Progress of Horticulture in Indiana. 51 



Newtown Spitzenberg, exceedingly fine with us ; Canfield, Jen- 

 netin or Neverfail, escaping spring frosts by late blossoming, 

 very hardy, a great bearer every year ; the fruit comes into 

 eating in February, is tender, juicy, mild and sprightly, and 

 preferred with us to the Green Newtown pippin — keeping full 

 as well, bearing better, the pulp much more manageable in 

 the mouth, and the apple has the peculiar property of bearing 

 frosts, and even freezing, without material injury : — Green 

 Newtown pippin ; Michael Henry pippin, (very fine ;) Pry or' s 

 Red, in flavor resembling the New England Seek-no-further ; 

 Golden russet, the prince of small apples, and resembling a 

 fine butter-pear more nearly than any apple in our orchards, 

 — an enormous bearer ; some limbs exhibited were clustered 

 with fruit, more like bunches of grapes than apples ; — Milam, 

 favorite early winter ; Rambo, the same. But the apple most 

 universally cultivated is the Vandevere pippin, only a second 

 or third rate table apple, but having other qualities which 

 quite ravish the hearts of our farmers. The tree is remark- 

 ably vigorous and healthy ; it almost never fails in a crop ; 

 when all others ?wis5, the Vandevere pippin liits ; the fruit, 

 which is very large and comely, is a late winter fruit — yet 

 swells so quickly as to be the first and best summer cooking 

 apple. If its flesh (which is coarse) were fine, and its (too 

 sharp) flavor equalled that of the Golden russet, it would 

 stand without a rival, or near neighbor, at the very head of 

 the list of winter apples. As it is, it is a first rate tree, bear- 

 ing a second rate apple. A hybrid between it and the Golden 

 russet, or Newtown Spitzenberg, appropriating the virtues of 

 both, would leave little more to be hoped for or wished. 

 The Baldwin has never come up to its eastern reputation 

 with us ; the Rhode Island Greening is eaten for the sake of 

 " auld lang syne;" the Roxbury russet is not yet in bearing 

 — instead of it several false varieties have been presented at 

 our exhibitions. All the classic apples of your orchards are 

 planted here, but are yet on probation. 



Nothing can exhibit better the folly of trusting to seedling 

 orchards for fruit, for a main supply, than our experience in 

 this matter. The early settlers could not bring trees from 

 Kentucky, Virginia or Pennsylvania — and, as the next resort, 

 brought and planted seeds of popular apples. A later popula- 



