i 



6^' 



plum are dwarf in habit of tree, often bushes, and this seems to 

 be a provision of Nature ; for, in these cold climates, if a plum bush 

 is killed to the ground new shoots soon grow and bear. Of these 

 plums there is great variety ; some are red, others yellow, but 

 mostly blue ; they differ widely in flavor, some, I would say, equal 

 to Lombard, some are early, some late ; they are usually without 

 any astringency of skin, and usually free stone. I was not pre- 

 pared to find such plums in the cold climates of Russia. The im- 

 proved varieties of the wild plum of the North-Western States, I 

 had ( pected to be the future plums of the Province of Quebec. 

 I have some of them, heavy and reliable bearers, but of medium 

 quality only. There are much better varieties than those I have, 

 for instance, the Desota and others, yet, these non-astringent, 

 fleshy, free stone Russians, have a combination of good qualities 

 which entitle them to extensive trial in our cold country. I would 

 say, however, that they will prove as easy a prey to the curculio as 

 other European kinds, while the North-West Chickasaw, though 

 not too thick-skinned to prevent puncture, is, as Mr. Budd observes, 

 so juicy, as usually to prevent the inserted eggs from hatching. 



These Russian Plums are grown, no doubt, sometimes from 

 stones, but usually from suckers. Most of the horticultural gardens 

 or nurserymen have made small collections of the best they have 

 found. By thus obtaining roots of the best, from a number of 

 points, we may, more or less,- get the best of these Russian seed- 

 lings. 



One of the commonest in the northern markets is a long, dark, 

 dull red, prune-shaped plum, tapering toward the stalk, not rich, 

 but non-astringent, and a really good cooking fruit. The Skoros- 

 pelkaya Krasnaya, at Petrovskoe, is said to be about the best of 

 these red kinds, and the tree one of the hardiest, but season a little 

 later than some other red. Mr. Shroeder has six kinds he recom- 

 mends, three of which we saw in fruit, but before they were ripe. 

 The Volga Valley, too, has its, plentiful supplies of plums. Espec- 

 ially at Simbirsk, we find them in great quantity and variety. At 

 Voronesh, Mr. Fischer specially recommends the Moldavka, a large 

 violet plum, not to say juiqr, but of medium quality, rather a large 



