THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



177 



berry ripens up more evenly than Bid^ 

 well, is about eqnal in flavor and in 

 firmness of texture, but is larger, really 

 rivalling the famous Sharpless. The 

 shape of the berry is just the opposite 

 of Bidwell, being rather flat and very 

 wide and circular, not a pretty shape 

 you would think before seeing it, but 

 the men say it sells best of all early 

 varieties. About the 6th inst. we 

 found Sharpless and Windsor Chief fit 

 to pick. The former maintains p-etty 

 fairly its reputation of the biggest 

 strawberry in the patch. But the crop 

 seems to me only about half as large as 

 Bidwell, and the big berries are rather 

 soft, and of all sha{)es as usual. Still 

 it will not do to pooh pooh the Sharp- 

 less ; its size and sweetness must long 

 keep it in favor ; it is really a vigorous 

 grower, and is not at all to be called 

 unproductive. I have seen it bearing 

 great crops on rich clay loam. 



If vigor of growth, great productive- 

 ness of large and very smooth, hand- 

 some fruit was all we wanted in a 

 strawberry, then, perhaps, the Windsor 

 Chief would stand first of all. But we 

 want a berry that tastes good, and that 

 has some firmness, while this variety is 

 both soft and sour with a flattish, half- 

 smoky flavor thrown in. Yet it sells j 

 so well, with its beautiful gloss and 

 fine size, and it keeps in heavy beai'ing 

 so long that it is quite profitable. 

 Leave it on the plant till it is nearly 

 black with ripeness and it tastes very 

 good indeed, in the absence of other 

 sorts. Blossom imperfect. 



Longfellow, planted in every sixth 

 row among Windsor Chief, to pollenize 

 it, is a most utter failure. It grows 

 well enough, and the berries are large 

 and delicious, but I think a row of a 

 hundred plants does not contain as 

 much fruit as I can find on three plants 

 of Windsor Chief. 



About with Bidwell and Windsor 

 Chief began to ripen all remaining 



varieties on the place, except Man- 

 chestei', James Vick, Atlantic, Jersey 

 Queen and Marvin. The latter has 

 not ripened a berry yet. The others 

 just mentioned have just come in, and 

 will be desci'ibed in due order. First 

 let us notice some of the newer varie- 

 ties. 



Moodna, Polopel, Legal Tender, 

 Nigh's Sujierh, Vineland, Grand Duke, 

 and Belle, do not appear of any special 

 value on my place. The first two seem 

 quite unproductive ; Legal Tender bears 

 pretty well, but is rough in ovitline 

 (seeds deeply sunk), and is inferior to 

 many old kinds ; ditto Vineland and 

 Nigh's Superb ; and Grand Duke is too 

 aristocratic,with his smooth rich berries, 

 to do much without very I'ich soil and 

 careful petting ; so also the Belle. Let 

 us drop from sight, and try hard to for- 

 get, all new sorts that are not superior 

 to old varieties in important particulars. 



Cornelia is a fine large berry, quite 

 firm too, but rather acid. It seems to 

 go in for fruiting vigorously, and it 

 makes a fine plant ; but I mangled the 

 roots too sorely in taking up young 

 plants to let it have a fair chance. It 

 is certainly promising, but I feel as if 

 I don't know enough about it to praise 

 it much. 



Prince of Berries is a most interest- 

 ing member of a high-toned family from 

 New Jersey. The Great American, I 

 think, was the first of the strain that I 

 became acquainted with— it was a dude 

 that would barely average three berries 

 to the plant ! Another of the family, 

 the Essex Beauty, attained a temporary 

 celebrity, but I fought shy of the breed 

 till the Jersey Queen tempted me with 

 an extra flourish of trumpets. The 

 Jersey Queen was really good, nearly 

 as large as Sharpless, and truly deli- 

 cious, while with good cultivation it 

 would bear fairly. In the Prince of 

 Berries this aristocratic line has made 

 a still nearer approach to the wants of 



