

 and is much grown on the sparrow hills near 

 Moscow. The fruit is bright yellow with a 

 delicate blush next the sun. In size it is about 

 like Yellow Transparent, but in tenderness and 

 delicacy of its sub-acitl flesh it i.s near the Dyer. 



The Grand Sultan of Ellwanger & Barry is 

 also of this family, and the haidiest tree and 

 least liable to blight of the whole lot. As yet 

 we do not know much of its habits of bearing as 

 our only specimens were picked in the nursery. 

 Will some reader who has had longer experi- 

 ence report the behavior of the Graud Sultan 

 in the orchard. 



Seedling and Russian Apples in the 

 Northwest. 



REPORT OP PETER M. GIDEON, SUPERINTENDENT OP 

 MINNESOTA STATE FRUIT FARM. 



Twenty-three years ago I planted a few 

 Cherry Crab seeds, obtained in Maine, and 

 from those seeds I grew the Wealthy Apple. 

 That fruit convinced me that the true road to 

 success was in crossing the Siberian Crab with 

 the common Apple ; on that line 1 have operated. 

 I did not suppose that in the short space of six- 

 teen years, the time since the Wealthy first 

 fruited, that I should have more than twenty 

 first-class Apples— as good as the world can pro- 

 duce — and in hardiness of tree surpassing all 

 known varieties of the common Apple. But it 

 is done, the problem is solved, as to what to do 

 and how to do it, with the material at hand 

 with which to attain yet greater results. 



With such results, and only a few thousand 

 trees fruited, what may we not expect at the 

 end of the next sixteen years, with twenty or 

 thirty thousand selected trees from the very 

 best of seed, which are not yet fruited, and the 

 seed of over one hundred bushels of choice Ap- 

 ples planted this fall, all to fruit in a few years. 

 Soon the choice varieties will count into the 

 hundreds, and the great Northwest will be the 

 fruit pai'adise of America. 



To get the desired cross we plant the selected 

 varieties in close proximity. The seed thus 

 produced is planted, the most promising of the 

 seedlings selected and set in orchards lor fruit- 

 ing, and, after fruiting, the best in tree and 

 fruit is selected from which to grow seeds to 

 try again, and so on. At each repetition I find 

 there is a gain. The young trees that fruited 

 this year for the first gave a larger percentage 

 of first-class Apples than any lot ever before. 



By crossing and judicious selection we retain 

 the hardiness of the Crab without the Crab 

 thorns, and grow large Apples without the as- 

 tringency of the parent Crab. We also get an 

 exquisite flavor not found in any other class of 

 Apples, especially so when made into sauce. 

 But our triumph is not j'et complete; we must, 

 we can, fill up the entire year with a continued 

 succession of luscious Apples. The past is a 

 guarantee that it can be done. 



But the proper cross can't be got in Minne- 

 sota, a fact clearly demonstrated in the exten- 

 sive trials that have been made in the last nine 

 years in the State orchard. There are no long 

 keepers, of the best quality, yet found that aj'e 

 hardy enough to fruit in Minnesota ; but we 



can take our best hardy seedlings further south, 

 where the long-keepers can, be grown, and there 

 get the cross and then bring the seed here to 

 grow and test the hardiness of tree and quality 

 of fruit. Our seedlings wiD average in quality 

 with Hyslop and Transcendent. But those of 

 flrst>class, such as we propagate, stand about 

 as one to 500, as hardy as Duchess and Wealthy, 

 and of the extreme hardiest about one to l,.5O0. 



SEEDLING TREES FOR DISTRIBUTION. 



We now have thousands of choice seedlings 

 of our raising on hand here for distribu- 

 tion to those who want one, two, three and 

 foiu- year-old trees. Those who come and dig 

 the trees will get them free of cost; others will 

 have the cost of digging and packing to pay, 

 about one doDar per 100. The bulk of the trees 

 are two years old. All who get trees «-ill be 

 expected to take good care of them untU they 

 fruit, and if any prove of extra value, so re- 

 poi't, but the trees and the profits thereof be- 

 long to the cultivator. We only want the re- 

 port. Those who want larger trees had better 

 come and do their own digging and thus save 

 a large bill. 



PLANT VARIOUS KINDS. 



Two years ago this winter was the first time 

 the Duchess and Wealthy were seriously hurt, 

 and a like fate befeU all the Russians on our 

 grounds, so that not a Russian Apple was set 

 here last year, whilst alongside of them our 

 seedlings carried a fair crop, some of them pro- 

 fuse, and this year all bore heavy crops, show- 

 ing beyond a question that the Crab infusion 

 is to be the foundation of successful fruit cult^ 

 ui-e throughout the Northwest. 



The value of the Duchess, Wealthy and some of 

 the best of the Russians is too great in the 

 Northwest to be rejected on accomit of one 

 partial failure, after over twenty years of unin- 

 terrupted success, for such a winter as that 

 of two years ago may not occur again in a life- 

 time, if ever. If those varieties should stand 

 only ten years they would be the most profit- 

 able crop a land owner coidd plant. On clay 

 soil they do the best. 



The so-caUed Crab roots are not at all hardy. 

 Being mongrels, where the Crab predominates 

 the graft that is not a Crab mongrel does not 

 take well, neither on root nor stock. The 

 mongrel root and mongrel stock are only pre- 

 ferable when a mongrel graft is to be inserted, 

 but as £ill such are not hardy, a good mulch is 

 needed of some coarse litter to make sure again.st 

 root-killing in winter. 



The Common Apple will not make a smooth 

 junction on a stock where the Crab predomi- 

 nates, and consequently will not make a lasting 

 tree ; and one of these haidy varieties grafted 

 or budded on the Common Apple stock is worth- 

 less, as the stock below the junction of graft or 

 bud is sure to winter-kill the first hard winter. 

 You can protect a tender root, not a tender stock, 

 so avoid the tree agent with his budded trees. 



The Eating of Flowers. 



One lady we know of laments the fact of 

 being so badly addicted to this horrid use of 

 flowers that she cannot possibly break herself 

 of the habit. No sooner does she get a bunch 

 of flowers, than, after enjoying them for a 

 while, and in which she takes great pleasure, 

 she will go into a spell of meditation, diu-iug 

 which she unconsciously picks and consumes 

 the petals. Usually by the time her thoughts 

 are regained the flowers ai'e spoiled, and she 

 then grieves over such a foolish loss. 



The habit of eating flowers is unquestionably 

 a bad one. Flowers were so evidently created 

 for gratitying the organs of sight and smell, 

 that one must wonder how any person could 

 get in the way of consuming them indiscrimi- 

 nately as cattle eat grass. To be sure Hyacinth 

 blooms and Rose petals are well known to 

 have a not unpleasant taste, in fact it is quite 

 otherwise. Theii- use in the making of candied 

 Hovvers it seems is being adopted abroad. It is 

 also reported that some belles eat Violets to 



sweeten the breath, but we question the pro- 

 priety of the course. 



Aside of this use of certain flowers, however, 

 and which many will call proper enough, it is 

 unquestionably the case that there are those 

 who, like the women reported above, eat many 

 other sorts, in tact any sorts they may happen 

 to get hold of, but who are ready to admit that 

 it is done as a habit, and usually with no 

 thought of what they are doing at the time. 



A bitter taste in the mouth is one of the 

 common consequences of the habit, but this in 

 itself, it would seem, seldom causes enough dis- 

 comfort to lead to reform. 



There is even danger in the habit, for some 

 flowers, like the Aconitt-s, are poisonous. Child- 

 ren have often been made sick, even to vomit- 

 ing by swallowing blossoms that were other- 

 wise harmless, In this last fact may possibly 

 be found an idea to aid slaves of the habit in 

 breaking themselves. 



If those who know that any bouquet they 

 may get in hand will sooner or later be picked 

 to pieces and eaten by themselves, will at the 

 first take the precaution to scatter some grains 

 of any simple drug which has the power to 

 cause nausea, over the flowers, the eating may 

 then lead to such unpleasant results as wDl 

 make the very sight of flowers disgusting to 

 the stomach for a while. In this way it is be- 

 lieved that entire recovery from the habit may 

 after a few repetitions be efl'ected. The remedy 

 may be an unpleasant one, but surely it is not 

 so bad as the disease. 



Making Lawns at the South; Good 

 General Advice. 



WM. SAUNDERS, WASHINGTON, D. C. 



To the inquiry of your correspondent regard- 

 ing the formation of lawns in Louisiana, and 

 the best method of obtaining them, I would 

 answer that the principal factor is a deeply 

 loosened soil, and this applies to the North as 

 well as to the South. 



Where practicable this work of preparation 

 can be more economically performed by the 

 plow than by hand labor alone. First throw 

 out as deep a furrow as possible with the com- 

 mon plow, then run a subsoil plow in the bottom 

 of the furrow, A stiri-ed depth of from 15 to 

 18 inches may thus be obtained. If done by 

 hand, it should be spaded as. deep as the spade 

 can penetrate, and the subsoil loosened with a 

 pick or mattock. 



In all cases it is better to keep the top layer 

 of the soil on the top, rather than to trench the 

 ground over and throw the subsoil on the sur- 

 face, A second plowing will be necessary ; but 

 previous to this the ground should receive a 

 dressing of rotted manure at the rate of thirty 

 cart loads per acre; failing this, apply at least 

 half a ton of bone dust per acre and harrow it 

 in. Before sowing the seed, the surface shoidd 

 be made smooth and regular. No pains or ex- 

 pense should be grudged to make the sm-face 

 grade perfect before sowing, for it will be diffi- 

 cult to make corrections afterwards. 



With proper preparation there need be no 

 doubts raised about the growth of Blue Grass, 

 or Jime Grass, Poa pratensis, in Louisiana. 

 There ai'e no better grasses for lawns than the 

 above named and the Red Top, Agrostis vul- 

 garis. Two bushels of Blue Grass, one bushel 

 of Red Top and one quart of Timothy Grass is 

 suflicient for one acre. This should be mixed 

 before sowing. The Timothy Grass wdl soon 

 disappear; but the seed vegetates quickly, 

 loosens the sm-face and gi-eatly assists the 

 growth of the other gras.ses. One of the most 

 pernicious practices is to sow oats, barley or 

 some other grain with the grass seed. Grass 

 requires no shade or protection of this kind. 



As to the time of sowing in Louisiana, I would 

 decidedly prefer late fall, say about the 1st of 

 October. If sown in spring, the earlier the 

 better. If sown in February, the lawn should 

 be ready for mowing by middle of AprU. On 

 newly seeded lawns the mower should be run 



