328 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[September, 
tern, but being painted of a bright red, the effect 
was anything but pleasing. Had tliey been of 
a subdued or neutral tint, it would have been 
much better, as a scarlet edging detracts from 
whatever may be iti the bed. To the list of 
plants already suggested for edging purposes, we 
have to add Sedum spurium, a dwarf growing 
and hardy species. It spreads rapidly, and will 
need to be kept within bounds. A variegated 
Thyme has been introduced that makes a very 
neat edging. It is like the common Thyme ex- 
cept that each leaf has a delicate white line 
upon the margin. Its general effect is subdued 
and quiet. We have not yet tested its hardiness. 
Seedling Strawberries. 
BY B. HATHAWAY, LITTLE PRAIRIE ROND, MICH. 
The remarks of Mr. Boyden, in the July 
Agriculturist, although correct in the main, 
contain some erroneous statements. 
He says, "The strawberry seed, like several 
other seeds, remains until the following spring 
before it germinates." How he could adopt 
such an hypothesis, that analogy and observa- 
tion must alike refute, seems unaccountable. 
It is well known that the strawberry is al- 
most cosmopolitan hi its character and habits. 
Its geographical range covers three zones, and 
it is alike at home in Lapland, Mexico, South 
America, and the islands of the Pacific. 
For some years I have given attention to the 
improvement of this fruit, and I have never 
failed to get the seed to grow by putting it in 
the ground at once, without previous prepara- 
tion, giving plenty of water, witli shade. I have 
at this date — July 14th — hundreds of plants up, 
many of them showing the third leaf, from seed 
sown since the 1st inst. 
For ten years, or more, I have been experi- 
menting with seedling strawberries — have had a 
thousand or more new sorts fruiting in a season. 
Several years were spent in random experi- 
ments, before developing anything like improve- 
ment. I sowed seed from the largest and best 
berries, without regard to class or the sexual 
character of the plant. It was only after discov- 
ering that seedlings from hermaphrodites, or 
from foreign sorts, or from hybrids in which the 
foreign element predominated, whatever might 
he their sexual character, were of little or no val- 
ue, that 1 conceived of the true theory of progress. 
It is this: our native scarlet strawberry must 
be the basis of any improvement that will be per- 
manent and valuable. While we may get size 
and, possibly, flavor from foreign sorts, in our na- 
tive kinds alone lies the germ of productiveness. 
Only from the time when I first grew seed- 
lings from the old Virginia scarlet, that were 
purely pistillates, do I date any real progress. 
These were fertilized by the old sorts — Wil- 
son, Triomphe de Gaud, Boston Pine, etc., and 
the best of the pistillates grown were used as 
the maternal parents of the next generation. 
Last 3 r ear I set a small plot of ground — about 
thirty square rods — to several of my new kinds, 
. and the leading older sorts, for the purpose of 
testing their relative value and productiveness, 
and the result was as surprising to myself and 
friends as it was gratifying, in disclosing the fact 
that I had several new seedlings that proved 
more productive than the world-renowned 
Wilson even, besides being possessed of other 
qualities that make them of greater value. 
In order to give a more definite idea of the 
test, I will give my plan more in detail. 
The plants were propagated by rooting them 
into thumb-pots, and were put out as they were 
grown, a row or two at a time, in July, August, 
and some as late as September, and consisted 
of the following sorts : 
2 rows of No. 1 Seedling, 5 of No. 9, 2 of 
No. 5, 1 of No. 8, 1 of No. 10, 1 of No. 3, 1 of 
No. 2, 2 of Wilson, 1 of Agriculturist, 1 of Brook- 
lyn Scarlet, 1 of Monitor, 1 of Russell's Prolific. 
The plants were set two feet by four, two 
plants to the hill, and had good culture. 
My most valuable seedlings are identified by 
numbers, and are known as No. 1, 6, 9, and, 
possibly, 3. It was no unusual thing to gather 
a heaping quart of ripe berries from a hill at 
one picking of either of these numbers, except 
6, which is not quite so prolific. 
No. 1, for field culture, will probably take the 
lead. The berry is a light scarlet in color, about 
the size of the Wilson when the latter is not 
overgrown, with fewer small ones, and it will 
hang on the vines for a week after it is ripe, if 
the weather is dry, without spoiling, a quality 
by no means to be overlooked, and as for fruit- 
fulness — it is a marvel to behold. 
No. 3 is about as productive as No. 1, late — 
ten days later than the Wilson. It is a large 
berry, dark colored, juicy, and sour, which is 
equivalent to saying that it will not keep, and 
though hill after hill, set in August last, yielded 
its quart at the first picking, the finer flavor and 
better keeping qualities of the other numbers 
nearly or quite neutralize its value. 
No. 6 is probably the most taking sort to the 
e3 T e, and, possibly, to the majority of people, to 
the taste also, that I have. The fruit is large, 
light scarlet, conical, slightly necked, very uni- 
form in size and shape. While none of the ber- 
ries are as large as j'ou will occasionally find a 
Wilson, the average will be as large or larger, 
giving the appearance of having been assorted. 
As to quality, it is a rich acid, with just suffi- 
cient of the pine aroma to give it flavor, while 
it does not possess the insipid sweetness that 
is the characteristic of that class. 
No. 9 has also a veiy distinctive character. 
It is the strongest growing sort I have on my 
grounds. The berries are medium to large, 
with no small ones ; in color, deep scarlet or 
purple crimson, which adds much to its beauty; 
in shape, long — about the form of an overgrown 
blackberry, and in quality it has few compeers. 
It will hang on a long time, if the weather is 
favorable, and will do what I never saw another 
strawberry do before — literally dry into a sweet 
delicious pulp, like a raisin. — Of the other num- 
bers it is needless to speak, though twenty years 
ago they would have been great acquisitions. 
Of the older sorts, the Russell is of no value 
- — large, productive, soft, and sour — too many 
small ones — all on the ground, and the plant 
sun-scalds. The Monitor, too tender. " The 
Brooklyn Scarlet — healthy,hardy,a good grower, 
sweet fruit — too sweet, but only moderately 
productive. The Agriculturist is the best of 
our recently disseminated kinds, so far as I have 
tried. It produced some of the largest berries 
on my grounds. It is about as productive as the 
Wilson under the same treatment — hill culture 
— and of much better quality, and will keep bet- 
ter than that variety, but not so well as is desir- 
able. Its greatest faults ore a want of uniform- 
ity in the size of the fruit, and its tendency to 
cockscomb, and irregular shape. 
Of the Wilson it is hardly necessary to speak. 
That its introduction began a new era in straw- 
beny growing, will not be denied; but it will 
be superseded, or, at least, hold a divided realm. 
"Very many of the growers of this fruit found 
to their cost, the past season, that it was not 
wise to set all their eggs under one hen, and 
we think hereafter the later and earlier varieties 
will command the attention that they deserve. 
I will say that none of these new sorts are 
offered for sale. Although they may be found 
valuable on my own grounds, and in comparison 
with the best, this is not a sufficient guarantee 
that they are adapted to universal cultivation. 
They will be put into the hands of leading and 
reliable horticulturists to be pronounced upon. 
In the mean time, that the progress of experi- 
ment may not stop with these results, the best 
plants from the seed of best varieties I have 
yet grown will go into experimental grounds. 
A Trial of Early Peas. 
The number of peas named in the catalogues 
of seedsmen, each claiming to be the earliest, 
led the Royal Horticultural Societj', (England), 
to institute a comparative trial in 1865. The 
results of this trial we gave in May, 1866 ; these 
were severely criticised, not only by interested 
seedsmen, but by some of the English Horticul- 
tural Journals. This year another trial has 
been made at the Society's gardens at Chiswick, 
and we condense the following from a report in 
the Gardeners' Chronicle: 
"The earliest Pea was long considered to he 
the Earl}' Frame, which varied slightly, although 
its variations could scarcely be made out as per- 
manently distinct. Sometimes differences were 
indicated by the designations of Double-Blos- 
somed and Single-Blossomed Frames, and 
Early Nimble ; there was, indeed, no Express 
in those days, but there was the Early Race- 
horse, a name indicative of a pea that would 
quickly become fit for use; and there were more 
than twenty others which ultimately proved sy- 
nonymous. From amongst these arose the Early 
Kent, Early Emperor, Prince Albert, and subse- 
quently Sangster's No. 1, or Daniel O'Rourke. 
Among a number of samples, consisting of 
varieties with differences almost imperceptible, 
some in the course of repeated sowings exhib- 
ited a more luxuriant habit than others ; and 
luxuriance militates against earliness. On the 
contrary, Dillistone's Early, Carter's First Crop, 
and Sutton's Ringleader, &c, at the expense of 
luxuriance, have gained earliness over Early 
Frame and Early Emperor. Vegetables of all 
kinds raised from seed are liable to degenera- 
tion. Much depends on a careful selection of 
the plants from which to save the seed ; for if 
the most vigorous plants are selected and grown 
in succession in rich soil, a more luxuriant but 
later progeny will result. In this way a variety 
which is fouud to be the first in point of earli- 
ness this season, may become only second, third, 
or fourth in the next or subsequent 3 r ears. 
The Committee, at their meeting held on the 
25th inst., decided that Dillistone's Earl y, Carter's 
First Crop, Sutton's Ringleader, and Veitch's 
Early, were identical. There can not be any 
doubt on that point ; they were all sown on the 
same day, and they respectively bloomed, slat- 
ted, and became fit for use on the same day. 
They were, moreover, all injured by the frost 
more than any others, but all in an equal degree ; 
while Sangster's No. 1, Dickson's First and 
Best, &c, under the same conditions, were not 
injured in the slightest degree. 
Dwarf Waterloo is ten days later than Sang- 
ster's No. 1 ; from 12 to 18 inches high, produc- 
ing large pods, well filled, excellent, earlier than, 
and an improvement on, Bishop's Long-pod. 
Sudbury A 1, and Nutting's No. 1 wrinkled, 
are identical. This is a very excellent early 
