6 



THE POMOLOGIST. 



Jan. 



For the Western Pomologist. 



Just "WTiat the West Needs. 

 Friend Mtllek. — Having seen it an- 

 nounced that you intended to re-appear 

 among the Agricultural and Horticultural 

 journalists of the country on the first of 

 January next, by conimcnciug the publica- 

 tion of a journal exclusively devoted to Hor- 

 ticulture, at the city of Des Moines, I can- 

 not refrain from the expression of my ap- 

 probation of the enterprise, and oflering you 

 anj- aid in my power, to insure its success, 

 as I deeply regretted your retirement from 

 the management of the Homestead, with 

 which you had been so long and so success- 

 fully connected. The vallej' of the Missis- 

 sippi has not, to my knowledge, a journal 

 devoted exclusively to Horticulture, while 

 no portion of the east, with half its territory, 

 is destitute of its journal devoted to that 

 particular subject. We very much need a 

 journal such as you propose to jiublish, par- 

 ticularly adapted to the Horticulture of the 

 "West ; and at the same time, to blend, as far 

 as possible, our views and interests with 

 those of the East. There are some branches 

 upon which it seems impossible for the East 

 and West to harmonize. Our Pomology, for 

 instance, is for difl'erent from that of the 

 East, as many varieties of fruits, which seem 

 Iiarlicularlj' adapted to the East, prove com- 

 paratively worthless when brought to the 

 West. Hence we are compelled, as a means 

 of defence against the imposition which has 

 been so long practiced upou our citizens, to re- 

 sort to the use and cultivation of trees and 

 plautsadaptedtoourgreat section of the West. 

 To accomplish tliis, as well as various other 

 objects connected with western Horticulture, 

 we should have a journal entirel}- devoted to 

 that subject, to assist us in the interchange 

 of our views. And, I have no doubt that, with 

 your extensive acquaintance, so favorably 

 known as you are, and yom- experience of 

 near a quarter of a century as an Agricultur- 

 al journalist, you will be enabled to make 

 your journal just what it should be — the 

 leading Horticultural journal of the West. 

 As the pioneer agricultural journalist of 

 Wisconsin and Iowa, and your long residence 

 in those States, you are familiar with their 

 wants, as weU as of those of the adjoining 

 States; and I heartily congratulate the peo- 

 ple of Iowa, particularly, at their good for- 

 tune in being able stiU to avail themselves of 

 the services of one who has done so much to 

 promote their agricultural interests, and who 

 has ever manifested so deep an interest in 

 the subject to which you are now about to 

 devote your energies and eft'orts. By your 

 untiring zeal and unceasing labors in the 

 cause of Agriculture, commencing with the 

 publication of the WUconMii Farmer, some 

 twenty years ago, and ending irith the es- 

 tablishment and succe-ssful management of 

 X\\ii Iowa Home-sttiid for a number of years, 

 you have done much to promote the princi- j 

 pal industrial interests of the West, particu- ! 

 larlv the branches with which vou have been ! 



so intimately connected, and which open so 

 wide a field to experienced journalists. I 

 therefore sincerely hope, that the people 

 will appreciate .your efforts ; as by so doing 

 they are, to a certain extent, only rewarding 

 you for many ye;»rs' hard labor in their ser- 

 vice, and at the same time, conferring a last- 

 ing benefit upon themselves and their pos- 

 terity. May you, indeed, be as successful in 

 your new enterprise as you have in the past ; 

 as, I am confident you engage in it mf)re from 

 a sincere desire to benefit the country, ani- 

 mated by your strong attachment to that 

 he;dthful and ple;ising branch of industry, in 

 which you take so much delight, than by 

 the expectations of reiilizing any great pecu- 

 niary benefit therefrom. S. Loscbabd. 

 Dongda, lU., Bee. 26, 1869. 



Classification of Flo'wers. 



The flowers usually grown from seeds are 

 Herbaceous Perennials, Biennials, and An- 

 nuals. Shrubs and trees are obtained at the 

 nurseries. 



Hardy Bulbs, like Tulips, Crocuses, and 

 Hyacinths, should be planted in the autumn. 

 Tender or Summer Bulbs, like the Gladolus, 

 Tuberose, and Tiger Flower, must be set out 

 in the .spring. 



Herbaceous Perennials are plants which 

 die down to the ground [every autumn, 

 but the roots continue to live, and new 

 branches and flower stems are thrown up for 

 many years. Some continue indefinitely, 

 but others die after tliree or four years, like 

 the Sweet WilUam ; but if the roots are di- 

 vided every year, they will continue to live 

 and increase. These are allied Imperfect 

 Perennials. 



Annuals flower the first season, perfect 

 their seeds and then die. Some varieties 

 that are grown as Annuals in a northern cli- 

 mate, are either perennials or biennials in 

 their southern home, where there are no se- 

 vere frosts. As annuals flower in a few 

 weeks or months after being planted, and 

 can be depended upon for a brilliant show, 

 they have always been deservedly popular, 

 and each year marks a great improvement 

 in our list of annuals. With a [proper ar- 

 rangement, a continuous bloom may be kept 

 up from early in June until frost. 



Annuals are classed hardy, half-hardy and 

 tender. Hardy annuals are 'those that, like 

 the Larkspur, Candytuft, etc., may be sown 

 in the autumn or very early in the spring, 

 in the open ground. The hall-hardy varie- 

 ties will not endure frost, and should not be 

 sown in the open ground until danger from 

 frost is over. The Balsam and the Mari- 

 golds belong to this class. The tender annu- 

 als generally require starting in a green- 

 house or hot-bed to bring them to perfection 

 and should not be set in the open ground 

 until the weather is quite warm. The Cy- 

 press Vine and the Sensitive Plant belong to 

 this class; but, fortunately, very few of our 

 fine annuals. Some of them do tolerably 



weU if sown in the open ground the latter 

 part of May, but very great success is not to 

 be expected in this way. It must be admit- 

 ted, however, that these distinctions are not 

 well defined, and it is diflictUt to say where 

 some kinds belonsr. — Vick. 



Prolonged Ripening of Grapes. 

 The question, when grapes arc ripe, is, 

 with most people, less difficult to solve than 

 how to get them ripe. In some favored lo- 

 calities, however, like the islands and points 

 of the south shore of Lake Erie, the absence 

 of autumn frosts allows such a prolonged 

 season of ripening, that the grapes some- 

 times become over-ripe for their best eating 

 condition. It is found that the Catawbas are 

 of better flavor, more sprightly and agreea- 

 ble, when just ripe, say about the 15th of 

 October, than at a later period, when dead 

 ripe, or in the best condition for wine-mak- 

 ing. 



Among wine-makers, there has been some 

 difierence of opinion in regard to the amount 

 of gain, if any, from allowing Catawba 

 grapes to remain on the vines from two to 

 four weeks later than the time of the best 

 market-ripeners of the fruit. With a view 

 to settUng this important question, the Kel- 

 ley's Island Wine Company have made care- 

 ful and extended experiments the past two 

 seasons, the results of which will be read 

 with interest by grape-growers and wine- 

 makers. They are given as follows, in an 

 es,saj' presented to the Lake-shore Grape- 

 grower Association, at its meeting in Cleve- 

 land the past month, from the pen of Geo. 

 C. Huntington, Esq., of Kclley's Island.— 

 American Jounud of Horticulture for October, 

 1868. 



On the 23d of October, 1866, the Company 

 commenced buying Catawba grapes for wine, 

 and continued to buy, daily, until the 13th 

 of Ifovember, at which date the vintage was 

 completed. The aggregate amount taken in 

 was one hundred and three tons, comprising 

 two hundred and thirty-five different lot-s, 

 each one of which was sampled by pressing 

 the juice from part of the lot, and testing 

 the gravity of the must by CEschles scale, — 

 the scale generally in use among wine- 

 makers. 



The result showed a gradual gain in the 

 weight of the must until the close of the 

 sea.son. The time covered by the experi- 

 ments was, however, so short, commencing 

 later and ending earlier than usual, that the 

 gain was not so great as might be expectetl 

 in ordinary seasons covering double the 

 time. 



In 1867, the past season, these experiments 

 were renewed, and continued through the 

 entire vintage, running from October 15th 

 to November 29, — a jieriod of six weeks ; 

 during which tune the company bought 

 three hundred and fifty tons of grapes, com- 

 prising six hundred and ninety-one different 

 lots, every <me of which was sampled and 

 tested as in the preceding year. The result 



