140 



THE WESTERN POMOLOGIST. 



1811 



San Francisco market, and then bring from five to 

 ten cents per pound. 



An experienced pear culturist says that he has 

 examined thousands of dwarf pear trees in the 

 grounds of others, and has never seen good, healtliy, 

 vigorous trees wliere annual pruning has been 

 omitted. Near his orchard which contains 2,000 

 healthy, thrifty, dwarf pear trees, a neiglibor planted 

 trees at the same time, obtained from the same 

 source and of the same age as his. This neighbor 

 pruned a little the first and second years, but last 

 year his trees being full of blossom buds, he allowed 

 them to bear and left them unpruned. The season 

 was a very dry one, the fruit did not fully mature, 

 and now from one-half to two-thirds of the trees arc 

 dead." 



Horticultural IVotes from West Virginia. 



Bt I. CJ. Mask, Moobbfield, West Virginia. 



Ed. Pomologist : The back Nos. of the Pomol- 

 OGIST came duly to hand, and I could not be other- 

 wise than pleased with the handsome style in which 

 it is gotten up — showing as it does how far the vig- 

 or and energy of our Western friends have outstrip- 

 ped us of the old fogy order, in the Ancient Domin- 

 ion — in all things pertaining to the culture and 

 improvement of fruits. The contents of these pa- 

 pers, so f\ir as I have read them, are fully up to the 

 standard of any of the oldest and most popular 

 periodicals of the day, and with so many able con- 

 tributors it need not be surprising that your journal, 

 though of comparatively recent origin, should ex- 

 ert a powerful influence in developing the capacity 

 of your country for the growth of fruits, as well as 

 all other products. There j'ou are almost thousands 

 of miles from the sea board and the great city mar- 

 kets, and here we are but a few hundred miles from 

 tide water, j'et with a valley which might be made 

 to present a pai'adise to the eye of the the traveler, 

 and a Pomonial Eden to the lovers of fruit, are 

 unable to grow a grape, or apple, or any other fruit 

 except what is suflicient for our home use, whilst 

 you away out in Iowa can realize large revenues and 

 profits. You have the advantage of quick and 

 smooth transportation-, which enables you to reach 

 a market for your most delicate products, whilst we 

 have but a distance of forty or fiftj' miles of wagon 

 road to encounter, ere we reach the rail — but this 

 is sufBcient to spoil the fruit — and adds so much to 

 the cost that it is a complete barrier to its culture 

 for profit. We are situated between two moun- 

 tains, in a small btit one of the most productive val- 

 leys in the country. The Baltimore and Ohio Rail 

 Road passes on the east side of one of these bar- 

 riers, and the Great Valley Rail Road on the other, 

 and the neai'est point of access to either is forty- 

 eight miles, and Uial over mountains. Should the 



Southern Pacific Rail Road succeed, we have a hope 

 that our valley may fall within its track. 



So far as the cultivation of fruit is concerned, es- 

 pecially the grape, until of late years, but little at- 

 tention has been paid to it. Since the war, howev- 

 er, a considerable stir has been made in that line. 

 Several of the papers devoted to Horticulture, have 

 found their way here, and have so stimulated our 

 people as to induce many of them to go pretty ex- 

 tensively into the planting of orchards and vine- 

 yards. Agents have been around, and many hun- 

 dreds of fruit trees, and many more thousands of 

 grape vines have been set out. Some of these are 

 now in bearing, and have shown such an improve- 

 ment upon the old stock of wildings and chance 

 fruit trees originally planted, that but for the draw- 

 back of difiiculty in the transportation of fruit to 

 market, the fiirmers in our valley would doubtless 

 go more largely into the business. There are now 

 some dozen vineyards in operation in this neigbor- 

 hood, containing from a few hundred to four or 

 five thousand vines. The Concord is chiefly grown. 

 One of our largest operators, Dr. P. W. Anderson, 

 has about an equal number of Concord, Ives' Seed- 

 ling, and Delaware. The vines in this vicinity 

 have not yet come fully into bearing. Last season 

 Dr. A. made about 1000 gallons of pure Concord 

 wine, but unfortunately by the bur.stiug of a hoop 

 on a large fermenting vat he lost nearly the half of 

 it. His wine is of the very best quality ; though as 

 yet he has not been able to find a purchaser for it, 

 and this tact, by the by, has rather thrown a dam. 

 per upon the hopes of others, who have been ex- 

 pecting to realize handsome returns from their 

 future crops. On the whole I fear there will be 

 dissappointment by persons situated as we are who 

 go into the grape business with a view of making 

 wine in large quantities for commerce. I think it 

 would be better for farmers generally, indeed for 

 every farmer without an exception, to plant a small 

 vineyard for his own use, suflicient to furnish his 

 own family with a full supply of good wine, so that 

 they might indulge in its daily use throughout the 

 year. This may be done at little or no expense and 

 with very little labor. A quarter or half an acre 

 of vines such as Concord, or other good grape, 

 would bo sufficient to furnish a family with both 

 fruit and wine the whole year, thereby contributing 

 to health and enjoj-ment. The process of wine 

 making is so simple that any house wife can with 

 the aid of a few tubs, barrels, etc., manufacture it. 



Our winter has been a fair though pretty cool 

 one. So far the i^rain looks well, and the fruit buds 

 are safe. The weather for the past few weeks 

 has been fair and mild, and the sap in the early 

 peach trees is moving. We are never very certain 

 of a peach crop here though, and I fear tlie early 

 fruit will be killed — but I am extending this ramb- 

 ling letter too flir, and must close with best wishes, 

 etc. 



