FRUITS AND FLOWERS OF NORTHERN JAPAN. 47 



American varieties of both raspberries and blackberries do well 

 here. The vines of all varieties, however, need winter protection. 

 This I fonnd co'ild be best given by bending down over a mound 

 of earth and holding in place with small stakes. Neither earth 

 nor straw covering was necessary, the snow serving every pur- 

 pose. The season of fruiting is late but long. 



The Yesso chestnut, verj'^ abundant in many sections and much 

 used by the aborigines of the island as well as by the Japanese, is 

 in size and quality almost identical with the American. It is 

 altogether difterent from the large chestnut of old Japan, but like 

 that produces fruit very 3-oung. The Japanese have a proverb 

 which sa3's, translating literally, " The chestnut in three years, 

 the persimmon in seven," indicating that trees of these fruits will 

 become productive respectively in three and seven years. When 

 planted in Yesso, however, the southern chestnut fails to justify 

 its claims to such precocity, requiring usually fully twice the 

 number of years just mentioned. 



The Yesso walnut resembles closely the English walnut, but is 

 inferior in both size and quality to the best specimens of that nut 

 found in our markets. Neither is it anywhere very abundant. 



The native grape is Vitis Lahrusca, the same species, you will 

 recognize, as our own most common wild and cultivated varieties. 

 In Yesso, however, the wild species does not vary as does our 

 own. I have never seen more than one form, a medium to large 

 bunch of small, hard, seedy and very sour berries, of a purple or 

 almost black color with comparatively little bloom. The vine is, 

 however, remarkably rank and vigorous in habit. A specimen 

 with stem fourteen inches in diameter was found near Sapporo, 

 and I have many times noticed leaves nearly two feet across. If 

 anything shall be discovered able to withstand the phylloxera or 

 calculated to infuse new disease-resisting vigor into our failing 

 vines, it would seem that we have it here in Yesso. Already 

 French and Swiss wine growers have had their agents on the spot 

 and have taken measures to test this vine. 



The cultivated grape of Old Japan is Vitis vinijera, and all 

 varieties there grown require more heat than the Yesso summer 

 affords ; but in Yesso both American and German varieties have 

 been for a number of 3^ears under trial. All sorts common here 

 ten years ago have been extensively tried ; but with very indiffer- 

 ent success. With the single exception of the Delaware most fail 



