50 



D. M. FERRY & CO'S DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 



more nutriment than the tree takes up; besides the yield of 

 timber in a series of years would prove a very profitable 

 investment. Seeds should be sown in a half shady situation. 



EUROPEAN LINDEN (Tilia Europcea). — A great 

 favorite for ornamental planting in Europe. Its wood is very 

 white, light, not liable to crack, and much prized for cabinet 

 work, and the panels of carriages. It should be planted by 

 all bee keepers, as no flower of its size yields better honey or 

 in greater abundance. 



HONEY LOCUST (Gleditschia triacanthosX— On account 

 of its rapidity of growth and durability of the timber, we 

 regard this as one of the most valuable of our native trees. 

 It is not so liable to injury by the borer as the common 

 Locust, and does not sprout from the root to a greater extent 

 than do most of our forest trees. Without the preparation 

 recommended above, the seeds may lie from one to three 

 years in the ground without sprouting. Take up and heel in 

 or cover the plants in the fall, and set out the next spring. 

 After the first season, they are perfectly hardy. One pound 

 contains about 2,300 seeds. 



YELLOW LOCUST (Robinia pseudo-acacia).— This tree 

 grows so rapidly that railroad ties may be cut from it ten 

 years from the planting of the seed, while the durability of 

 its timber is well known, fence posts of it having stood for 

 sixty years. Culture same as the above. One ounce contains 

 about 1,300 seeds. 



WHITE MULBERRY (Morus alba).— Desirable for 

 feeding silk worms. Grows readily and rapidly from seeds, 

 which should not be covered too deep, as they are quite small. 

 It delights in a warm, dry soil, and will succeed in almost any 

 place that will produce a good corn crop. 



RUSSIAN MULBERRY.— Introduced into this country 

 by the Mennonites, and by them extensively planted for silk 

 worm culture. Of rapid growth, resembling the apple tree 

 in habit, with a grayish bark and drooping branches. It is 

 very easily cultivated and, kept in dwarf form, makes a fine 

 hedge and wind break. It bears very young and, it is said, 

 every year. The fruit is similar to the blackberry, varying in 

 flavor from sub-acid to sweet. In cold regions especially, 

 this should prove a very valuable variety for its timber, shade 

 and fruit. It is said to reproduce itself exactly from seed, 

 and as our seed is direct from the Mennonite colony, it can be 

 depended on as true and reliable. 



OSAGE ORANGE (Madura aurantiaca).—How to 

 Plant, Cultivate and Make a Hedge. — The Osage Orange 

 is a native of Texas, but can be grown and cultivated advan- 

 tageously in most parts of the United States. The ground 

 should be thoroughly pulverized by either plowing or spading, 

 before the seed is planted. The surest way is to sprout the 

 seed before planting, as it is very slow to germinate when 

 put into the ground without being sprouted, sometimes taking 

 a whole season to come up. To sprout the seed put into a 

 vessel and cover with warm (not hot} water. Keep the 

 vessel in a warm place, and change the water once a day. 

 Let the seed soak about five or six days, after which pour off 

 the water and cover the vessel with a cloth. Keep in a warm 

 room and stir the seed occasionally. In about one week 

 more they will begin to sprout, and are ready for planting. 

 A pound of seed, if properly managed, will produce 5,000 

 plants. The seed should be sown in April or May, with 

 twelve good seeds to the foot, in drills twenty inches apart. 

 They should be kept free from weeds, as the young plants 

 are very tender and delicate until they are from three to five 

 inches high. They can oe set out in permanent hedges the 

 following spring, in rows, placing them six inches apart in 

 the row, but should be cut back to within an inch of the 

 ground before they are set out; and to make a thick hedge it 

 will be necessary to cut back the first three years' growth , 

 leaving only about eight inches of the season's growth. 

 This system must be pursued every season until the hedge is 

 of the desired height and form. Under proper treatment a 

 good hedge that will turn all kinds of stock can be grown 

 from seed in from three to four years. 



S~Gh- 



Iedium Red, or June. 



CLOVER SEEDS. 



MAMMOTH, OR 

 LARGE RED (Trifolium 

 pratense). — It grows five or 

 six feet high, but its stalks are 

 so coarse and large that stock 

 will eat only the leaves, but by 

 its judicious use lands which 

 have been exhausted can be 

 reclaimed, as it will grow 

 where the common clover will 

 fail. Sow at the rate of about 

 eight pounds per acre. Sixty 

 pounds per bushel. 



MEDIUM RED, OR 

 JUNE (Trifolium pratense}. 

 —This is by far the most im- 

 portant of all the varieties for 

 the practical purposes of agri- 

 culture. Sow in spring or fall; 

 and when no other grasses are 



used, at the rate of eight to ten pounds per acre, more being 

 required on old, stiff soils than on new and fighter ones. 

 Sixty pounds per bushel. 



ALSIKE, OR SWEDISH (Trifolium hybridum).— This 

 valuable variety is fast gaining great popularity. It is the 

 most hardy of all the clovers ; perennial. On rich, moist soils 

 it yields an enormous quantity of hay or pasturage, and may 

 be cut several times in a season, but its greatest value is for 

 sowing with other clovers and grasses, as it forms a thick 

 bottom and greatly increases the yield of hay, and cattle 

 prefer it to any other forage. The heads are globular, very 

 sweet and fragrant, and much liked by bees, which obtain a 

 large amount of honey from them. Sow in spring or fall, at 

 the rate of six pounds per acre, where used alone. Sixty 

 pounds per bushel. 



CRIMSON TREFOIL, OR SCARLET ITALIAN 

 (Trifolium incarnatum).— This is an annual variety, in com- 

 mon use in Italy and the south of France for feeding green. 

 The yield in fodder is immense, and, after cutting, it at once 



Crimson Trefoil, or Scarlet Italian. 



commences growing again, and continues until severe, cold, 

 freezing weather. It grows about one foot high ; the roots 

 are nearly black; leaves long; blossoms long, pointed and of 

 a very deep red, or carmine color. Makes good hay. Sow in 

 April or May, eight pounds of seed per acre. 



WHITE DUTCH (Trifolium repens).—A small, creeping, 

 spreading, perennial variety, valuable for pasturage and for 

 lawns. It accommodates itself to a variety of soils, but 

 prefers moist ground. In conjunction with blue grass, it 

 forms the most nutritious food for sheep or cows. Sow in 

 spring, at the rate of six pounds per acre; or when used 

 with other grasses, half that amount will be sufficient. 



LUCERNE, OR ALFALFA (Medicago sativa).— 

 Where this succeeds, it is the most valuable of all the 

 clovers. It is more difficult to secure a good stand, as it 

 requires a very fine, mellow soil, and some protection the 

 first year, but when once established it will produce a profit- 

 able crop for from five to twelve years. It yields a prodig- 

 ious amount of green fodder for cattle, and should be cut 

 when first commencing to bloom, when it pushes out fresh 

 shoots and the aftergrowth is something wonderful. In the 

 driest and most sultry weather, when every blade of grass 

 withers, Lucerne is as fresh and green as in spring, because 

 the roots go down to the moisture in the ground. Although 

 such a prodigious yielder, it does not exhaust the soil, but 

 rather improves it. It should not be sown on compact, clay 

 soils, even with a light subsoil. 



BOKHARA (Melilotus alba) Sweet Clover.— This is 

 exceedingly valuable as pasturage for bees. It is occasion- 

 ally found growing wild by the roadside in company with the 

 more common sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis), and may 

 be distinguished from it by its white flowers and less coarse 

 and more leafy stems. 



GRASS SEEDS. 



TIMOTHY (Phleum pratense).— This is the most valuable 

 of all the grasses for hay, especially in the North. Thrives 

 best on moist, loamy soils of medium tenacity. It should be 

 cut just when the blossom falls. Sow early in spring or fall, 

 at the rate of twelve pounds per acre, if alone, but less if 

 mixed with other grasses. Forty-five pounds per bushel. 



TALL OAT, OR MEADOW OAT GRASS (Arrhenathe- 

 rum avenaceum). —This is sometimes sold at an exorbitant 

 price under the name of " Evergreen grass. 11 It is admirably 

 adapted to sandy, gravelly or dry soils, as its roots penetrate 

 deep down into the subsoil, and for this reason, it is sown 

 extensively throughout the west to take the place of the 

 prairie grass. Its roots are perennial, and in the South the 

 tops are evergreen, where it yields enormous crops, being 

 cut for green soiling as high as four or five times in favorable 

 seasons. It grows very rapidly, being fit to cut as early as 



