60 



THE WESTERN POMOLOGIST. 



1871 



Honey liocnst for Hedge. 



We have often recommended the Honey Locust 

 for hedging, under an honest conviction of its great 

 value as a hedge plant. We have . seen it in hedge 

 rows in different stages of growth, from transplant- 

 ing to the perfect hedge, and feel assured that it is 

 the very best plant within our knowledge for grow- 

 ing live fence in a climate where the Osage is at 

 all tender. - Last fall, Mr. ■ Meehan, editor of the 

 Gardeners' Monthly, paid a visit to the extensive 

 nurseries at Syracuse, N. Y. Among other objects 

 of interest that attracted his attention was a hedge 

 of Honey Locust, and of which he says : 



"A feature of the nursery of which Mr. S. is justly 

 proud, is a hedge of Honey Locust, along the turn- 

 pike road, bounding his nursery. It is strange that 

 ' such examples as is before the public, showing how 

 cheap a live hedge is — how beautiful they are — how 

 easy they are managed — how really protective in 

 their character instead of the 'get over me if you 

 please' look of a post and rail fence — should have so 

 little effect. It would seem as if the whole world 

 delighted to spend money for the fun of it, and have 

 nothing to show for the money spent. The Honey 

 Locust is an admirable plant for cold climates, and 

 is far better than any'other plant where the soil is 

 rather poor or thin. There is one advantage in the 

 Honey Locust which no other plant has. The Osage 

 Orange,for instance, has thorns on its young growth, 

 and that is the end of them, — but thorns come out 

 of the old wood of the Locust, and continue to come 

 out year after year, — branching and growing sim- 

 ply as thorns, and nothing will ever dare to go 

 through a hedge of this plant even though there 

 should be a tolerably large gap invitingly open." 



Grass Sked for the Lawn. — Barry says "Redtop 

 is the best grass for a lawn, about fifty or sixty 

 pounds to the acre. Fifty pounds will be sufficient 

 if the seed be clean and good, which it seldom is. 

 Some people recommend white clover, say one- 

 fourth, to be mixed with red top, and this does very 

 well, but I prefer the pure red-top. Early in the 

 spring is the best time for seeding a lawn." 



Heading off the Borer. — A writer in the 

 Canadian Parmer says one mode of doing this is 

 to rub the trees ovor with common soap, soft-soap 

 will do very well — early in June, just before the 

 beetles lay their eggs. Another mode suggested, is 

 to plaster over the trunk of the tree with a thick 

 mixture of cow-dung and clay ; this is said to pre- 

 vent the egress of the insect, and cause it to die 

 underneath. Thinks it would also prevent the 

 eggs being laid on the tree, or at any rate be a 

 hindrance to the newly hatched grub in his at- 

 tempts to penetrate the bark. 



European Larch. — In confirmation of what we 

 have previously said of the European Larch being 

 a rapid growing, durable and valuable tree, suc- 

 ceeding well in the West as in the East, we re- 

 ceived some very fine samples for transplanting, of 

 Mr. Robert Douglass, Waukegan, 111, who grows it 

 and evergreens more extensively than any other per- 

 son in the United States or perhaps Europe, with a 

 specimen cut from the butt of a tree fifteen years old, 

 which grew in blue grass sod on the grounds of Mr. 

 A. R. Whitney, Franklin Grove, Lee Co., 111., which 

 measures nearly thirty-four inches in circumference 

 and over twenty-one inches being solid, red, dura- 

 ble wood of fine grain, almost equal to the best of 

 Red cedar. 



There is no question about the rapid grovrth and 

 quality of the tree, and it should be more extens- 

 ively planted as a forest tree than any other we can 

 now name. — Associate Editor. 



Keeping Cider Sweet. — At the meeting of the 

 Warsaw, 111., Horticultural Society held January 

 25th, among other things the question as to the best 

 mode of keeping cider sweet was talked up. 



Mr. Hoppe produced a specimen of very fine 

 cider, and of a clear color, treated as follows ; To a 

 barrel of cider, first allowed to ferment two days, 

 he added a bottle of chloride of lime, previously 

 dissolved in cider, the whole was then allowed to 

 remain in the barrel four days, when it was racked 

 off. President Hammond also presented a speci- 

 men of very good cider but not so clear in color as 

 Mr. Hoppe's, treated in a different manner as fol- 

 lows : To a barrel of cider, first allowed to ferment 

 forty-eight hours, and then heated and skimmed, 

 and racked off, he added a pound of pulverized 

 mustard seed, two pounds of raisins, and a half 

 pound of cinnamon bark. Another process by Mr. 

 Hammond was to merely heat and skim the cider 

 either before or after fermenting which made a 

 very pleasant and agreeable drink. 



Make Trees Branth Low. — The Horticulturist 

 says train your pear trees for garden and field use 

 so they will branch at a distance of one or two feet 

 from the ground, and cnumeAtes the following 

 advantages for doing so ; "It is easy to trim and 

 gather the fruit; falling fruit is little injured; all 

 liranches being sturdj', will not be strained by 

 overbearing or overiveight of fruit; soil will be 

 kept shaded and moist ; trunk will be protected 

 from the scorching sun." 



The Baldwin Apple. — A New Hampshire fruit 

 grower says that his experience in fruit growing 

 extends over a period of nearly sixty j'ears, that if 

 lie had to set out a dozen trees on his farm now, 

 ten of them at least would be the Baldwin. 



