Millardet 



Rec. May 2 



Bordeaux, April 17, 1877 



Sir and very honorable colleague, 



I received your tetter of March 20 a few days ago. I received the smalt crate of seeds 

 that you had mentioned in your previous letter; ail were in good condition. Please accept 

 my thanks and extrême appréciation. 



I know too well of your great expérience in regards grape vines of the United States. I 

 am flattered at the help you have given me in accomplishing my work. The observations 

 and the détails that I found in your letter are most valuable for me, specially the 

 complète information on the Vitis labrusca in the Mississippi Valley. I had already noted 

 some of this information, which no doubt came from you, in the last édition of the Busch 

 catalogue. The new information that you gave me has helped me infinitely. 



Because I do not have a large pièce of land at my disposai this year, I planted only a 

 small portion of seeds in my small garden in about fifty pots. In this way I will be able to 

 study with ease the effects of the Phyllonera on the young plants. I gave a number of 

 seeds to several people who will refer their observations to me. I have no doubts at ail in 

 regards the résistance of thèse plants. What absolutely has to be determined is if they 

 can be grafted on the Vitis aestivalis. For the native type we do not have any 

 information as we don't for the Etterbemont, the Jacques and the Cunningham. Nothing 

 is certain. 



Regarding hybrids there are two seeds of the Vitis riparia collected by Biehl in the 

 surroundings of St. Louis. I noticed that the leaves are very close to the seeds ( The 

 Soyer-Villemet Herbarium, Faculty of Sciences of Nancy), and they have amazing 

 similarities to the Vitis aestivalis. This plant must be without a doubt a hybrid of those 

 two species, in spite of the différences in the time when they bloom. 



I would love to have a half thousand shoots of the plant of Biehl. If you could find them I 

 beg you to point them out to a farmer who could then eut them next fall. I beg you also, 

 when you are doing your excursions, to note the régions where the V. riparia and the V. 

 aestivalis are isolated not only from the cordifolia but also from each other. AH of this 

 could be very important in the future. 



While waiting for the V. riparia from Missouri to be used, as you have proven that the 

 northern type of this plant would be préférable, I would appreciate having contact with 

 the botanists or gardeners with expérience who could then eut a few million shoots, next 

 autumn in ail the régions where they can be found. I would pay for a thousand shoots, 

 up to 100 francs. I am sure you have acquaintances on the shores of the lakes. Could 

 you please give me their addresses, and if necessary a few words of recommendation 

 on a post card? 



Allow me to ask you to gather for me a fist full of seeds from the Vitis riparia of St. 

 Louis. If I could find find buyers of thèse seeds, I could ask you to make a payment to 

 those that collect them. 



6 7 8 9 10 

 copyright reserved 



