1861.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
51 
but its fruit is larger, and more regularly form¬ 
ed. Iu earliness it is intermediate between tlie 
early red and tlie great red. It is called the 
Tomato de Layr. The seeds are offered by Messrs. 
Vilmorin, of Paris. 
--- 
Blight on the Evergreens. 
It is a fact, which can no longer be denied, 
that some of our finest conifers are becoming the 
prey of insects. The first appearance of this 
enemy, we believe, was among the Scotch larch¬ 
es, and is supposed by some to have been intro¬ 
duced from Scotland. In some cases, the insect 
is the red spider; in others it is a green worm 
about the size of a knitting needle; in others, it 
is a microscopic insect which seems to live on 
the bark and the leaves, causing the latter to 
roll up, and in many cases to drop off. In our 
own experience, thus far, the “green worm” is 
confined to the Norway Spruce. For two years 
past, fine terminal shoots on the trees would be 
seen, here and there, to droop, when on cutting 
them off, this worm would be found boring his 
way up and down the central portions of the 
shoot. The White pine, the Balsam fir, the 
Scotch larch, Norway Spruce, and Arbor Vitae 
are the only trees we have known to be affected 
by any kind of insect. 
As to remedies, who will provide any ? If 
one had only a single tree, he might keep it 
clean by frequent doses of whale-oil soap and 
water, or by dusting it often with air slacked 
lime, or ashes. If the famous “ Gishurst’s Com¬ 
pound ” were not so costly, it might be used : it 
would probably be efficacious. 
But when one has large groves, or long nur¬ 
sery rows of evergreens, what can he do? We 
can only say, syringe, or dust with lime as many 
as possible, keep them well tilled at the root, 
hand pick, and—trust in Providence. Perhaps 
this blight is only a temporary visitation. 
Large Fruit from Oregon. 
Nelson C. Warner, returning from Oregon, ex¬ 
hibited at the office of the American Agriculturist 
some of the fruits of that land, which prove the 
truth of the large accounts given of fruit raising 
on the Pacific Coast. There were pears weigh¬ 
ing two pounds each, and apples larger than 
some pumpkins. Several of the apples appear¬ 
ed to have grown out of their usual habit, by in¬ 
crease of size; as for instance, a Baldwin, mea¬ 
suring about twelve inches in circumference, 
had but a slight reddish marking, and was 
scarcely recognizable except by the shape and 
taste. There seemed not to have been color 
enough to spread over the enlarged skin! The 
specimens shown, were grown in Linn Co., 
Oregon, and Mr. W. stated that they were not 
considered uncommon in that region. 
-- ■ —w—- »-«•- 
Fruit and Horticulture in the Mountains 
of California. 
Mr. Geo. D. Dorrin, of Nevada Co., Cal., 
writes in a letter received Dec. 26: “ Enclosed 
you will find a list of 104 subscribers for the 
20th volume of the American Agriculturist, with 
Wells, Fargo & Co’s, draft for $104. By the 
next mail I shall probably forward an addition¬ 
al list. These are all new names, obtained at 
the instigation of my wife, though I have under¬ 
taken the work from a desire on my own part 
to have the Agriculturist circulated in the moun¬ 
tains of California, believing that the. future of 
this section of our State must depend more upon 
its Horticultural and Agricultural resources 
than upon its mines. 
The mountains are filled with lovely spots 
which only need to be ‘ tickled with a hoe, to 
make them laugh a harvest.’ The experience 
of the past few years has shown that the moun¬ 
tain-raised fruit, for quality, size, and flavor, ex¬ 
ceeds that of the vallies; and I confidently look 
for the time when our more barren hill sides 
will be covered with flourishing orchards and 
teeming vineyards. I desire, too, to see the 
miners’ cabins surrounded by gardens, and I 
have aimed to circulate the Agriculturist among 
that class of our population, that they may see 
that it is as easy to raise fruit bearing trees and 
flowering shrubs aroimd their cabins, as 1 Man- 
zaneta Bushes,’ ‘Tar Weed,’ and ‘Poison Oak.’ 
Thus by drawing them away from the attrac¬ 
tions of bar rooms and saloons, they will make 
better citizens, become more contented with life 
in California, and by building up homes here, 
conduce to the prosperity and permanency of 
our beautiful mountain villages.” 
[We shall be glad to labor in the promotion 
of so good a work.—E ds.] 
Ornamental Vines. 
Highly as we value ti'ees and shrubs and flow¬ 
ering plants, we would by no means underrate 
the vines. They give an air of grace and finish 
to a garden, which can be obtained in no other 
way. Set them in the middle of a flower-plot, 
to be festooned about some tasteful piece of 
trellis-work; set them at the entrance of the 
garden, to clamber over a rustic arbor; set them 
at your door-step, to climb up the pillars of your 
piazza; or by your window, to trail over and 
around it, flinging their perfumes into the apart¬ 
ment ; set them by the cabin to hide the rough 
logs;—in fine, set them anywhere, and they 
will conceal deformities, highten the native 
charms of every spot, and more than recom¬ 
pense for the labor and cost of planting. 
Who has not noticed how the plainest cot¬ 
tage takes on an aspect of refinement and grace, 
when its porch, and windows, and gables, are 
wreathed with flowering vines ? The lordly 
mansion, otherwise too cold and stately, be¬ 
comes cheerful and homelike by their presence. 
And then, how soon one can possess this luxury. 
For shade-trees to develop then- mature beauty, 
you must wait many years; but for these, a Sum¬ 
mer or two suffices. 
There are so many desirable vines, it is hard 
to select from them. The Trumpet Honeysuckles, 
(LoniceraSempervirens ), red and yellow, every body 
knows that they are among the best of all vines. 
The Prairie Roses deservedly rank high, be¬ 
cause they grow so vigorously, making shoots 
twelve feet long in a season, when well estab¬ 
lished ; and because the foliage is so fine, and 
the flowers so beautiful, and abundant. But 
they have one or two drawbacks. The slugs at¬ 
tack them annually, and must be killed as often, 
with whale-oil soap, or other like application; 
and, at tl^e north, the tops are so liable to be 
winter-killed, they need to be laid on the ground 
and covered. Whoever will take the little 
trouble required to attend to these two points, 
will be paid for his or her pains. 
The Chinese Wistaria (Glycine Sinensis), is another 
desirable vine. It was brought from China, and 
named by Nuttall, after Dr. Wistar, of Philadel¬ 
phia, an enthusiastic devotee of horticulture. 
It needs a deep, rich soil at first planting; after 
it gets a fair start, it will take care of itself and 
will grow almost out of sight in a single year. 
Its flowers are pea-shaped, purplish in color, and 
hang in long clusters, often a foot in length. It 
is a popular city vine, as it harbors no insects, 
and loves the warm embrace of high brick walls. 
In this City and further south, we have seen it 
covering the sides of buildings and twining about 
windows and tin-conductors fifty feet high. 
The American Ivy, or Virginia Creeper, 
(Ampelopsis quinquefolia ,) is another excellent 
vine. Its flowers are not conspicuous, but 
its foliage is dark green, glossy, and unchange¬ 
able throughout the Summer, and then in Au¬ 
tumn it turns purple and crimson, producing 
those brilliant “effects” which painters love. 
It is particularly desirable for covering blank 
walls, for hiding any architectural defects, .and 
for producing dense shade. It is hardier than 
the Prairie Roses or the Wistaria. 
After the above, we may mention the Dutch¬ 
man's Pipe, (Aristolochia Sipho,) the Trumpet Creep¬ 
er, (Tecoma radicans), several of the Clematis fami¬ 
ly, the Bitter-Sweet (Celastrus scanderus), and the 
Grape Vine. 
These are perennial plants; and to them 
might be added several biennials and annuals, 
such as the Fumitory ( Corydalis), Cypress Vine, 
Morning glory, Scarlet Bean, etc. Out of all 
these, it will be easy for every one to find some¬ 
thing to answer his purpose, and something 
that can be easily obtained. 
Expected Horticultural Novelties 
from Japan. 
A recent number of the London Gardeners’ 
Chronicle, contains interesting letters from Mr. 
J. G. Veitch, a son of the great London nursery¬ 
man, who is now in Japan, collecting new trees 
and plants for transportation to Europe. Al¬ 
though his explorations are somewhat limited 
by the jealous strictness of the government, he 
reports having already obtained several new 
specimens of much promise. Mention is made 
of the surprising skill shown by the Japanese, 
in the manufacture of various articles from pa¬ 
per, among which lie names first-rate water¬ 
proof overcoats, hats, umbrellas, and cases of 
all kinds. The paper is said by the natives, to 
be made from a certain tree ; but they are not 
disposed to impart the process of manufacture. 
The inhabitants show every kindness to Mr. 
V. and render him great assistance in making 
his collection of plants. They were quite in¬ 
credulous as to his plan of transporting speci 
mens to England in glass cases, having never 
seen any thing of the sort. The carpenter em¬ 
ployed to construct them, was with difficulty in¬ 
duced to believe Mr. V. in earnest, when the 
work was proposed. 
The success of Mr. V. thus far, demonstrates 
the superiority of private enterprise over gov¬ 
ernmental plans for such undertakings; although 
in this respect, the British nation have been 
much more fortunate than the United States. 
Further reports of the success of this enterprise 
will be looked for with interest, and communi¬ 
cated as soon as reliable information can be had. 
One thousand barrels of Cranberries, it is 
stated, were sent to market last Fall, from a sin¬ 
gle town in Massachusetts. They brought $8,50 
per barrel. We trust that before many years 
hundreds of acres of now almost worthless 
swamp lands will be bearing generous crops to 
increase the supply. Now is the time to look 
out for a supply of roots far next Spring’s use. 
