April and May 



THE POMOLOGIST. 



87 



Kansas Queen again. 



Mr. Sut'l Foster, in the March No. of Po- 

 MOLOCiiST, uuikrtook to criticise! llic Kansas 

 Queen apple, but upon what cviUenco does 

 not appear very clear. The right of criti- 

 cism we do not deny, but a critic should be 

 well acquainted with his subject for his own 

 interest as well as for the public good. The 

 Kansas Queen is au apple Mr. Foster is en- 

 tirely unacquainted with, except by the 

 description we gave. Wc have no where 

 said that the quality of the fruit was no bet- 

 ter than the Beu Davis, or even compared 

 it to that variety except in the characteristics 

 of the tret, and in tliat respect it is nearly 

 identical. 



He says, " I deny the evidence that it was 

 a seedling of the Ben Davis." It is very 

 easy to denj' but _ sometimes very hard to 

 prove what we know, instead of proving 

 what we do not know. Experience and ob- 

 servation have long since convinced us to 

 believe the simple, faitljful statements of dis- 

 interested, honest men. 



When Mr. Atchinsou stated that he 

 planted the seed of two apples, one the Bell- 

 llower, and the other which he believes to 

 have been the Ben Davis, procured from 

 Missouri, where it is known to exist, and no 

 other variety tliere like it, we should think 

 it presumptive evidence at least that it 

 might have been that variety ; but when we 

 in addition examine the tree, and find all its 

 habits the same, we conclude Mr. Atkinson 

 was not much mistaken. 



It was not our object to prove that it was 

 certainly a seedling from the Ben Davis, and 

 therefore hardy, but wc compared the tree 

 to that variety because it appeared so nearly 

 like it in all its habits, health, vigor, hardi- 

 ness, form, productiveness and color. The 

 Beu Davis tree being a well recognized stan- 

 dard of perfection. 



It is not the duty of a critic to imagine 

 that when a tree is like another variety, that 

 the quality of Hie fruit is also alike, unless 

 distinctly stated. Neither is one Fall apple 

 more unworthy than another unless it is 

 known to be its equal. 



Tlierefore when Mr. Foster says, "I would 

 not give two cents for ten thousand of tlie 

 trees unless I was in the line of huinhugs to 

 sell the trees," he of course concludes the 

 Kansas Queen is a humbug. We have no 

 desire to be placed in that category at pre- 

 sent, having spent almost a life time in ex- 

 posing it. 



We know nothing about his Warfield apple^ 

 but conclude when he plants fifty of the 

 trees for his own use tliat he thinks it 

 worthy. 



So likewise when we re-graft standard 

 varieties and change them to the Kansas 

 Queen, we believe it superior to them, and 

 worthy cultivation. We are well acquainted 

 with the Dutchess of Oldenburg, and know 



it to be correct. It is not equal to the Kan- 

 sas Queen in vigor, quality, or Ijeauty, and 

 will not command as high a price, and it 

 does not ripen at the same season, but comes 

 Immediately after it. In fact we know no 

 apple in its season its equal, and should be 

 happy to find one to excel it. We believe 

 we have tested the hardiness of over eight 

 hundred varieties ; I find very few as hardy, 

 healtliy and vigorous. 



We have been rather too modest in intro- 

 ducing this apple, than otherwise, for we 

 refused to have it made public while we had 

 the drawing and description iu our posses- 

 sion a year previous, for we were satisfied 

 that it would improve by age, which it has 

 already done, and will still continue for seve- 

 ral years to come. 



It is no humbug; it bears acquaintance, 

 those who know it best think the most of it. 

 Our best orchardists are top-grafting it on 

 bearing trees. It has never been propagated ; 

 there is not a tree for sale. We top-grafted 

 the first one year ago, and we are at it now. 

 Humbug or no humbug we sliall become the 

 first victim, and have the consolation of 

 being very soon iu good, respectable com- 

 pany. J. STAYM^tN, Ast. Ed. 



N. B — There is a mistake in my receipt 

 for grafting wax ; there should be 5 libs, of 

 rosin added. 



Grafting the Grape— Queries. 



Mark Millek, Dear Sir : — I have learned 

 much from the article in your February No. 

 on " Grafting the Grape," by Samuel Miller, 

 but would like to have a few questions 

 answered that I may be better posted. 



Will Mr. Miller answer the following 

 questions ? 



Will a hard wood variety "catcli" iu a 

 soft wood variety or vice versa ? 



Is it necessary that the bark of the cion 

 and stock slionld unite, or does he set the 

 graft in the middle of the stock ? 



Is the cut made in the stock witli a knife 

 or saw ? I should not think such a cut could 

 be made with a knife without splitting the 

 stock. 



S. J. Allis. 



North Bast, Pa., March 8, 1870. 

 P. S. — Will try and drop you an item now 

 and then. s. j a. 



Remarks.— Send along the "items."— 

 They are the very spice of an Agricultural 

 or Horticultural paper. 



Nine Acres Only. 



Mark Mii^lek : Dear Sir : — I am taking 

 twelve or fourteen agricultural and liorticul- 

 tural papers already, but want all the in- 

 formation I can get, as I have but nine acres 

 of land to cultivate and ioish to make that 

 yiiid all it can prodxtce. I now have it mostly 

 in small fruit and apples. I raised last season 

 over tioo tons of grapes, as poor as the land 

 was, and as far north as we arc. My vines 

 are young, and I hope to do mucli better in 

 1870. I had eighteen varieties of apples and 

 twenty-five of grapes on exhibition at our 

 Ramsey county fair last fall, and took tliirty 

 lirst-prcmiums, here iu Diidong? So you 

 can see I strive to make my papers pay. 

 Although most say they cannot aiibrd to take 

 papers, I cannot afford to be without any 

 information I can get from them or any other 

 source. So here goes $1 for the Western 



POMOLOGIST. 



TiiuMAN M. Smith, 

 St. Paul, Minn. 



Correction. — In my article in the March 

 number of the Pomologkt, on " Now Seed- 

 ling Aijples," you make me say, " if it was 

 proved to be a seedling of the Ben Davis 

 or any other hardy variety, it is svfficient 

 evidence of its hardiness and productive- 

 ness." This is the very thing I did not 

 want to say that you make me say. To 

 insert the word not before sufficient, or, as 

 most likely I wrote it, inmifficient. 



Sdel Foster. 



Grape-Growing at Pleasant Valley. 



A correspondent of the Country Gentle- 

 man, writing from Ilammoudsport, N. Y., 

 says: 



" The depression in the grape interests 

 here still continues. Vineyards and grape- 

 lands are unsaleable at any price. Many are 

 completely disheartened by the serious fail- 

 ures of the past tliree years. Some liavelost 

 nearly the whole of their crops by sending 

 to irresponsible commission houses in New 

 York, others by bad management in gather- 

 ing and packing their fruit for market here 

 have failed to obtain satisfactory returns. 

 This state of aftairs is eminently satisfactory 

 to tlie wine companies, as it gives them low- 

 priced grapes, out of which they make high- 

 priced wines. This branch of the grape 

 interest is growing rajiidly. The rejiutation 

 of our principal companies for producing a 

 perfectly pure article of native wiue and 

 brandy is so well estaiilished that the purity 

 of their wines is never questioned, and their 

 sparkling wines find a demand to the full 

 extent of their production. Tlie most liberal 

 estimates, give us last season not more than 

 one-fourtli of a croji, and still we find aljout 

 five Imndred tons shippeil to New York and 

 otlier markets, and about two liundred tons 

 takin by tlie wine companies here. I judge 

 that a full crop from the vines already set 

 will give us, at the lowest estimate, three 

 thousand tons of grapes. Wliat shall we do 

 with them ? is frequenll)' asked. I answer — 

 those who have nice well ripened fruit 

 nicely put up iu small packages, the top like 

 the bottom and the bottom like the top, 

 every box alike, need not have any fears but 

 that they will find a market for all they 

 have, and those who will persist in putting 

 their fruit uj) in a slovenly manjier, iu large 

 packages, and then liauling it in a lumber 

 wagon irom eigbt to twelve miles, over 

 rough roads, ought to lose it, and then get 

 out of the business, and let their betters have 

 tlie markets without their being overstocked 

 with a lot of poor, green, dirty, unsaleable 

 trash." 



A Wetherstield, Conn., onion grower is 

 reported as saying it formerly took 80 days' 

 labor to ]ilant, cultivate and harvest an acre 

 of onions, but that by the improved iniple- 

 nients, the work can "be done with 50 days' 

 labor. 



