Propagation of Fruit Trees, Vines, ^c. 289 



fleeting upon the probable cause of it, have come to the conclusion 

 that it is chiefly, if not solely, owing to our not imitating, or rather 

 following, the process of nature, in her works of reproduction, where 

 every thing is perfect. If I do not mistake in this, and experiment 

 should justify my opinion, better fruit than we have heretofore had 

 will be the consequence ; if, on the contrary, my theory turns out to 

 be erroneous, it will only be one other which has failed when reduced 

 to practice. 



I believe that no one views the oak, the hickory, the chestnut, and 

 other trees of our magnificent forests, as the degenerate offspring of 

 their parents, and yet the mode nature which adopts in their pro- 

 duction is of the simplest kind ; the acorn, or the nut, is left to ri- 

 pen in its envelope, and on its stem, till the fit time arrives for that en- 

 velope to burst, and drop its dry nut on the ground, where it lies 

 until the frosts open the earth to receive it, when it germinates in 

 due season and sends forth a plant likely to rival its size. This is no 

 doubt the reason why fruits from trees accidentally discovered grow- 

 ing wild, have generally proved finer than cultivated ones, as the 

 author of the memoir justly remarks, while the latter are found 

 "degenerate," and "acid and unpalatable." In the former case, 

 whether a peach, a pear, or a cherry, it remains unplucked by the 

 hand of man, ripens, falls, rots, and finally dries up, liberating the 

 seed in a fit condition to enter the earth when the frost prepares a 

 place for it to drop into, which probably is not so deep as the hole 

 w'e make to plant one in. Tiiat it should not produce a fruit in all 

 respects like its parent would be more surprising than the contrary. 



But how different is the course pursued by us in endeavoring to 

 produce a fruit similar to the one we have been enjoying, which, 

 although its flavor may be exquisite, was probably, when gathered, 

 not as perfect as it would have been had it been left until it was about 

 to drop : in many cases, [jeaches, pears and cherries are plucked 

 before they are ripe, and most of those brought to market are very 

 unripe, especially pears, which are conmionly pulled green, and ri- 

 pened afterwards in a closet. We select the stone of. a fine peach, 

 or the seed of a fine melon, after stripping them of their delicious 

 pulpy covering, which was destined to supply nourishment, until the 

 seed is ready for the ground ; it encounters suddenly the keen ac- 

 tion of the air, (the effects of which at such a moment no man can 

 better estimate than yourself,) and is given perhaps to a careless ser- 

 vant to put away to dry, and in due time it is planted, produces a 



Vol. XXVIL— No. 2. 37 



