2 



THE PRODUCTION OF NEW VARIETIES OF FRUIT. 



ence removed from the natural state. When reared from seeds they 

 always show a tendency to return to a wilder form, and it seems only 

 chance when a new seedling is equal to, or surpasses its parent. Removed 

 from their natural form, these artificially created sorts are also much 

 more liable to diseases and to decay. From these facts arises the fruit- 

 garden, with its various processes of grafting, budding, and other means 

 of continuing the sort ; with also its sheltered aspects, warm borders, 

 deeper soils, and all its various refinements of art and culture. 



In the whole range of cares and pleasures belonging to the garden, 

 there is nothing more truly interesting than the production of new varie- 

 ties of fruit. It is not, indeed, by sowing the seeds that the lover of 

 good fruit usually undertakes to stock his garden and orchard with fine 

 fruit-trees. Raising new varieties is always a slow, and, as generally 

 understood, a most uncertain mode of bringing about this result. The 

 novice plants and carefully watches his hundred seedling pippins, to find 

 at last, perhaps, ninety-nine worthless or indifferent apples. It appears 

 to Mm a lottery, in which there are too many blanks to the prizes. He 

 therefore wisely resorts to the more certain mode of grafting from well- 

 known and esteemed sorts. 



Notwithstanding this, every year, under the influences of garden cul- 

 ture, and often without our design, we find our fruit-trees reproducing 

 themselves ; and occasionally there springs up a new and delicious sort, 

 whose merits tempt us to fresh trials after perfection. 



To a man who is curious in fruit, — the pomologist, — who views with a 

 more than common eye the crimson cheek of a peach, the delicate bloom 

 of a plum, or understands the epithets, rich, melting, buttery, as applied 

 to a pear, nothing in the circle of culture can give more lively and un- 

 mixed pleasure than thus to produce and to create — for it is a sort of 

 ^creation — an entirely new sort, which he believes will prove handsomer 

 and better than anything that has gone before. And still more : as 

 varieties which originate in a certain soil and climate are found best 

 adapted to that locality, the production of new sorts of fruit of high 

 merit may be looked on as a most valuable as well as interesting result. 



Besides this, all the fine new fruits which of late figure so conspicu- 

 ously in the catalogues of the nurseries and fruit-gardens, have not 

 been originated at random and by chance efforts. Some of the most dis- 

 tinguished pomologists have devoted years to the subject of the improve- 

 ment of fruit-trees by seeds, and have attained, if not certain results, at 

 least some general laws, which greatly assist us in this process of amelio- 

 ration. Let us therefore examine the subject a little more in detail. 



In the wild state, every genus of trees consists of one or more species, 

 •or strongly marked individual sorts ; as, for example, the white birch 

 and the black birch ; or, to confine ourselves more strictly to the mat- 

 ter in hand, the different species of cherry, — the wild or bird cherry, the 

 sour cherry, the mazard cherry, <fec. These species, in their natural 

 state, exactly reproduce themselves ; to use a common phrase, they 

 " come the same " from seed. This they have done for centuries, and 

 doubtless will do forever, so long as they exist under natural circum- 

 stances only. 



On the other hand, suppose we select one of these species of fruit-trees 

 and adopt it into our gardens. So long as we cultivate that indi- 

 vidual tree, or any part of it, in the shape of sucker, graft, or bud, its 

 nature will not be materially altered. It may, indeed, through cultiva- 



