118 



NEW ENGLAND FAraiER. 



IMarch 



spring, -vvitli some marrow squashes. I took sev- 

 eral plants -which had been kept in five-inch flow- 

 er pots until they were too large to be relished by 

 the bugs, and transferred then to the garden. All 

 but one of them were carefully tipped out of the 

 pots, witliout breaking the ball of earth, and as 

 carefully set into the ground. The one pot was 

 simply set into the grouiid so as fairly to cover the 

 top of the pot. In order to make sure that no fa- 

 vors should be found on its side, this plant was set 

 in the poorest soil of the whole row. All the 

 plants were covered with musquito netting for a 

 few days, and the one in the pot was also watered 

 a few limes, v.'hen the boxes vrere removed, and 

 they were left to take care of themselves. For a 

 short time the bugs almost literally covered them, 

 but were compelled at last to abandon them unin- 

 jured. The single vine seemed to grow more 

 slowly than the others, and at no time during the 

 season was it a.s large. On gathering tlie fruit in 

 the fall, I took from this vine three well ripened 

 squashes, weighing together thirtij-nine j^ound-i. 

 This I found to be fully equal in weight to the av- 

 erage of the other vines, and also to -vines in the 

 garden planted in the usual manner. On taking 

 up the pot, I found that no roots had entered the 

 ground over the top of the pot, and but a single 

 root, about the size of a pipe stem, had passed 

 into the earth tlu-ough the hole in the bottom. 

 Through this single root, then, must have been 

 drawn all the earth nourishment for maturing both 

 vine and fruit. Experiments made at the same 

 time with cucumbers, and melons, have convinced 

 me that, for gardens, Mr. Chamberlain's plan is a 

 good one, and the coming spring I propose to treat 

 ail my -vines in tliis v/ay. The same plan will also 

 apply to flowers, and a small propagating case is 

 amply large to start all the flowers, melons, vines, 

 &c., that can find room in an ordinary garden. 



DwAiiF Pot Fruit Culture. — I found Mr. 

 Cliamberlain to be not only completely at home 

 in all relating to the culture of fiiiit trees and 

 vines in pots, but confident that the time will soon 

 arrive when it will become so common as to cease 

 to be novel. Durii-ig his experience with Mr. 

 Rivers, he had not only seen the system made pos- 

 sible and practical, but positively pro/?f(r?//e. If 

 it v,-as successful in England, he was confident it 

 might he made successful in tiiis country, and he 

 Avas determined that it should be made so. He 

 had several hundred pear, apple, peach, cherry 

 and other fruit trees, and a large number of grape 

 vines, in pots, and in various stages of growth. 

 They were of various ages, from one year to six or 

 more years old. I saw pear' trees which had been 

 taken from the ground, in a common nursery row, 

 when four years old, and placed in a twelve or 

 fourtccn-inch earthen pot, and, so far as I could 

 judge, they were in a thriving condition before the 

 end of a twelvemonth. All his trees had been 

 purchas-.ed from ordinary nurserymen, and while 

 tlicy did not give him the satisfaction which those 

 more carefully propagated and trained would have 

 done, they demonstrated more forcibly the practi- 

 cability of his system of culture. At the time of 

 my visit, every tree and shrub out-doors were cov- 

 ered with a thick coating of ice, and I was sur- 

 prised to find a large number of pear trees in pots 

 standing on the north side of the hot-house, en- 

 tirely unprotected, and covered Mitli sleet like the 

 rest. I M'as told that they had been in that bleak 



situation all winter, for want of room inside, but 

 no fear was expressed as to their suffering any in- 

 jury thereby. Inside, in the reserve-room, I saw 

 a large number, of various ages, waiting their turn 

 to be placed in the forcing-house. Their plump 

 fruit l)uds showed plainly that the cultivator's ex- 

 pectations of a crop of fruit from them, at least, 

 looked reasonable. In the forcing-house Avere a 

 vaiiety of pears, peach, cherry and plum trees, and 

 grape vines in pots, and showing fruit in various 

 stages of growth. If my judgment was not sadly 

 at fault, they were all in a healthy and thriving 

 condition. 



Among the novelties in this collection, vras a 

 penr free tcitli endless limbs — i. e., with every limb 

 inarched. Some of the limbs were bent around 

 and ingrafted upon themselves, others were in- 

 grafted upon the trunk, and in several cases the 

 ends of two limbs had been ingrafted upon each 

 other. Being thus prevented from making a free 

 growth of wood, the whole energy of the roots was 

 compelled to the task of perfecting the fruit. The 

 tree had not, as yet, fruited, but the large and 

 well-formed fruit buds gave promise of success in 

 the novel experiment. 



Fruit Baskets. — But among the many objects 

 of interest in this model establishment, none so 

 enlisted my attention and curiosity, as j\Ir. Cham- 

 berlain's newly invented fruit baskets. These may- 

 be described as baskets (of any desired form,) 

 made of open wire woric, with a tin dish, or pan, 

 inside. In this inside dish is placed a quantity of 

 charcoal, bone-dust, &c., in which the roots of the 

 tree, or vine, are planted, and they are then avcU 

 covered Avith moss, Avliich is, of course, kept con- 

 stantly moist. Further nourishment is supplied 

 in the form of liquid manru-e. Planted in this 

 manner I saAV peach, cherry, plum and pear trees, 

 and grape vines, flourishing in the most gratifying 

 manner. I took down one of these baskets from 

 its hook, and counted twenty-six peaches, of about 

 bullet size, on the tree contained in it. Grape 

 vines, prepared in a similar manner, exhibited 

 large and handsome bunches of fruit. I Avas as- 

 sured that not one of these baskets contained even 

 a spoonful of soil, or earth, and yet the trees and 

 vines appeared to be in a most flourishing condi- 

 tion. After fully explaining the construction and 

 philosophy of his invention, (for Avhich he has re- 

 ceived letters patent,) Mr. Chamberlain informed 

 me that at least one person, Avho claimed to have 

 visited his place and seen his specimens of fruit- 

 ing trees and vines in baskets, had gravely pro- 

 nounced the whole thing a humbug, and in the 

 columns of the Horticulturist had declared that 

 the specimens of peaches, grapes, &c., on these 

 trees and vines, were artifcialbj fastened on, to 

 deceive the public. Mr. C. therefore called my 

 particular attention to the specimens, and ex- 

 pressed the ho])e that I Avould expose him, if I 

 found any appearance of fraud or deception in the 

 matter. I made a rigid examination, and Avas ful- 

 ly convinced that there Avas no humbug about the 

 invention. Having since read the article referred 

 to, I must confess that the Avriter, if in earnest, 

 Avas either very blind, or purposely misrepresents. 

 Since my visit, ]\Ir. Chamberlain has exhibited 

 specimens of his trees and vines in baskets, at va- 

 rious horticultural exhibitions, Avhere they have 

 been seen and examined by many thousands of 

 persons, Avithout the detection of any fraud in 



