AMERICAN AG-RICULTjURIST. 
263 
For the American Agriculturist. 
HOW TO PRESERVE GIRDLED TREES. 
Isabellas (rained thus have shown as much 
mildew as those trained upright. 
“ Comstock’s Terra Culture ” is noticed. 
The Committee of the State Agricultural 
Society, appointed in 1851 to examine this 
wonderful discovery, reported through the 
acting chairman, L. F. Allen, that the Com- 
mitte came to the unanimous opinion that no 
new discovery had been made by Mr. Corn- 
stock, nor was his practice different from 
that of experienced nurserymen heretofore, 
and which may be found in public works ; 
and although important in themselves, the 
Committee do not think it proper for the So¬ 
ciety to recommend to the Legislature any 
appropriation to Mr. Comstock as the dis¬ 
coverer.” Terra Culture is said to be on 
the wane, in the neighborhood of Prof. Com¬ 
stock’s since the above report. 
An amateur has some notes on strawber¬ 
ries, that are interesting to the growers of 
that fruit. Black Prince he finds an enorm¬ 
ous bearer ; large, and good. He has taken 
it into the field for a market berry, along 
with McAvoy’s Superior, Extra Red, and 
No. 1 Pistillate, which are pronounced very 
important varieties. He has some seedlings 
of the British Queen that are astonishing. 
For the American Agriculturist. 
HINTS FOR THE MONTH 
Ariculas should receive air whenever the 
weather will permit. All dead leaves should 
be taken off and otherwise kept clean. Wa¬ 
ter very sparingly. 
Herbaceous Calceolarias should be kept 
growing by shifting them whenever the 
roots fill the pots, until their final shift into 
the pots wherein they are intended to bloom. 
If green fly make their appearance, fumiga¬ 
tion should be resorted to.. 
Carnations and Picotees —All dead foliage 
shodld be picked off; stir the soil occasion¬ 
ally; give air whenever opportunity offers, 
and water sparingly. 
Cinerarias —Look well to keeping down 
green fly, as nothing is so destructive to 
them as these little pests; give air on every 
opportunity, and plenty of room to prevent 
their drawing manure. Water may be ap¬ 
plied with beneficial effects, in a weakly state, 
twice a week. 
Fuchsias —Those which have been put to 
rest should now be pruned in both head and 
root and placed in a gentle heat after potting. 
Seed may also be sown. 
Pelargoniums —Tie out the shoots at equal 
distances, to admit both light and air, and to 
prevent their drawing. Weak manure water 
may be applied two or three times a week, 
except just after shifting. 
Camelias —Should be syringed in fine 
weather and dried off before admitting air. 
Weak manure water may be applied till they 
come into bloom. 
plant houses in general. 
The inmates should be kept scrupulously 
clean, as nothing is more conducive to health. 
Moderate fires, and air whenever it can be 
admitted with safety. Keep up a regular 
succession of plants to bloom through the 
spring. 
vinerv. 
Vines breaking should be syringed onevey 
favorable opportunity, steaming the house 
the last thing at night, by wetting the pipes 
or flue. The air should be moist and kept in 
motion as much as possible The border, if 
outside, should be carefully noticed and the 
heat renewed whenever necessary in severe 
weather. Fresh manure should be applied 
to the surface in preference to disturbing the 
whole. Canvass should be stretched over 
the border on a wooden frame to keep off 
rain and snow. w. summersby. 
For the American Agriculturist. 
GREEN-HOUSE FIRES. 
As fires are wanted more or less during 
the winter season, I send you the following 
hints on their management, which I have 
reason to believe are not generally known. 
In most forcing and green-houses it is the 
general practice to continue feeding the 
fires, at short intervals, till a late hour in the 
evening, more especially during severe 
weather, and then filling the furnace with coal 
for the night, which is invaribly burnt out be¬ 
fore morning ; when the fires, in some in¬ 
stances, are obliged to be relighted, thereby 
consuming a quantity of fuel which may be 
dispensed with. The following is my plan : 
when the fires are lighted they are kept go¬ 
ing till the houses are sufficiently warm, 
when they are banked in for the night in the 
following manner : a few shovelfulis of 
coal are thrown into the furnace ; the 
ashes being well wetted, so that when 
moved no dust will rise, they are thrown 
on the coal in the furnace, and beat down 
hard with the back of the shovel, complete¬ 
ly filling the furnace. Any one in the habit 
of fixing fires in this manner, can bank in at 
eight o’clock in the evening ; and, regulating 
the draft according to the weather, can tell 
within five degrees what the heat of the 
house will be next morning at seven. Be¬ 
sides being of much less trouble, less fuel is 
used than on the general system. I find it 
takes more coal, by one-third, to keep the 
fire supplied with fuel till a late hour in the 
evening, than it does to bank in when we 
are satisfied of there being a good fire all 
night. When the fires are required to be 
started in the morning, they need only stir¬ 
ring up, the clinkers drawn out, and a 
shovelfull or two of coal, and they burn as 
well as though just lighted. When they 
have burned as long as required, they can be 
either let out or banked in, as circumstances 
dictate. 
How often do gardeners sit up waiting 
till ten or eleven o’clock at night, which can 
easily be avoided with as much security as 
though they staid all night. A friend of 
mine, a very intelligent gardener, observed, 
after trying the experiment, “ Ah, banking in 
is the only plan.” 
I do not mean to assert that stoves can be 
managed the same way, because they can 
not with any degree of security. I may 
here mention, that I can not sufficiently ex¬ 
press my dislike to the use of stoves in 
green-houses. Apart from the dirty and 
sickly look of the plants, they are more ex¬ 
pensive in the end, as they consume a great 
quantity of fuel, and cast off so dry a heat 
that plants can not occupy a house in which 
they are employed, and look healthy ; and 
they have not sufficiently heating surface to 
allow of enough water being placed upon 
them, for the purpose of evaporation, to 
counteract the dry heat they send out. A 
furnace and smoke-flue are by far prefer¬ 
able ; to which, if added a boiler and a flow 
and return pipe, which should be of copper, 
are much less expensive and are more suit¬ 
able for green-houses, as they heat quick 
and soon cool when a change of weather 
requires it. I have worked those that have 
been in use for the past twelve years, which 
are as good now as when put up, but I would 
not recommend them for forcing houses, on 
account of their cooling so rapidly. Where- 
ever used, the joints should be brazed, as 
soldered joints will not last long. 
W. SUJVIMERSBEY, 
In the spring of 1848 I had a very choice 
apple tree near my house, six inches in di¬ 
ameter, which was entirely girdled by mead¬ 
ow moles for a space of from four to six 
inches. When first discovered, I took some 
chip manure and put around the body in or¬ 
der to prevent the wood from cracking, at 
the same time cutting off ten or twelve 
grafts from the top of the tree and placing 
them in my cellar. When the tree had 
started sufficiently to peal easily, I removed 
the chips and dirt below where the tree was 
eaten, and cut off the edges of the bark 
above and below the wound to where it was 
green. I then took a hard stick, about as 
large as the grafts, and having made it round, 
and shaving it off on one side slanting down 
to an edge, I pressed it under the bark 
above and below, with the flat side nearest 
the tree. Having prepared the grafts in a 
similar manner, I first run the large end 
under the bark below, and then above, taking 
care to have them extend under the surface 
one or two inches. Eight or ten being dis¬ 
posed in this manner, I put. some tar on the 
trunk to keep it from cracking, and then 
covered over the grafts with earth. They 
have now grown one or two inches in diam¬ 
eter, and the tree yields good fruit and is do¬ 
ing well. R. W. Fresbie. 
Washinoton. Conn. 
GROWING FILBERTS IN MAINE, 
We import a large amount of the nut 
called filberts. Why not raise them in 
Maine I We have two or three species of 
this tribe of nuts, growing naturally among 
us. These are familiarly called hazle-nuts. 
These produce some nuts which children 
gather in the fall; but it is reasonable to 
conclude ttrat if these varieties should be 
taken and cultivated, with as much care, 
skill and attention, as the filberts are in Eng¬ 
land, they would yield as abundantly and be 
as profitable (other things being equal) here 
as there. 
Barry, in his Fruit Garden, says, “Of 
all other trees it [the filbert] requires regular 
and proper pruning to maintain its fruitful¬ 
ness.” “ The blossoms, or fruit buds, are 
produced on shoots of one year’s growth, and 
bear the next.” “ The fruit is borne in 
cluster on the end of a small twig produced 
from the bud bearing the female blossom.” 
It is stated that in the County of Kent, in 
England, where the principal filbert orchards 
are, so productive do they make them by 
their skillful culture, that an acre has pro¬ 
duced $250 w r orth of fruit in a single season 
Barry quotes from the transactions of the 
London Horticultural Society pretty full di¬ 
rections for cultivating these shrubs or trees. 
Those who feel desirous of trying their cul¬ 
ture will find it an object to procure his book 
and read for themselves. 
It is evident, however, from the fact just 
mentioned, that the nuts are produced on 
shoots of the previous year’s growth, that 
the science of its culture depends on the 
most skillful manner of so preparing and 
training the shrubs that they will each year 
throw out the greatest number of strong, 
healthy shoots. 
It is probable that some varieties of our 
native filberts may be more fruitful or pro¬ 
ductive than others. Those who intend to 
try their culture should make observations 
on this point, and select those which promise 
to be most fertile. [Maine Farmer. 
The skeptic is ever expert at puzzling a 
debate which he finds himself unable to con¬ 
tinue, and, like an Olympic boxer, generally 
fights best when undermost. 
