90 



THE POMOLOGIST. 



July 



For the Western Pomologist. 



Fruit in Kossutli County. 



Northern Iowa is a plateau 2,000 feet 

 above the level of the sea. Five miles east 

 of Kossuth county line, in Crystal Lake, 

 rises the river Iowa, running south and 

 empt3-ing into the Mississippi. And ten 

 miles northeast of this rises the Blue Earth, 

 which runs north and empties into the St. 

 Peter's. Over these prairies the winter winds 

 chase each other in high dudgeon. We have 

 always a pure, sweet atmos])here, as health- 

 ful as mountain airs. The surface of the 

 country sweeps away in gentle uudulatious — 

 checkered with quick streams — dotted here 

 and there with groves— and now and then 

 embracing a clear gleaming lake, — a charm- 

 ing landscape. Our soil is mainly "drift" 

 with a lively dash of sand,— strong, dry 

 and quick. Grey old boulders lie scattered 

 on every section and occasionally a bed of 

 smooth pebbles, dropped from melting ice- 

 bergs long ago. 



Our soil, I think, is well adapted to fruit- 

 growing; aud although our winters are 

 severe, the ground is generally covered with 

 snow during the most of the cold weather 

 In the summer of 1867, a nurseryman con- 

 siderably south of this, told me that he had 

 lost thirty thousand young apple trees the 

 previous winter. But Mr. Dean, who has a 

 handsome nursery at Blue Earth City, Min- 

 nesota, told me that he lost no trees that 

 winter. We are not subject to the thaws 

 aud rains in winter to which the people of 

 Central and Southern Iowa are exposed. 

 The last " October freeze," which did such 

 immense damage to the nurseries of Illinois, 

 did not injure the young trees in my nursery. 

 Perhap.s, standing nearer the pole, our trees 

 catch the whispers of the coming frosts 

 earlier than their southern kindred and so 

 prepare themselves betimes. 



Still, but very little has been attempted in 

 fruit growing throughout this region. A 

 few handsome, thrifty apple trees have 

 borne fine specimens of fruit, giving promise 

 of sui-cess in tliis direction. And I think 

 the few trees planted in this county have a 

 much more healthy, thrifty appearance than 

 those one degree south of this. 



Of grapes we can produce any quantity, 

 if we can only thoroughly mature them. 

 During the last extremely wet summer, the 

 foliage on my vines remained bright and 

 vigorous. Have heard nothing of rot or 

 blight in this region. I am not sure whether 

 we can perfectly mature the Concord every 

 season. 1 he vines are very young yet, and 

 but few are in bearing. But the Delaware is 

 a perfect success here. It is perfectly healthy 

 after the first year or two very vigorous, and 

 loads itself with rich purple clusters. Half 

 a degree north of this, in Minnesota, I have 

 seen Concord, Clinton and Delaware vines 

 which had hung on the trellis all winter, 

 completely loaded with fruit. Plums and 



cherries promise well. Plums especially, I 

 believe will do splendidly here. As I said, 

 but very little has been done in this direc- 

 tion. Perhaps there is not more than 100 

 fruit trees (except the small frnits) in bearing 

 in Kossuth. But these promise well, aud 

 many are encouraged to plant. Strawberries, 

 gooseberries and curarnts produce abund- 

 antly, and many gardens are well supplied 

 with them. 



In the cultivation of forest trees consider- 

 able is being done. Very many farmers are 

 planting groves of Cottonwood, maple, 

 willow, and Lombardy poplar ; and some are 

 planting the black walnut, which appears to 

 be just as thrifty as soft maple. All are 

 pleased with their success in this line, and 

 artificial groves are beginning to dot the 

 prairie in all directions. I have seen no 

 part of Central or Northern Iowa where so 

 much has been done in planting forest trees 

 as is being done in Kossuth. And we intend 

 to keep on planting. We will embower our 

 homes with foliage and deck our grounds 

 with trees. Birds will build in their 

 branches aud chatter to the children; and 

 we will lie in their shadows and watch the 



blue clouds overhead. 



J. Alden Winter. 



Buffalo Fork, Kossuth Co., Iowa. 



For the Western Pomologist. 



Top Grafting— Long Lived Trees. 



Friend Miller. — I think President Math, 

 ews' address is in advance of former occa- 

 sions. It is full of interest to me. I am glad 

 that horticulturists are determined to search 

 out that which they do not know. Presi- 

 dent Mathews' ideas of starling an orchard 

 accords with my experience, except that of 

 grafting on center of stock. I think it better 

 to select trees iu the nursery of a hardy 

 variety, that put out limbs horizontal, then 

 graft in the limb, when two or three years 

 out. Many will remember some years back 

 that the large limbs were killed in winter 

 that is, on top. Many of them survived, and 

 can be seen in this part of the State at the 

 present time; many others were entirely 

 lost. I grafted two Pennock trees several 

 years ago in limbs as above. They are now 

 thirty-one years old, (one Sweet June, the 

 other Baldwin) sound and healthy — not a 

 single limb shows any appearance of splitting 

 down, I don't see why they will not live a 

 hundred years. The Pennock is a fine grow- 

 er, and will make good stocks for this part of 

 the State. I have lost several trees by split- 

 ting down, about as many as by winter 

 killing. Orchards will last much longer got 

 up iu this manner than in the common way, 

 and will do well farther north. Any person 

 can afford to pay three prices for such trees. 

 There are some kinds that will do root 

 grafted, such as Early Harvest, Red June, 



etc. 



Joseph Frazier. 

 Salem, Henry Co., Iowa. 



Plan for a Dwelling House. 



Herewith we present plans for the first 

 and second floors of a dwelling for a small 

 family. The design is one of our own get- 

 ting up, and though possessing no special 

 novelty, we may be pardoned for claiming 

 that, so far as convenience of arrangement 

 is concerned, in a small, economical house, 

 the design can scarcely be improved. 



FIRST FLOOR. 



On the lower floor we have first, a hall 

 with a flight of stairs leading to the second 

 floor. Next a parlor connecting with a 

 closet. In the rear of the hall and parlor is 

 the living or dining room connecting with 

 both. 



r. 



SECOND FLOOR. 



This room opens into the family bed room 

 with closet, and also into the pantry. Farth- 

 er back is the kitchen with cistern in one 

 corner. The cellar, or basement, is reached 

 by a stair-way under the hall stairs. On the 

 second floor we have three rooms, two of 

 which connect with closets, and for the ac- 

 commodation of the other one, a closet reach- 

 ed through the hall in front of the stairway 

 As to size of rooms the scale may be varied. 

 Any style of architecture for the elevation 

 may also be chosen to suit the taste of the 

 builder. 



