i6 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 307. 



in flower in the Cape-house at Kew, some of the spikes 

 being fully fifteen inches high, and clothed two-thirds of 

 their length with large fleshy flowers of the richest old-gold 

 color. I should place this first among cultivated Lache- 

 nalias ; it is superior to the hybrid L. Nelsoni in the purity 

 of its color. There is also a group of the handsome 

 L. pendula in flower in the same house, the drooping tubes 

 of which are red, tipped with green and purple. These are 

 invaluable plants at this time of year. „, ... 



T.nnrlnn. W. \\ (lt$01l. 



Cultural Department. 



The Russian Cherries. 



IT is rather remarkable that more is generally known about 

 the large than the small Russian tree-fruits. At least, it is 

 only of late that we are getting hold of full and satisfactory 

 information about both the Plums and Cherries brought to this 

 country from Russia some ten years ago. I received a few 

 small plants of these not long afterward, and planted them 

 about where I could find vacancies in my Apple orchard, and 

 these proved themselves hardy, but not productive. This has 

 been true of all Plums and Cherries so planted, andas in Russia 

 they are both very productive, and as growers in the west do 

 not complain in this respect, I came to the conclusion that the 

 Plums and the Cherries should each have a place by them- 

 selves. Four years ago I received from Professor Budd a lib- 

 eral supply of yearling trees of both species, and following his 

 advice they were planted rather closely, twelve feet one way 

 by twenty the other, and last summer they began to produce 

 fruit quite freely. Little Cherry-trees, less than four feet high, 

 gave me one to two quarts each. The trees, however, are not 

 all dwarf ; but, so far, I find it is the dwarf forms that bear the 

 largest and best cherries. 



These Russian Cherries and Plums, it should be well under- 

 stood, were selected by Professor Budd, of Iowa, and Mr. 

 Charles Gibb, of Canada, during their pomological expedition 

 to Russia in 1882, and imported the following spring. Some 

 of these varieties have since been imported by other persons, 

 and the list of these Russian fruits in this country is now a 

 long one. Much of the wood of the early importations was 

 used for propagation, and the effect of this was so unfavorable 

 to the necessary development of fruit-bearing on any sufficient 

 scale to give ground for exact knowledge of qualities, actual or 

 comparative, that we are still surprisingly ignorant of facts as 

 regards special varieties. The first report of any considerable 

 fullness on the subject is that of Mr. John Craig, a horticultu- 

 ral pupil of Mr. Charles Gibb, and subsequently of Professor 

 Budd, who is now in charge of the horticultural department 

 of the Dominion Agricultural Bureau, at Ottawa. Mr. Craig's 

 report was issued in November, 1892 ; and although this was 

 ten years after the selections were made in Russia, it is based 

 upon results in an orchard just beginning to produce 

 fruit in any considerable quantity. Of course, this is not said 

 with any idea of criticism upon the delay. The most impor- 

 tant duty was plainly to propagate the varieties as rapidly as 

 possible, disseminate the young trees as widely as possible, 

 and then to collect and compare the reports of results. The 

 next three or four years will add enormously to our practical 

 knowledge in this line. The early plantings of single trees, 

 here and there, like my own, already referred to, have, indeed, 

 given us older and larger trees; but their unfruittulness has 

 left us still uncertain as to what might be the results under 

 proper conditions. 



The varieties here reported upon were, in the main, per- 

 sonal selections made from an extensive list by Professor 

 Budd, although a few were from the stock of Ellwanger & 

 Barry and others who are propagating these fruits commer- 

 cially. It is proper for me to say that I am not doing this my- 

 self. At Ottawa the first fruits were picked in 1890 from trees 

 set in 1887. The soil is a sandy loam, fertilized with barn-yard 

 manure and leached ashes, and the growth of the trees has 

 been healthy and vigorous. In 1892 forty varieties fruited, 

 many yielding full crops. They were all Dukes or Morellos, 

 or hybrid forms between these. As is known, the Dukes are 

 strong upright growers, while the typical Morellos have round 

 tops, with smaller leaves and slender drooping branches, but 

 intermediate forms are numerous. Mr. Craig gives us a num- 

 ber of photo-engravings of varieties of natural size, very well 

 done. The first illustration is of Early Morello, Amarelle 

 Hative, bearing a full crop the fourth year from planting. Ripe 

 at Ottawa July 10th. Fruit large ; skin dark red ; stalk long, in 

 a deep cavity ; pit medium to large; flesh well tinged with 

 red ; quality good. 



Bessarabian, said to be of an Asiatic race. As a rule, names, 

 however, are not reliable indications of origin. Fruit medium 

 to large ; in pairs, bright red ; flattened sidewise and at apex ; 

 stalk long, in a deep cavity; flesh firm, dark red, sub-acid, 

 without astringency when ripe ; pit small and round ; ripens 

 at Ottawa the first week of August ; tree a free grower ; 

 strictly hardy. 



Brown Brusselles, a favorite and successful variety at Mos- 

 cow. Fruit large, heart-shaped, almost black ; flesh firm, high- 

 colored, acid ; a favorite variety in the Warsaw market ; tree 

 a free, open grower ; closely resembles the Shadow Amarelle, 

 mentioned below ; ripe August 10th. 



Double Glass, very distinct, upright tree, with large promi- 

 nent buds ; fruit of largest size, heart-shaped, with deep 

 suture; stalk thick, not long ; flesh yellow, juice uncolored ; 

 ripe end of July ; not strictly iron-clad at Ottawa. 



Frauendorfer Weichsel, very hardy and productive ; small 

 to medium, fair quality ; ripe end of July. 



Griotte du Nord, from Silesia ; fruit medium to large, dark 

 red, spherical ; long slender stalks in pairs ; flesh highly 

 colored, juicy, acid, but pleasant ; pit medium ; a slow grower. 

 »' Griotte Imperial, hardy and productive ; a slow grower; 

 fruit medium to large ; skin dark red ; juice deeply colored, 

 quite acid, rich ; ripe by the middle of July. 



Orel No. 25, one of several varieties obtained from Orel, 

 Russia, by numbers. This, which appears the most valuable, 

 is large, heart-shaped; light red, with uncolored juice; flesh 

 tender, very juicy, sub-acid; ripe first week in August; tree 

 vigorous, upright, hardy. A valuable late Cherry. 



Vladimir. This Cherry attracted Mr. Gibbs' attention more 

 than any other which he saw in Russia. Its cultivation has at- 

 tained vast proportions in the province from which it gets its 

 name. The tree is exceptionally hardy, and it is proving verv 

 productive on light soils in Ontario. Fruit medium to small, 

 borne in clusters of two to four ; skin nearly black ; flesh firm, 

 with a sprightly acidity. Seedlings of Vladimir in Ottawa show 

 a more perfect adaptation to the climate than the original stock. 



Shadow Amarelle, so called from its mirror-like surface re- 

 flecting exterior objects. This is a vigorous and productive 

 late sort, ripe early in August. A considerable number of this 

 class is quite dwarf, with compact round heads ; bears while 

 young, and with wonderful profusion. These Russian Cher- 

 ries bid fair to make cherry-growing for market a profitable 

 business in the cold north. 



Newport, vt. T.H.Hoskins. 



Carnations. 



MRS. FISHER still continues the best white Carnation here 

 for any purpose. It possesses a strong constitution, and 

 is an abudant bloomer, being equally profuse in summer as 

 winter. The flowers are of the largest size, excellent form, 

 well fringed and very fragrant. In the depth of winter, and 

 especially during cool weather, Mrs. Fisher comes slightly 

 tinged with pink. This, at Wellesley, Massachusetts, at first was 

 considered a detriment, but Mr. Tailby tells me he sells all he 

 can get of this flush-tinted variety, and a mass of them which 

 I lately saw made a charming appearance. The plant is easily 

 propagated, and so far has proved rust-proof. Ferdinand 

 Mangold is an equally good crimson. It is an ideal flower, 

 which all raisers of new varieties strive to attain. If it has a 

 fault, it is that it is difficult to propagate. There is not quite 

 such unanimity of opinion about the scarlet varieties. Hector 

 takes the lead here. Its strong constitution, fine bright color 

 and good stiff stems are its most important qualifications. It 

 is not, however, as prolific as Portia, and though the flowers 

 are larger, they are somewhat inclined to burst. Lilian Abbe 

 is a new and very promising scarlet. It is somewhat similar 

 to Florence, once the stand-by, but has a much better stem. 

 So far as I have seen, it is perfectly healthy. Nobscot is an- 

 other new variety, which has been grown by the raiser, Mr. 

 Nicholson, of Framingham, Massachusetts, for summer use. 

 It is a free and continuous bloomer; the flowers are of perfect 

 form and fine color, but lack size. The best bright pink so far 

 is William Scott. It is nearer to Grace Wilder than any variety 

 yet raised. It has all the merits and none of the faults of Grace 

 Wilder, which seems to have developed an impaired constitu- 

 tion during late years, a weakness seen in a loss of color and a 

 tendency to rust. Ada Byron, the new bright pink, is really a 

 pink Mrs. Fisher, and is a seedling of that variety raised by 

 Mr. Fisher, of Framingham, Massachusetts. It is identical 

 with the parent-plant in every way except in color, and to 

 those who know the parent, nothing more need be said in the 

 way of commendation. The new William Nicholson is a fine 

 reddish pink, and is probably the largest and most prolific va- 

 riety with this shade of flowers, which have hitherto been shy 



