430 Horticulture in Mississippi. 



ing 1 Is the apple stock admissible ? Would you advise bud- 

 ding apricot and plum on the peach ? 



Log Hall, Edwards, Miss., June 30^^, 1846. 



We are happy to know that our western friends have one 

 among them who is so enthusiastic an amateur as our corre- 

 spondent, and whose labors are likely to produce such good 

 results. We are sure nurserymen must feel deeply indebted 

 to one who is doing so much to test new fruits, and dissem- 

 inate only such as are really valuable : a few cultivators with 

 such noble aims would do much towards spreading through- 

 out the west, as well as the south and east, only those varie- 

 ties — the wheat among the chaff — which really possess qual- 

 ities that entitle them to general cultivation. 



The queries of our correspondent we will endeavour to an- 

 swer. A good label for trees seems yet to be wanted. We 

 have tried, and use quite extensively, white pine or cedar 

 labels, coated with white paint, and written upon with a good 

 lead pencil ; if the writing is made when the label is painted, 

 they will generally last three or four years, and sometimes 

 longer : they are then renewed. Zinc written upon with a 

 prepared ink [A^ol.III, p. 312,] will last much longer, but it does 

 not appear to be so ready a mode. A friend of ours assures 

 us that zinc, coated with a thin surface of paint made of white 

 lead, oil, spirits and copal varnish, rather thin, so as just to 

 cover it, slightly sandpapered when dry, and then written 

 upon with a lead pencil, will last for years. This mode ap- 

 pears to be the best yet discovered, as a whole sheet of zinc 

 can be painted, and then cut up into labels which will be 

 ready to use when wanted. We intend to try it and report 

 the result. 



Budding pear trees, and, indeed, fruit trees of all kinds, is 

 not only admissible, but we think far better than grafting. 

 We practise it almost exclusively on both the pear and apple. 

 In regard to the use of the apple stock for the pear, our corre- 

 spondent has probably already read the capital article of Mr. 

 Humrickhouse (p. 393.) which gives more information than we 

 have in our possession. We do not, by any means, advise 

 budding the apricot and plum on the peach ; the latter is a 

 poor stock, as we know it is so subject to the borer which 



