I40 



THE POMOLOGIST. 



October 



For the Western Pomologist. 



Letter from New Hampshire— Fruit, Cider, 

 Crops, etc. 



"Warner, N. H. ) 



September 13, 1870. j 

 Friend Miller:— Presuming a few Hues 

 from a resident of your native State would 

 be acceptable, I here jot down a few items, 

 mostly agricultural. The month of June 

 was unusually warm, and we had sufficient 

 raiu to put our farm crops in a forward and 

 promising condition, till .sometime in July. 

 Since which time we have been experienc- 

 ing the most severe and long continued 

 drouth within the recollection of our oldest 

 people. 



The hay crop upon an average, fell short 

 about one-third compared with previous 

 years, and for lack of raiu, there will be 

 little if any second crop secured, as is usual- 

 ly the case in more rainy seasons. Corn on 

 our sandy plains (and you know what they 

 are) upon hundreds of acres, has been har- 

 vested for fodder — it didn't go to seed. But 

 upon the more moist and loamy hill farms, 

 and upon the deep alluvial soils bordering 

 our rivers, the yield is nearly an average. 

 extra sound, and much of it already harvest- 

 ed. Our grain crops suffered some for 

 lack of seasonable rains, but still is better 

 than could have been expected considering 

 the heat and drouth. I think potatoes will 

 be the lightest of all our farm crops. — 

 The early Eose seems to have generally 

 done the best. Where planted early it obtain' 

 ed a good size before it suffered for lack o^ 

 moisture, while late varieties, and late plant- 

 ed are mighty small and few in a hill. The 

 western potato bug has not yet given us a call 

 Hope it will not, for of late years, the pota- 

 to, here, has had a host of ills to contend with 

 compared with the time when I was in my 

 teens. 



Fruit and berries, both cultivated and 

 wild, have been abundant, though in 

 some instances have suffered in quality for 

 lack of raiu. There has not been such an 

 abundant product of apples here since 1855. 

 I think for lack of cider mills and barrels for 

 cider large quantities of apjiles must be 

 wasted, especially the poorer quality, and 

 our best variuties must sell at a very much 

 reduced price of the past few years. Pears, 

 plums and peaches are unusually plenty — 

 and very much less wormy than for years 

 back. Grapes are ripe some three weeks 

 earlier than usual. Our people are going 

 quite largely into the cultivation of small 

 fruits, and generally where properly man- 

 aged they have been quite successful. The 

 drouth has been hard on our wells, springs 

 and streams ; thousands of these are now dry 

 that were seldom, if ever dry before. Some 

 cattle in our hilly out pastures have perished 

 for lack of water, and in thousands of pas- 

 tures the cattle could not be , sustained if 



they were not fed night and morning at the 

 barns. 



Our Census returns show some decrease in 

 population during the past ten years in the 

 " Old Granite State." But this decrease has 

 been caused mostly among the rural popula- 

 tion in the rocky,hilly towns on the high lands 

 between the Connecticut and Merrimac riv- 

 ers. You are familiar with many of these 

 towns, and no doubt are not surprised to 

 learn that so many of the people of these 

 towns have " vamosed the ranch ' and 

 sought new homes in the far West, and in 

 our flourishing manufacturing and seaboard 

 cities. Our people are not content to " live so 

 far off" as they were in the early settlement 

 of our State. But notwithstanding the bad 

 look which this decrease of population has — 

 we, that stick by our old homesteads " still 

 live," — and are going ahead, and are pros- 

 pering. And whatever may be thought to 

 the contrary, we find it a good State to reside 

 in while thousands upon thousands of our 

 people have found it a good State to emmi- 

 grate from, and I trust, friend Jliller, you are 



of that happy number. 



Levi Bartlett. 



♦-•^•^ 



Hale's Early Peach. 



For some years after the introduction of 

 Hale's Early Peach, it gave great satisfaction 

 to cultivators, but of late it has rotted so 

 badly in many localities, that it has been 

 stricken from the list of reliable sorts. It 

 would appear, however, from the experience 

 of others, that upon a light, sandy soil, with 

 little or no cultivation, it still maintains its 

 old popularity. On the light, sandy soil of 

 Georgia it is still productive and healthy. 



Mr. E. A. Riehl, a Southern Illinois peach 

 grower, says in the Journal of AgriciMure : 

 "Last year I sowed my peach orchard to 

 clover, and this year made a hog pasture of 

 it, so that in reality it has not been plowed 

 for two years, and I had a splendid crop of 

 Hale's, which did not rot any more than any 

 other sort. Last winter there was a certain 

 fruit grower at my house over night, and in 

 talking over fruit matters, he stated that last 

 year he had some Hale's in bearing — one 

 part of the orchard being in oats and the 

 other part being cultivated, and those in cul- 

 tivated ground all rotted as usual, while 

 those in oats ground did not. And just now 

 comes to hand the Gardener's Monthly, which 

 noticing what the Journal of Agriculture has 

 said about Hale's Early, gives the fol lowing : 

 "Mr. William Parry, of Cinnaminsou, N. 

 J., had an orchard all of this variety rot so 

 that he abandoned it as not worth culture ; 

 when, lo! for the last two years, amongst 

 the weeds and grass of neglect he has had 

 wonderful crops." 



Now, I should say, here is evidence 

 enough to confirm my observations : 1st. 

 The Hale's Early rots worst when cultiva- 

 ted, when young, and worse on rich than 

 poor laud. Therefore, I should plant on 

 land not very rich, cease cultivating as soon 

 as of bearing size, and piune as little as pos- 



sible. When so treated, I a)Ti satisfied it is 

 one of the most profitable that can be plant- 

 ed. The first that I shipped sold fir twelve 

 dollars per bushel in Chicago, while now 

 peaches are selling for from one to three 

 dollars. It is also, I think, the hardiest 

 peach we have. It will stand the winter's 

 cold as well as any, and late spring frosts 

 better than any other. It is the only sort 

 that has this year given me a crop. In 

 quality it is as good as the best, and so well 

 am I pleased with it, that if I were to plant 

 2,000 peach trees (and I would if I had the 



ground), I should plant 1,100 of Hale's 

 Early. 



« » » 



Blackbekrt Plantations. — A corres- 

 pondent of the Country Oenfleman presents 

 the following evidence in support of an 

 open exposure to the north to insure good 

 crops of fruit : 



Mr. A. M. Purdy, page 518, speaks of the 

 blackberry as being affected by location, 

 with respect to temperature, a low, sheltered 

 spot having its fruit "dried up," and some 

 of it " scalded," while the opposite chai'acter 

 of no shelter, and wind to reach it, grew a 

 "fine cro;\" 



Exactly the same is the case here. A 

 berry lot— wild berry — sheltered by the 

 woods from the north and the west, and 

 lying declined to the south, has its fruit, 

 some of it dried and some as if it were 

 scalded. 



Exactly opposite this, on the other side of 

 the valley, the reverse is the case. Here is 

 a berry lot declining to the north and sur- 

 rounded on all sides, except the north, by 

 woods, with occasional trees iu the lot. Not 

 a berry in this field did we ever know to dry 

 or get the "scalding" efl:ects of the sun. It 

 is cooler, much cooler, aud more moist than 

 other beiry lots, and the best of all the 

 writer has ever visited, and he has visited 

 this for many years. So healthy and large 

 does the fruit grow here — and every year — 

 that it is denominated, by way of eminence, 

 •' Uncle Joel's Berry Lot." 



It has long since been proof to me that 

 the blackberry wants, not a hot sun, but a 

 cool, rather cool, moist place. It wants sun 

 to sweeten the fruit. The extremes must be 

 avoided. Then if there is a sandy soil of 

 dejM, the berry will grow." 



Twin Peach Blossoms. — A correspond- 

 ent of the Scientific American says t^iat a 

 curious lusus naturoe, or rather a law of agri- 

 cultural science, was observable in the peach 

 blossoms this year, producing twins or trip- 

 lets. That this is the result of a general law 

 is evident from the concurrent testimony of 

 widely distant regions. The Agricultural 

 Report for 1866 (page 303) says that peaches 

 are grown with complete success only after 

 the ground has rested for a period of 35 

 j'cars, during which time the peach district 

 moves from north to .south, about 50 miles, 

 and theu returns at a single leap, to tLe 

 place of beginning. 



