194 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



recommend ? How far apart would you set them ? The Siberian crab-ap- 

 ple is the hardiest fruit-tree that we have in the west. Would you now 

 advise a person to set for the purpose of makiiig wine the lona in prefer- 

 ence to the Delaware grape ? I am a little prejudiced against the lona, 

 from the fact that Dr. Grant claims to know a little more than all the fruit- 

 growers in the United States. I think that class of men are more liable to 

 blunder or willing to deceive." 



Mr. Solon Robinson. — I would advise the gentleman to plant some other 

 varieties of grapes if he intends to grow a vineyard for wine, as it is not 

 quite settled that the Concord, although a good table grape, will be profita- 

 ble as a wine grape. I believe the Delaware more valuable for the table 

 than for wine. All the Delaware wine that I have tasted is very rich, 

 sweet, too much so for a common healthy drink. I do not wonder at the 

 doubt expressed about lona. • 1 know that the same cause has produced 

 the same effect upon many minds. But I assure Mr. Bent, and every other 

 doubter, that I believe the lona the best American grape ever discovered. 



Information about Crops, Climate and Land in New Jersey. 



An old resident of Salem, New Jer'=ey, sends the following information, 

 addressed to the New York Farmers' Club. Having had some experience 

 in the culture-of the cane, and having manufactured above 3,000 gallons of 

 syrup each of the last three years, I will offer you my experience in reply 

 to some of your questions in regard to its deterioration, hybridizing, &c. 



" SORGHUM IN NEW JERSEY. 



" I have worked cane grown on light sandy soil, on heavy clay land, and 

 on all intermediate mixtures of land, and on tide meadow, and have made 

 good light colored syrup from cane grown on all these kinds of soil. Not 

 good light colored, like New Orleans, but much lighter colored and better; 

 nor like your Hlinois correspondent, containing much acid, but much more 

 like honey in taste and color. Light sandy and gravelly land produces 

 generally the best and highest colored syrup; and yet I have had some 

 cane from all these kinds of soil that did not work well — did not produce 

 good syrup. The cause is the gum of some other constituent of the juice 

 gravitating to the bottom and burning on the pan while in the process of 

 evaporating the water. The smoke from this gum escaping through the 

 syrup imparts to it a dark cok)r, and sometimes a burnt and bitter taste, 

 and makes the syrup of an inferior quality. Some lots of cane produce a 

 syrup very light colored, and apparently good and sweet, but will not make 

 a fine hair stream. Such in time becomes more like jelly — owing to gum 

 or other impurities contained in it. Green cane produces more of the latter 

 kind of syrup, and that grown on low Avet land more of the former. 



"This year's crop produced only two-thirds as much syrup per acre as 

 last year's crop, owing to the drouth. The richness of juice I have not 

 found confined to cane grown on any kind of soil on land that has been 

 limed, but cane that stands thinly on the ground is generally the richest. 

 The saccharometer stood at twelve degrees in the richest juice, and at six 



