1861J 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
243 
partly soaked away, put in tlie roots and cover 
them with fine soil, using the fingers to do it with. 
Before setting out, cut off a part of the larger 
leaves of each plant. As a general rule, the 
plants should be shaded for a day or two, and 
the ground mulched immediately with leaves, 
Best Varieties. —We shall not assume to speak 
authoritatively on this point. The number of 
excellent sorts is now great, and those which 
succeed in one soil and climate and treatment, 
do but indifferently well under other circum¬ 
stances. A few hints, however, may be given to 
aid in making selections. Wilson's Albany Seed¬ 
ling ranks very high, if not the highest, as a pro¬ 
lific bearer. Yet, it is rather acid, and when ripe, 
turns dingy soon after picking. With us, too, it 
frequently burns out in mid-summer. The 
Hooker is a beautiful, delicious berry, and pro¬ 
lific enough; but it is rather tender in Winter. 
The Boston Pine , Gushing, and Burr's New Pine, are 
very sweet and palatable, requiring little or no 
sugar. Hovey's Seedling holds its ground well 
among the older varieties, and deservedly ; it is 
large, hardy, a good bearer, and of pleasant fla¬ 
vor. Triomphe de Gand promises finely, at least 
for amateur cultivation. So do Austin's Seed¬ 
ling and others which we can not specify. For 
market gardeners, public sentiment hereabouts 
settles upon the following as the most profitable: 
Wilson’s Albany, Iowa or Washington, Early 
Scarlet, Crimson Cone, Hovey and others. For 
amateurs, the list would include, Triomphe de 
Gand, Hooker, Marylandica, Burr’s New Pine, 
Yicomptesse Hericart de Tkury, Wilson, Cush¬ 
ing and others. 
Nearly every sort of strawberry is benefited 
by a little protection in Winter. Leaves make 
a good covering. Keep them from blowing off 
by laying over them a little fine brush. If leaves 
are not at hand, use tan-bark, or straw, or any 
coarse litter, the bulk of which should be re¬ 
moved in the Spring. 
Notes on Strawberries. 
During the season, several varieties of Straw- 
oerries have been on exhibition at the Office of 
the American Agriculturist, upon which the fol¬ 
lowing notes have been made: 
Triomphe de Gand. —Specimens from J. Knox, 
Pittsburgh, Pa.: Beautiful berries, of large size 
—some measuring inches in circumference; 
of deep red color, excellent flavor; No. 1 in 
every respect. They bore carriage sixteen 
hours by land express well, arriving in good or¬ 
der. Other fine samples of the same variety 
exhibited by W. F. Heins, New-York, showed 
this berry to be a prolific bearer. Mr. Heins al¬ 
so showed specimens of Wilson’s Improved, 
Chorlton’s and Scott’s Seedlings—none of 
them, however, equaled the Triomphe de Gand. 
Austin's Seedling. — A quantity of this fruit 
was forwarded by the Shakers from Water- 
vliet, N. Y. The berries are very large—the 
largest specimen measured 5£ inches in circum¬ 
ference, and weighed one ounce. They are of 
light color, not as firm, nor as high flavored as 
the Triomphe de Gand. The fruit is of moder¬ 
ately good flavor, however, and valuable for its 
prolificness, and size, though one of its chief ex¬ 
cellences is its lateness, which brings it in after 
other kinds have disappeared. 
Boyden's Mammoth. —From C. S. Pell, Esq., of 
the N. Y. Orphan Asylum. Size large, 4| inches 
in circumference, and of fine appearance. 
Wilson's Albany. —Specimens received from 
several parties. This standard variety for mar¬ 
ket is too well known to need description. If it 
had less acidity, it would be the most desirable 
sort cultivated. 
How to Show, and How to View a Garden. 
It is taken for granted here, that one has 
something worth showing, that his grounds, be 
they large or small, are his pride and joy, and 
that from day to day, and from year to year, he 
does whatever he can to improve them. It is 
assumed, also, that our exhibitor has more than 
one thing to show. Specialties are very well, 
in their way, but if a person has only a single 
thing to display, he will not always be able to 
please his visitors. He should, also, have more 
than one spot of ground to traverse. Where 
there is a succession and a variety of scenes, 
each object can be viewed more leisurely and 
enjoyably; the curiosity is kept awake, and the 
entertainment is indefinitely prolonged. 
“ At what hour of the day, sir, would you pre¬ 
fer to receive your visitors ?" Not at mid-day; 
for then the light falls vertically, and the shad¬ 
ows of trees and shrubs are almost impercepti¬ 
ble. If, too, it is mid-summer, the heat of noon 
is so intense that the visitor sweats and puffs, 
and feels that he is pursuing enjoyment under 
difficulties. Half the poetry of a garden is lost 
by viewing it under a broiling sun. Come to see 
us in the morning, sir, when the dew is spark¬ 
ling on tree and grass, when the birds are musi¬ 
cal, and all nature is fresh and attractive. Or 
come at evening, when the shadows fall aslant 
the lawn, when the heat of day has subsided, 
and the cool air is filled with fragrance. 
In showing a garden, it is not advisable to ex¬ 
hibit its finest parts first. Begin with its com¬ 
mon and humble features, and pass slowly from 
these to the rare and striking. If the sun is 
shining, do not walk much toward it—thus keep¬ 
ing the bright light in your face, and destroying 
the effect of the garden—but keep the sun be¬ 
hind you, as much as possible. 
To some visitors, you need say little or noth¬ 
ing in illustration of the garden, grounds, or ad¬ 
jacent scenery. They will detect almost every¬ 
thing at a glance, and will enjoy themselves to 
the full, only now and then plying you with 
questions, and exclaiming, “howbeautiful! how 
beautiful!” Others will walk along more quiet¬ 
ly by your side, confessing their ignorance of 
gardening, in its higher forms, but begging you 
to tell them as you go, the name of this and 
that, and the origin of the other, enjoying with 
a keen relish all the information you give them. 
But there are visitors of a different sort. They 
have just a smattering of knowledge about gar¬ 
dens, and are puffed up with self-conceit. 
While visiting your grounds, they continually 
remind you of their own superb establishment, 
of their English gardener, and of their other 
highly important concerns... .Just here, we re¬ 
call a letter, received some time ago from an in¬ 
dignant subscriber, who had suffered from the 
attacks of such a visitor. He says: 
“Mr. Editor —I am a victim. You know 
I have been an amateur gardener, in a quiet 
way, for several years; that, as my means would 
allow, I have collected every novelty of tree oi 
flower that could be procured; and that many 
sensible men and scholars have often come here 
to examine my treasures. But lately, I have 
been bored by Gustavus Adolphus Jones. He 
walks through my grounds with head erect, and 
talking about his new span of horses and the 
next election. If I call bis attention to a rare 
plant, lie will say, ‘Ah, yes, thrifty, and nearly 
as large as one I have,’ when, the fact is, he 
knows nothing about it. And off he will stride 
through the garden, stupidly ignorant of the 
valuable things it contains. I have been col¬ 
lecting, for several years past, the rarest ever¬ 
greens, and out of the whole number selecting 
and training the finest specimens. On calling 
his attention to them lately, he tossed his head, 
declaring his own Balsam Firs better than all 
the new-fangled trees in the world. And so he 
runs on, and so do others who come to see me. 
Not a few, however, do not seem to know or 
care much about gardens. I can bear these 
folks, but Gustavus Adolphus is my abhorrence. 
How can I get rid of him ? 
Your afflicted friend, Horticola. 
Let Gustavus alone; don’t try to improve 
him; the leopard won’t change his spots. Pos¬ 
sibly he might wince a little, if you should re¬ 
turn his visits promptly, and treat the finery of 
his pretentious establishment, as he does your 
modest garden. As to the other, half-indiffer¬ 
ent visitors, be patient. They know but little, 
and enjoy life only within a narrow range. The 
sight of such grounds as yours may open their 
eyes a little. Be patient, and when those elect 
few come to see you, who heartily love gardens, 
and can appreciate them, you will be largely 
overpaid. But no one should make a garden 
simply for the sake of having it admired. He 
should so love it for its own sake, and be for¬ 
ever content with the beauty and fragrance it 
affords him and his own family. 
Perhaps we need add nothing more as to the 
best way of showing and viewing gardens. 
Only this would we say: When a gentleman 
goes to see another’s grounds, let him leave his 
own garden at home. He should go to be in¬ 
structed and entertained, to see and hear, not to 
criticise, and to remind his host of much better 
gardens elsewhere. Go in a receptive state of 
mind; learn and enjoy all you can; let your 
entertainer see that you are pleased, and when 
your visit is ended, thank your friend for the 
enjoyment he has afforded you. 
-«*-.-. « 
Transplanting and Shading. 
-e- 
As a general thing, too much water is used in 
transplanting. A shower or douche bath of cold, 
or even lukewarm water, upon a cabbage or oth¬ 
er plant, not only packs the soil and makes it 
bake, but it chills the plant by its evaporation, 
and puts back its growth. If the soil be damp, 
and a little care be taken to preserve the fibrous 
roots unbroken, water is seldom needed. If 
the ground be dry, a little lukewarm water 
should be poured into the hole made, and dry 
soil be filled in, leaving the surface dry and loose. 
With this precaution we have had excellent suc¬ 
cess in transplanting all kinds of plants in the 
dryest weather at all hours of the day. 
Most persons prefer evening for transplanting. 
In practice we find the morning nearly as well. 
Perhaps the plant is less exhausted of its juices 
in the morning, and on this account bears the 
change quite as well at that time. 
It is well, and often necessary, to shield plants 
from a hot sun for a day or two after removal, 
especially if the roots are much disturbed, or it 
they are carried far. The most convenient and 
ready mode of doing this is, to break off full 
leaved small branches from trees or shrubbery, 
and stick one or more of them in the ground on 
the sun side of the plants to be protected. A 
few minutes labor will suffice to thus shield 4 
large plot of cabbages or other plants, 
