4,50 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[December, 
lily that so beautiful a flower is as hardy as a 
horseradish root. Lilium giganteum, L. Brownii, 
and L. auratum, are among the high priced 
bulbs. We must not forget to say a -word for 
our native species, of which L. Canadense, L. 
PliiladelpMcum, and L. superbum. are the most 
common. If these be marked when in flower, 
and the bulbs transferred to the garden when the 
foliage has withered, they will repay the trouble. 
A Self-closing Gate or "Stile." 
— ■ 
Iu last month's Agriculturist, (page 405,) is an 
illustration of a self-closing double entrance 
gate. A recent number of the (English) Jour- 
nal of Horticulture gives a single gate, or, as it 
«n 
*> 
Fig. 1. — GATE CLOSED. 
is called there, a " Sommersetshire Stile;" 
though a stile, properly speaking, is a set of 
steps to pass over a fence or hedge. The con- 
struction is quite simple, and there are probably 
many places in which it would be found more 
useful than a swinging gate, as it is self-closing 
and self-fastening. Fig. 1 represents the gate 
closed, and fig. 2 gives it half open and open ; 
the letters refer to the same parts in both. Two 
posts are set, united by a cross-piece below ; 
one of the posts, b, has at its top a slit to receive 
the cross-bar. a ; this bar at one end ]3asses in- 
Fig. 2.— GATE OPEN. 
to a mortise in the other post, and is fixed by a 
pin upon which it moves, and the other end is 
made long enough to be shaped into a project- 
ing handle. A perpendicular piece, or pendant, 
c, is attached to the cross-bar, a, by means of a 
pivot, at e, and at the lower end it has a ring 
which runs upon the iron rod, d. The action of 
the different parts iu opening is shown in fig. 2. 
In the description no dimensions are given, 
nor are there any particulars beyond what are 
here stated. It is thought of sufficient utility 
in England to patent it. "We have no doubt 
that some one here will patent this, as has 
been done with several sliding gates and other 
simple contrivances that we have published. 
Covering Strawberries in Winter. 
The object of covering strawberries at the 
approach of winter is often misapprehended. 
It sometimes happens that a novice covers his 
plants and finds a large portion of them dead 
in spring. He has overdone the thing, and 
taken too much care of his favorites. The ob- 
ject is not so much to keep frost from the plant, 
as to protect both tops and roots from the disas-. 
trous effects of alternate freezing and thawing. 
Hence the covering should be put on with dis- 
crimination, and while it may be quite thick 
between the rows, it should not be more than 
an inch or so in depth over the plants them- 
selves. In all good cultivation the plants are 
covered, and this serves the double purpose of 
protecting them from injury by alternate heat 
and cold, and when left on, as it should be, it 
keeps down the weeds and prevents the fruit 
from becoming soiled by contact with the earth. 
As to the material to be used, that will depend 
much upon the resources of the locality. Prob- 
ably the worst materials are tan-bark and saw- 
dust, not that they do not aflord sufficient pro- 
tection, but because they soil the fruit quite as 
mucli as if it were exposed to damage from the 
earth. Near the coast, "salt hay " is much used, 
and where it is obtainable, nothing can be bet- 
ter. It is made from a wiry kind of grass, that 
preserves its elasticity in a remarkable degree. 
Perhaps the most generally used material is 
straw. Oat straw, thrashed by the flail, is pre- 
ferred by some cultivators, but any kind wiil 
answer. With machine-thrashed straw it is well 
to throw a sprinkling of earth over it to hold it 
in place until the snows and frosts secure it. 
Do the same when leaves are employed to cover 
the plants ; these make an excellent mulch, as 
do spent hops from the breweries. Pine straw 
— fallen pine leaves— where they are abundant, 
are capital for the purpose. Corn-stalks are 
used in some parts of the West with success, 
and lastly, nature's own covering — snow, if we 
could but secure its permanency, is, as far as 
winter protection goes, the best covering of all. 
greatest care were taken in selecting for seed 
only those fruits that presented the desired form 
and other qualities in the strongest degree. 
Two of the varieties most prominent just 
now are Tilden's and Keyes'. Tilden's, which 
is usually tine at the West, is not generally suc- 
cessful at the East, where it is disposed to de- 
part from the typical form. Keyes' is said to be, 
in some parts of Massachusetts, "thirty days 
earlier than any other variety," while Mr. Greg- 
ory finds it at Marblehead, in the same State, 
later than several others, and at the Michigan 
Agricultural College, it stands third on the list 
in regard to earliness. Prof. Prentiss, of the 
above named institution, reports to the Prairie 
Farmer the results of his experiments with 
twenty-three varieties. He says': "Estimating 
their value by their average qualities, the finest, 
most desirable tomatoes now before the public, 
are the Tilden, Bed Yalencia, Collins, and 
Foard, these beiug mentioned in the order of 
their merit; and to these four should be added 
the old-fashioned Early Smooth Red,as being the 
earliest good variety yet produced." Another 
equally careful cultivator in another locality 
would probably make a different list. We hope 
that no more names will be added to our cata- 
logues unless the varieties have some marked 
qualities that have become so well fixed by a 
course of careful breeding, so to speak, that 
they may be in a measure permanent. Any one 
who has a good sort, like the Early Smooth 
Red, to start with, can, by selecting the earliest 
good specimens from the most fruitful plants, 
obtain an improved variety. By continuing to 
do this from year to year, the superior quality 
of plants from such seed will be so manifest that 
he will have little need to run after new sorts. 
Improvement in Tomatoes. 
There are now before the public some twenty 
or more kinds of tomatoes ; several of these 
have been produced within a few years, and 
have been put forth with great claims to supe- 
rior quality, earliness, and productiveness. We 
find that people try one or more of these new 
kinds every year, and go back to the Early 
Smooth Red. We cannot suppose that those 
who " originate" these varieties are not hon- 
est in their statements concerning the superior- 
ity of their favorites. The readiness with which 
the tomato varies is well known b}' all who 
have had any experience in growing it, and the 
trouble is that any particular sort does not have 
its peculiarities sufficiently fixed by a number 
of years' careful selection before it is put before 
the public as a new variety. Carelessness in 
saving seed, that is, in not selecting typical spec- 
imens, is sufficient in some cases to destroy the 
distinctive character in a single year. If a kind 
with some marked peculiarity were propagated 
from cuttings, there would not be such different 
opinions concerning varieties, but with a plant 
having so strong a tendency to variation, it is 
hardly to be expected that it should remain true 
when raised from the seed each year, unless the 
Notes on Grapes and Grape Culture. 
Our notes on grapes in Missouri and Ohio 
must give way to those gathered at the Grape 
Exhibition held at the office of the Agricul- 
turist, on the 24th of October — an account of 
which will be found in our "Basket" columns. 
Rogers' Hybrid*. — Here are 20 varieties of 
these grapes, all grown by Mr. Knox. We have 
gone over them carefully, and our mouth burns 
smartly after the operation. We never see these 
grapes without regretting that so many of them 
were ever offered for sale. Their general char- 
acters are a small bunch and a large berry that 
readily falls from the stem. A thick skin and 
tough pulp are found in many, but to all these 
defects there are some exceptions. Some of the 
numbers wiil no doubt acquire a permanent 
standing, while the majority may be classed as 
too good to throw away, and not good enough 
to keep. Of the earlier numbers, 4, 9, and 15 
seem to us the best. No. 4 was noticed last 
month, and we have nothing to add to qui 
description. jSTo. 9 is a dark Catawba color, 
smaller than No. 4, and much less showy. A 
very sugary grape, but not tender enough to be 
first class. No. 15, large berry and good-sized 
bunch, nearly black; flesh very "meaty," and 
resembles a Black Hamburgh as far as this qual- 
ity goes. Not so sweet as No. 9. Of the later 
numbers, 83, 39, 41, 43 and 44, are all large, 
black, berries, and in character of flesh resemble 
No. 15, but some are sweeter and more vinous. 
From the specimens before us we should say 
that 39 is better than the others. The bunches 
from young vines are small, but if a large one 
can be obtained this will become a favorite. 
Salem. — Only small and indifferent bunches 
were sent, and it is not fair to judge from these. 
