Charcoal for Manure — N'., MoUne, .Illinois. 

 — I have a few wagon loads of coarsely pulverized 

 charcoal, that has been used in rectifying liquors, 

 that I have' hauled home, hoping to be able to 

 make a good use of it in some way, either in propa- 

 gating gTiipe vines, or on my land some way. My 

 soil is first-rate for making brick with, requiring no 

 more sand or clay. Is it good for making a porous 

 soil for grape cuttings? If you can tell me the 

 proper use to make of it I shall be much obliged. ' ' 



[We have for years past had this subiectof char- 

 coal before the public. Almost all writers recom- 

 mend it as good to mix with soil, either as a 

 "collector of ammonia," or to act mechanically as 

 rendering heavy soil porous. We have given the 

 matter careful attention, prac^^c<7//^/, but think it 

 one of the "closet" theories, which are right in 

 the abstract, but no use in practice. We advise 

 our correspondent to burn his charcoal, and he will 

 find more use from the wood ashes than from the 

 charcoal in a raw state. I 



Horticola's Method of increasing Hardi- 

 ness IN the Grape Vine.— C. i^., JElwood, 

 JS/. J., writes: " In the December number of your 

 valuable magazine, in an article by "Horticola," 

 (page 363-4,) is mentioned a new method of 

 strengthening, or increasing the hardiness of grape 

 vines, but no particulars are given, nor are there 

 any in the January number. If Horticola could 

 be induced to explain the method fully, I doubt 

 not it would be welcomed by very many of your 

 readers, as well as myself" 



[Horticola's pkn, we thought clearly stated ; 

 and was grafting the tender vines on hardy Clinton 

 roots.] 



Christine or Telegraph Grape. -->S'., Hoho- 

 ken, N. J., asks : "Do you know anything of the 

 Christine or Telegraph grape? is it good?" 



[This variety was exhibited some years ago, 

 before the Horticultural Society, and reported in 

 the Monthly as the Christine. It is an early grape, 

 well characterized by very close, compact bunches 

 of medium-sized black berries ; not of the superior 

 flavor of some of the more delicate kinds, but like 

 the Concord, a free grower and sure bearer, and as 

 well worth planting as scores of fancy kinds sent 

 out at high prices instead of given freely as this 

 one was. J 



Abnormal Apple Tree Shoots.— iV. E. C, 

 Cleveland, 0., says:— " Having purchased a small 

 farm the past fall, I have been trying, without 



previous experience, to prune my young apple 

 trees. In doing this I have followed the rules 

 laid down in the books, to cut out all crooked 

 and interfering or interlacing branches, but 

 have been somewhat puzzled what to do 

 with the ends of the branches on the new 

 shoots of the past season. I have, however, 

 adopted the plan (whether it is right or wrong 

 I do not know) of cutting them back to within a 

 few buds of the previous years' growth, always 

 leaving the terminal bud on the side towards which 

 I wish the new shoot to grow. In looking over my 

 trees I find one or two which have to me a singular 

 appearance. Upon the ends of all of the last 

 C1865) year's shoots, there is a swelling nearly as 

 large as a hickory nut, from each side of which 

 springs a short (4 to 10 inches) new shoot, and be- 

 tween them is the remains of a blasted fruit. This 

 may be common for all I know, but it is new to me. 

 In pruning I have cut them all away, and cut back 

 to a good bud on the two year shoots. Am I 

 right?" 



[We have never seen such processes on the apple 

 tree as our correspondent describes, and should be 

 very glad of specimens for examination. It is no 

 doubt caused either by a parasitic fungus, or an in- 

 sect. In either case he does right to cut them 

 away, and if they appear next year take them off 

 and destroy them before they mature.] 



Evergreens FOR the West. — Mr. R.. Douglas, 

 Wankegan, Ills., writes: "We Western men vfould 

 like to add a few more to our very meagre list of 

 Evergreens that will endure our parching winds, 

 and from conversations I had with several of them 

 a few days since, at Champaign, I know they would 

 be delighted to hear from you in the Monthly on 

 this subject. I see the Corsican Pine is attract- 

 ing a good deal of attention in Europe. In Eng- 

 land they are calling it more valuable than Larch ; 

 we dont know how it stands the winters here, 

 either East or West. 



I was asked by several tree planters whether the 

 Abies Douglassi was hardy here, and from all I 

 have had to do with it and seen of it here, I would 

 not call it hardy; and I think that was its reputa- 

 tion East a few years since. But I have been told 

 it is perfectly hardy here, although I have not seen 

 one specimen six feet high in the State. I simply 

 mention this to let you see that we are in the dark 

 here." 



[The Corsican Pine, Finns Laricio, is very 

 much in appearance like the Austrian, but more 



9 



