374 NeiD Varieties of Native Grapes. 



bud. If this is not done, the growth will be very far from 

 being satisfactory. One would hardly believe what a dif- 

 ference in growth this treatment will make, until he shall 

 have tried it. When winter comes on, the seedlings must 

 be protected by having leaves or straw thrown over them; 

 otherwise many of them will perish. In January follow- 

 ing take up the vines ; pot them in 6 or 8 inch pots : put 

 them on moderate bottom heat, and train as directed for the 

 first summer. In April or May take the vines out of the 

 pots, shake the earth from the roots, taking care that they 

 are not broken, and plant in the open ground, in very rich 

 soil. With care, this can be done in the dryest weather. 

 Last spring we had a drought here, lasting near nine 

 weeks — from 12th April to 13th June; in the midst of 

 which I transferred vines, both seedlings and cuttings, from 

 pots to the open ground, at mid-day ; and, watering them 

 copiously, their growth was but slightly checked. The 

 seedlings are now from 5 to 8 feet high ; one of them is If 

 inches in circumference at the ground ; and all, when 

 pruned this winter, preparatory to training according to 

 Hoare's system, will furnish fine scions for grafting next 

 June. Here are two years spent on the seedlings ; — the 

 third, scions from them will be worked on strong stocks ; 

 and, in the fourth summer, I confidently count on having 

 specimens of fruit. For I do not agree with M. Van Mons, 

 in what he considers " an invariable principle, that a graft 

 does not bloom sooner than the parent stock from which it 

 was taken."' Seed from these specimens maybe sown, and 

 the same course pursued, taking care that generation shall 

 follow generation without interruption, with the hope of 

 getting varieties that will suit our climate, and be as far 

 superior to the common sorts, as the improved pears of 

 Van Mons are superior to those known when he commenced 

 his labors. 



That the result will be \vorth all the time and care be- 

 stowed on the experiment, I think we may confidently be- 

 lieve, from the extraordinary excellence of Norton's and 

 Caldwell's seedlings — the former of Richmond, Va., the 

 latter of Washington city : — both being only of the first 

 generation, but whether from wildings, or from sorts in a 

 progressive state of amelioration, is not, I believe, clearly 

 ascertained. M. Van Mons got good pears only after seven 

 or eight successive generations, each occupying from 4 to 



