1867 .] 
AMERICAN AQRICULTURIST. 
451 
If what we have is a fair sample, we consider 
it inferior to No. 89, hut we wait another year 
before forminsj a definite opinion of this. 
AtfUita.—Exhibited by Geo. W. ^IcDowell, of 
Crooketl Lake, Steuben Co., N. Y. It is an 
early black grape, and claimed to be a seedling. 
Judging from the fruit alone, we cannot see in 
what it differs from the Log:in, which variety it 
resembles in being very seedy. But little is 
known of it outside of its place of origin. 
Martha. —Mention was made of this in last 
month’s notea We cannot agree with the high 
estimate which some put upon this variety, but 
we have no doubt it will plezise a large class who 
like a very sweet grape, without sprightliness. 
The flesh of the Martha is peculiarly buttery, 
and the skin very tender. 
There are three grapes which much resemble 
each other in gonerul characters, that are es¬ 
pecial favorites with us : the Ilerbemont, Elsin- 
burgh, and Alvey. They deserve to be better 
known, as they arc first class fruits in every 
respect save that of size. 
llerbenumt .— A . large, very compact bunch; 
Ijerry medium, black, with a fine bloom. Vine 
too tender for general cultivation at the North. 
Mr. Knox exhibited fine specimens and a cane 
with the grapes upon it to show its abundant 
bearing. It requires a still more favorable lo¬ 
cality than his to reach its full development, 
the specimens shown by him not being equal 
in quality to those we tested in Missouri. 
ElsinburgK—A. looser bunch and smaller 
berry than Ilerbemont. \ ine quite hardy; 
fruit very spirited and vinous. Excellent for 
amateur culture, but not sufficiently attractive 
in appearance to be a market sort. 
^/t^y.—This is a larger berry than either of 
the two foregoing. Ripens perfectly around 
New York, and is, if possible, still better further 
south. Mr. Fuller says, “ loo small for a table 
grape,” in which we c.annot agree with him, as 
the berries are larger than those of the Delaware. 
Mr. Meadt’.iinks it the same as the Lenoire, but if 
we have the true Lenoire, the two are quite dis¬ 
tinct. Tender, sweet, rich, sprightly, with a 
very thin skin, on which account it can never 
be a market grape, but for family use it hardly 
has a superior. 
jona .— Through the exertions of Dr. Grant, 
a fine show was made of this variety, embrac¬ 
ing specimens from Ohio, New York, and Con¬ 
necticut. Those from Ohio were the best ripened, 
but suffered somewhat from long carriage. The 
specimens exhibited by Mr. Beach, of Hartford, 
Conn., were very handsome, but were picked 
too soon, in anticipation of a frost Our opin¬ 
ion of the high character of this grape was ex¬ 
pressed in our notes last month. 
Adirondac. —No specimens were equal to 
what we have seen in previous years. Those 
from Mr. Bailey were far from the sUndard, on 
account of continued wet weather. It is a great 
pity that so fine a grape is not more reliable. 
Catavoba. —Mr. Knox exhibited specimens of 
a depth of color and beauty of bloom hardly to 
be excelled in the celebrated Lake Shore Region. 
North Carolina.—A showy grape, somewhat 
after the style of Hartford Prolific, but with 
larger and better berries, and nearly as early as 
that variety. A good market sort. 
Exhibited by Mr. Richard^ of 
Fordham, N. Y. A small fruit, of the Ilerbe- 
mont class. It much resembles that variety in 
quality, but ripens earlier. We have never seen 
the fruit except from the gentleman above named. 
Weehawken. —A seedling by Doct. Siedhof 
from a Crimean grape. The spedmena were 
shown under great disadvantage, as, from a mis¬ 
understanding as to the time of the exhibition, 
they had been packed a week. It is a while 
grape, with all the chanicters of the European 
varieties, very protluclive, and with DocL S., 
healthy in a li>cality where mildew is abundant. 
Unnamed Seedling».—0\m. Brothers, Spring- 
field, Mass., sent two; one a grape much like 
the Elsinburgh, and the other resembling the 
Catawba. The last named has all the appear¬ 
ance of a good Catawba, and is quite as good, 
with a rather loose bunch, but it rijKjns per¬ 
fectly iMjfore that variety is coloretl. 
3Ir. Arnold, of Paris, Canada, sent two of his 
seedlings, obtained, as we understand, by hybrid¬ 
izing the Clinton with exotic sorts. No. 5 is a 
white, or rather green grape, inclining to am¬ 
ber; a long bunch without shoulders; small 
sized berry, sprightly in flavor, and of good 
character. No. 3 is a compact bunch, usually 
with a large shoulder; berry of medium size, 
black, with a fine bloom; flesh tender, very 
juicy, and rather acid, but vinous. Mr. A. 
states that the specimens are not in their best 
condition, as the vines were nearly defoliated by 
a hail storm before the fruit ripened. lie has 
certainly reason to be pleased with his success in 
raising seetllings, and we look with interest to the 
reporto of their trial in localities further south. 
The Profit* of a Small Place. 
A correspondent, M. 9., in a New England 
town, is so much plCiised with the results of his 
attempts at gardening that he desires to give 
his experience for the encouragement of others. 
We give his letter as a specimen of many we 
receive of similar purport. It is not practicable 
for us to publish many accounts of this kind, 
but we are, as our readers know, as much in¬ 
terested in the success of small gardens as in 
that of largo ones. • 
“About ten years ago I purchased a house 
and a small parcel of ground about fifty rods 
from the principal business street in N-; 
said ground located on the east side of a sleep 
hill, dimensions 225 ft. x 30 ft., surrounded on 
the north and west by a bluff of rocks, 30 or 40 
feet higli- This land was considered worth¬ 
less by former owners. I found on it two old 
apple trees, which bore only a few gnarly ap¬ 
ples; these I had thoroughly scraped, washed 
with soft soap, lops cut off, and grafted with 
Baldwin apples. 
I hatl the ground dug over to the depth of a 
foot and a half or two feet, the stones taken out 
(small ones buried, larger put into wall,) and the 
land thoroughly supplied with manure. About 
half of the ground was terraced and set out 
with fruit trees, the rest devoted to vegetables. 
As a result we have annually of vegetables, 
—early peas, potatoes, green corn, cucumbers, 
beets, tomatoes, pole beans,—from one to three 
bushels each ; of asparagus, pie plant, onions, 
carrots, parsnips, summer squashes, winter 
squashes, rock turnips, cabbage, a supply for 
family use; of fruits we have, (on an average), 
two bushels of strawberries and currants; from 
two to five bushels of grapes; one bushel of 
quinces; from four to six barrels of apples; and 
pears from twenty-five trees, half of them bear¬ 
ing, the oldest yielding about half a bushel. 
These embrace sixteen varieties, so arranged as 
to ripen monthly from August to March. We also 
have a limited supply of cherries and peaches. 
A word in conclusion with regard to expense 
and profits, the former of which, in any under¬ 
taking of this kind, is a bugbear to so many, be¬ 
ing, as they say, so much greater than the prof¬ 
its. I would prove the contrary from my own 
experience. IsL The profits from a small pear 
nursery, 20 x 80, pay the expense of fertilizing 
and preparing the ground for planting. 2nd. 
The benefit in point of health gained by ganlen 
labor more than repays all necessary U*il; to 
say nothing also of the pleasure which one feels 
in watching for the anticipated results of all his 
care and labor. 8rd. The expense of supply¬ 
ing the tables from one’s own garden is much 
less than the cost of purchasing from the 
market, which would average a dollar a day 
during the greater part of the season.” 
Earth Worms in Flower Pots. 
Sometimes horticultural troubles seem to be 
epidemic, and we have a succession of let¬ 
ters all of the 8.ame purport, as is now the c.n8e 
with reference to the common Earth or Angle¬ 
worm in flower pots. There is a difference of 
opinion in regard to the food of w’orms, some 
claiming that they actually cat the roots of 
plants, while others hold that they live upon 
the decaying matter contained in the soil. 
Whichever may be the case, there is no doubt 
that they do much injury to polled plants; in 
passing through the s'*!! in all directions they not 
only perforate it with small channels, but they 
so compact it that is difficult to water a plant 
thoroughly, as the water will run off by the 
worm holes before the mass becomes wetted 
through. Worms should be kept from entering 
the pots, and those already in them should be 
rcmoveil. Those who, in Inking up plants, use 
common garden soil for potting, are quite apt 
to introduce the trouble themselves. Polling 
soil should be prepared beforehand and fre¬ 
quently worked over, during which opemtion 
the worms may be seen and picked ouL Worms 
frequently enter pots that are set ould'mrs 
for the summer, or are plungcil in the borders. 
We have frequently cautioned against this in 
our “ Notes for the Month.” The pots should 
be set upon a layer of coal ashes, and when they 
are plunged, a quantity of ashes should bo 
placed in the bottom of the hole made for the 
reception of the pot. 
When a pot is infested by them, it is not very 
difficult to remove them. We have found that 
if the earth is allowed to get as dry as may bo 
without injury to the plant, the worms will usu¬ 
ally collect together, probably attracted by the 
moisture of one another, nt the bottom or sides 
of the pot. By turning the ball of earth out of 
the pot they m.ay bo rcmoveil. This turning 
out the earth from a pot seems to those who 
have never practised it, a difficult operation as 
well as one dangerous to the plant. It is very 
easily done, and will not disturb the growth of 
any but very recently potted plants, in which 
case the roots have not sufficiently per¬ 
meated the earth to hold it together in a ball. 
Spread the fingers of the left hand over the sur¬ 
face of the earth, invert the pot, and hold it in 
the right hand; then give the edge of the pot a 
slight downward rap upon the edge of a table, 
shelf, or the like, and out will come the ball, 
which must be carefully received in the left 
hand. A few pickings in this way will soon 
free the pots of worms. Where the trouble oc¬ 
curs with plants in boxes or in tubs, some other 
means must be resorted to. An infusion of soot 
is very disagreeable to them, and will drive them 
to the surface; this, to many plants, will act as 
a manure. Lime water will kill the worms; it 
is made by slaking a lump of limn of the stzo of 
