874 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
ffartintltral fourtmeiti 
To Horticulturists. — Our weekly issue oi 
so large a journal, gives us ample room to devote 
to the different departments of cultivation, and 
we have commenced with this volume, to allot a 
separate space to Horticulture. We have secured 
additional efficient aid in its conduction, and we 
invite horticulturists generally, to send in their 
contributions on all subjects interesting and in¬ 
structive to those engaged in similar pursuits 
viith themselves. We are receiving the leading 
foreign and domestic horticultural journals, and 
shall be abundantly able to bring promptly be¬ 
fore our readers all that transpires, which may 
he new and useful. 
— C-~8 , -€- ■ — 
For the American Agriculturist. 
FRUIT CULTIVATION-POMOLOGY. 
Pomology is, as most of your readers are 
aware, the science of fruits ; that branch of 1 
rural philosophy which explains and accounts 1 
for the various phenomena which the orchardist I 
and gardener experiences in his routine of cul¬ 
ture ; and pomological societies are but associa¬ 
tions of men, learned and unlearned, who de¬ 
sire to inform themselves and the community, 
on all those subjects of which many know so 
little. Conventions, or Congresses, if you please 
so to term them, are but congregations of infal¬ 
lible mortals, some of them professing entire 
ignorance of the subject matter which the So¬ 
ciety has been organized to elucidate; the 
majority knowing but little in comparison with 
what might be expected of them. How then 
can it be hoped that the proceedings of such a 
body could be conducted without the promulga¬ 
tion of much error? The utterance of many 
simple statements by very well-disposed but un¬ 
sophisticated individuals, and the waste of much 
time in wordy addresses, containing but one 
or two points, perchance, of moment or interest 
to the well-informed cultivator? We do not, 
we need not expect then, for the present, great 
things from this Society. Indeed, we shall be 
surprised if ever it effect what it has under¬ 
taken. Experience, however, wi'l modify its 
operations, and it may be that the coming sit¬ 
ting will bear witness to a great reformation in 
business matters. We hope to have the claims 
of the Quince and Pear stocks fully discussed 
before the members begin to recommend, each 
his favorite pears, and cherries, and apricots, 
raspberries, blackberries, grapes, strawberries, 
&c., &c. 
We expect that a few sound principles will be 
clearly laid down about the treatment of certain 
precarious small fruits, which have hitherto had 
a large portion of space devoted to the pecu¬ 
liarities of their intersexual habits, without 
throwing one iota of light upon the real ques¬ 
tion at issue. We hope to have Gurculio nos¬ 
trums tested, even the Potato rot panaceas 
would be in place, for no apple is of more im¬ 
portance than the Pomme de terre, or earth ap¬ 
ple , which we all consume. Mr. Mathews, of 
Coshocton, need not fear but a committee will 
report upon his Curculio secret, and Lyons has 
a special claim to have his Magnetic powder put 
on trial at this Supreme Court of the territory 
of Pomona. Those who have had pears on the 
quince stock for twenty years which are now 
doing well, had better make an appearance for 
them, and have a judgment in favor entered up 
for Mr. Quince. If, on the contraiy, no evidence 
can be brought forward to the aid of those nur¬ 
serymen who have profited so well by its sale, 
let it be known. If any proprietor of Golden 
Pippen Apples in full health and vigor is within 
reach of the City of Boston, let us have his 
testimony against Mr. Knight’s theory of the 
dying out of intermediate species or varieties. 
Dr. W. D. B. will be glad to hear from him. 
If any one has raised a hybrid grape within the 
past two years better than the Diana, or as good 
as the Charter Oak, his attendance before the 
committee on new and valuable fruits is particu¬ 
larly requested. Let us have system and order, 
so that valuable time may be turned to account. 
We want to hear the Congress on cherries 
one half sour and the other half sweet ; on 
some doubtful points in Grape nomenclature; 
on a few new varieties of pears lately introduced; 
but we wish to have the information from disin¬ 
terested sources. We want a good list of princely 
strawberries fit to adorn an emperor’s table, 
should the Czar of all the Russians be driven 
to our borders. All these things we have no 
doubt will be fixed off at Boston, on September 
18th, 1854, and the following days. S. 
Philadelphia, August 1th, 1854. 
-- 
SEASONABLE HINTS. 
Our winters are often so severe, that not only 
the supply of fruit but the vigor of the tree 
itself, depends in a great degree upon the rapid 
growth of wood. 
To assist in this matter, it is an excellent 
practice to adopt the “ pinching back” process, 
so often referred to in our journal. It consists 
in pinching off, with the nail of the thumb and 
fore-finger, the terminal bud or end of the sum¬ 
mer growing shoot, thus checking its forward 
progress, and the sap thus thrown back, induces 
greater strength to resist the hard frosts of win¬ 
ter. 
We have found great advantage in this prac¬ 
tice, particularly in the pear and peach. With¬ 
out it, the peach needs to be pruned of nearly 
half its past summer’s growth every spring, 
and the same course ought to be pursued with 
the most vigorous shoots of the pear. The 
pinching back process will be found altogether 
preferable in the accomplishment of this object. 
Another advantage that will be attained is, 
that the symmetrical form of the growing young 
tree can, in this manner, be best promoted. 
By pinching back the most vigorous shoots, 
and the consequent return of the sap, the 
weaker branches will receive an additional 
stimulus and be pressed forward. 
The pear tree can hardly be made to assume 
a pyramidal form by any other system of prun¬ 
ing. The leading, central shoot, often needs to 
be thus checked several times during the sea¬ 
son, and it is so easily done, that a little prac¬ 
tice will render it a very pleasant one. 
The grape should, to a great extent, be treated 
in the same manner. We have known cultiva¬ 
tors of this excellent fruit destroy their crop by 
cutting the vines back to within two or three 
joints of the grapes, when the fruit had grown 
to the size of a pea or a little larger; thus cut¬ 
ting off the supply of breathing apparatus, and 
the grapes would fail to mature. 
It is of great importance at this season of the 
year, that the hard packed ground around trees 
and plants be broken up and made mellow, for 
it will add vigor to the tree, enabling it to 
strengthen its wood, during the fall and in case 
of a drouth, it will greatly relieve it. 
Choice fruits need a little attention often, but 
then the quality as well as quantity of the fruit 
will well repay the care and attention. 
NEW-YORK HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
Held a Conversational Meeting at its rooms, 
600 Broadway, on Monday evening, the 15th 
inst. The topic under consideration was the 
Preparation of Strawberry Beds, &c., on which 
Messrs. Hogg, Reed, and Pardee, spoke at 
length; and the interest of the meeting was well 
sustained until a late hour. A general agree¬ 
ment was observable in the following directions, 
viz.: The best soil was thought to be a gravelly 
loam; next, a sandy loam, but any ordinary 
soil, even a heavy clay, would do with proper 
preparation. 
All soils should be first well drained and 
trenched, or sub-soiled; and new, not rich soils 
were preferable, enriched, if at all, with vegeta¬ 
ble manures, such as leaf mold or prepared 
muck. It was then recommended to make an 
application of 20 to 30 bushels of unieached 
ashes, or a larger quantity if leached, and 10 
bushels of lime, and three bushels salt to the 
acre. Spade these in and let them lie for a 
month or more, if convenient; then thoroughly 
pulverize and level the ground, and set out the 
plants not too deep, one foot apart, in rows sep¬ 
arate twice that distance; or, if intended to al¬ 
low the runners to remain and fill the ground 
sufficiently, the plants could be placed a yard 
apart, and with good care would soon fill the 
ground. 
For ordinary cultivators, the spring was con¬ 
sidered the best season to form plantations ; yet 
skilful cultivators could gain many advantages 
by properly transplanting on the 1st of July, if 
they have plants on hand. The ground can be 
more easily protected from packing hard, weeds, 
neglect, &c., at the latter season. The use of 
the hoe around strawberries was universally- 
condemned; and even the fork could only be 
used around the strawberry beds immediately 
after the season of bearing—never in the spring, 
and yet the bed must be kept free from weeds 
by pulling up. The numerous fibrous roots of 
the strawberry plant should be guarded with 
the greatest care. Mulching immediately after 
planting, with tan-bark, or saw dust, or decayed 
leaves, or muck, was recommended. Stable 
manures were troublesome in mulching, by be¬ 
ing too stimulating, and transmitting too many 
seeds of grass and weeds. On the near ap¬ 
proach of winter, a coating half an inch thick of 
straw, was recommended to protect the plants 
from being thrown out by the frost; and this to 
be removed from the crown of the plants in 
early spring, when they would be benefitted by 
an occasional application of a solution of sul¬ 
phate of potash, soda, ammonia, and nitrate of 
soda, in the proportion of one quarter pound 
each to five gallons of water of all the above 
named, except ammonia, of which one to one 
and half ounces would be sufficient. 
The question of everbearing Hovey’s and Cre- 
sent Seedlings, Princess Alice Maude, &c., was 
quite fully discussed. Some plants of Hovey’s 
