1884.] 
AMEEIOA^T AGRIOULTUEIST. 
67 
like it, usually lias a more or less distinct “ suture ” 
on one side. It differs greatly from the peaeh in 
its stone, which is quite smooth, like that of the 
plum. The skin is downy, much more so in some 
varieties than in others. Having been so long in 
cultivation, many varieties have been produced, in 
some of which the flesh adheres to the stone, and in 
others is free; as in the almond, the kernel is 
sweet or bitter in different varieties. The flesh of the 
aprieot is much like the peach in texture, but very 
unlike it in flavor. Coming in just after clierries and 
before early peaches, the apricot is very acceptable. 
It is valued not only for the dessert, but for can¬ 
ning, drying, etc., and it should be restored to its 
place among our popular fruits. If the same 
method was followed as with the plum—a syste¬ 
matic daily jarring of the trees, and catching the 
curculios on a cloth, the fruit may be again abun¬ 
dant. In the nurseries the aprieot is budded upon 
the seedling apricots, and also on plum, peach 
and almond stocks. The plum is best for this, es¬ 
pecially for planting in heavy soils. By shortening 
in the yearly growth as with the peach, the apricot 
will form a compact head, and be more fruitful. 
The tree is sometimes trained against walls and 
buildings. When this is done, it should be on the 
side least exposed to the sun. Our best nurseries 
offer twenty or more varieties. Fora small garden. 
Downing recommends “Large Early,” “Breda,” 
the “Peaeh Apricot,” and “Moorpark.” For 
a cold climate, he selects “Red Masculine,” 
“Roman,” and “Breda.” Let us have apricots. 
The Sweet Gum Tree. 
We trust that the reeently awakened interest in 
forestry—the planting of trees to grow timber— 
will also call attention to the value of our native 
trees for ornamental purposes. If one who wishes 
to plant them to beautify his grounds consults a 
nursery catalogue, he finds that the greater share 
of the trees now offered are of foreign origin, 
while our most ornamental native trees are difficult 
to procure. Among the most desirable frees for 
ornamental purposes, is the Sweet Gum (Liquidam- 
bar styracijlua), and in New York and New Jersey, 
is often called Bilsted. This tree is found w'est- 
Fig. 1.— FLOWERS AND FEtUT OF SWEET GUM. 
ward to Illinois, and southward to Texas and Mex¬ 
ico. It forms a large tree, sixty feet or more high, 
r.nd two or three feet in diameter. The old trees 
have a deeply furrowed bark, similar to that of 
some oaks. Its young branches are winged with 
wide longitudinal ridges of a corky growth. The 
leaves are rounded in their general outline, but 
deeply divided into five and sometimes seven 
pointed lobes, which give them a striking, star-like 
appearance ; they are of a dark-green color and a 
firm texture. In autumn they assume a deep pur¬ 
plish red, and are so showy, that the tree is worth 
planting for the beauty of its autumn foliage. The 
flowers of the Sweet Gum are of two kinds, both 
very small. The staminate or male flowers are in 
small conical clusters which soon fall. The pis¬ 
tillate, or fertile flowers, are in globular clusters, 
which ripen into a spherical head, made up of 
beaked capsules which open to Iqt out the small 
seeds. Figure 1 shows the ripe fruit and the pistil¬ 
late floweis, and figure 2 gives the port of the tree 
when young. Both its generic name, Liquida/nbar, 
and its specific name, sUjraciJlua, have reference to 
a quality only manifested in warm countries. In 
Louisiana and in Mexico it has exuded, when 
wounded, a sort of balsam like Styrax, which is de¬ 
ficient in the tree grown in the Northern States. 
As a timber tree, the Sweet Gum does not hold a 
high rank. Its wood is compact and fine-grained, 
it has a pleasing reddish color, and takes a fine 
polish. It is only of value for inside work, as it is 
very perishable when exposed. The tree cannot be 
recommended for economical planting, as we have 
so many better kinds, but as an ornamental tree, 
it is one of the finest, and in making a select col¬ 
lection of trees, this should not be over-looked. 
A Change in the Color of Indian Corn. 
Mr. Edward B. Bates, Worcester Co., Md., com¬ 
municates the following experience : “I have al¬ 
ways considered yellow to be the. original color of 
Indian corn. In 1882, my white corn, from clean 
seed with no chance of mixture, gave me about 
two ears of red corn in every fifty bushels, and this 
W'as remarkably even in its distilbution in the 
field. In 1883, I took the best of this red corn and 
planted fourteen I'ows, two hundred and thirty- 
seven hills in length. These were immediately be¬ 
tween pure white and pure yellow varieties, the 
W'hite was on the west and north, that being the 
direction from which all mixing or crossing comes 
in this locality. When the corn was husked the 
red com had nearly all become yellow. According 
to the usual mode of crossing here, if any change 
occurred it should have been to white ; not more 
than a hundred hills produced red corn, and that 
quite scattered. In my white corn there was not 
a single red ear.” Mr. B.’s inference from this oc¬ 
currence is, that “the original color of corn is yel¬ 
low’, and that white is a sport caused and estab¬ 
lished by cultivation. That the red is an interme¬ 
diate step in returning to the original color. In se¬ 
lecting the red corn of 1882, I only eliminated all 
that was inclined to revert to the original color.— 
What does the American Aqricidturist think of it ?” 
As Indian corn is not known in the wild state we 
have no means of knowing the original color. 
Bonafous, in his work “ The Natural History of 
Maize,” states that he has had the colored kinds 
keep true for ten consecutive years, and mentions 
a white kind that had been cultivated for more than 
a century without change. In a plant that has 
proved itself so variable as corn, and has l)ceri cul¬ 
tivated so long under many opportunities for cross¬ 
ing to occur, such variations are to be expected. 
Mr. B. asks the question : “Does not yellow corn 
cross more readily and affect more strongly the 
white, than the white does the yellow ?” This is 
a question upon which we should like evidence. 
The Maiden-Hair Fern. 
A lady writes ns that while she succeeds with 
other ferns in her fern-case, all her attempts at 
growing the most graceful of our native ferns—the 
Maiden-hair—have failed, and she asks how to suc¬ 
ceed with it. Fern-cases are expected to be at 
their best in winter. In order to have them showy 
at this season, the ferns must be evergreen species, 
either native or foreign. Many of our native ferns 
appear in spring, make their growth, and die down 
at the end of the season. The Maiden-hair is one 
of these. If it is taken up in summer and planted 
in the fern-case, it will die down as tviuter ap¬ 
proaches, and there is no help for it. The Mai- 
ded-hair fern can best be cultivated in an out¬ 
door fernery. A lot of stones, with earth from 
the woods among them, in a shaded place, wdll al¬ 
low lovers of ferns to grow’them with very little 
trouble. In making a rock-work like this, take 
care that all the pockets of woods earth connect 
with the soil below, else they will dry out. The 
Maiden-hair fern is quite common in rich, moist 
woods, as far south as North Carolina. Its frond, 
at the top of a slender, black, polished stalk, is 
handsomely divided, with its divisions of a pale 
green color. Our species is Adiantum pedalum. 
The generic name, Adiantum, is from the Greek, 
meaning unwetted, as the fronds repel rain-drops. 
An allied European species has long been used in 
France to make a syrup called capillaire, much 
used for coughs, etc. Our species will answer the 
THE MAIDEN-HAIR FERN. 
same purpose. It yields to boiling water eonsid- 
erable mucilage and a bitter principle. The genus 
Adiantum is a large one ; some of its species from 
tropical countries are among the most beauti¬ 
ful ornaments of our hot-houses. Some of the 
exotic species are much larger than ours, and, 
being perennial, may be grown with success. 
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