CHOICE VARIETIES OF APPLES. 
47 
CHOICE VARIETIES OF APPLES. 
New England Russet. —This variety, which 
is sometimes called “ Boston” or “ Roxbury Rus¬ 
set,” is reputed to he a native of Massachusetts, 
and is highly esteemed throughout New England 
on account of its property of long keeping and the 
productive habit of the tree. The fruit is of medium 
size, often large, irregularly round, a little flattened 
at both stem and blossom ends, or sometimes 
slightly angular. The skin, at first, is dull green, 
covered with brownish yellow russet, when ripe, 
with rarely a faint blush on one side. The stem i» 
usually nearly three fourths of an inch in length, 
rather slender, and not deeply inserted. The calyx it 
enclosed, in a roundish basin, of moderate depth. 
The flesh, when not too ripe, is usually of a green¬ 
ish white, moderately juicy, with a rather rich sub¬ 
acid flavor. It is usually considered the best of its 
class, which are popularly known in some 
parts of the country, under the name of 
“ leather coats.” 
Rhode Island Greening. —This well 
known variety, according to Landreth, is ex¬ 
tensively cultivated throughout the Atlantic 
states. The size is large, the outline round, 
with the skin of a yellowish green. Some¬ 
times, however, though very seldom, it has a 
faint blush-like hue towards the stem. The 
flesh, when ripe, is yellow, fine grained, tender, 
and abounding in juice of an acid flavor. 
The calyx, is woolly, rather small for so large 
an apple, and is set in a shallow basin. The 
stem is about three fourths of an inch long, 
curved, and thickest at the base. The tree 
is of vigorous growth, and produces abun¬ 
dant crops. 
AGRICULTURE OF THE CHINESE. 
No. 2. 
Cultivation of Rice.— Rico, being the chief 
article of food, is, of course, the staple pro¬ 
duction of the country, more particularly in 
the south, where two crops of it can easily be 
raised in the hot months, besides another crop 
of some more hardy vegetables in winter. 
The ground is prepared in spring for the 
first crop of rice, as soon as the winter green 
crops are removed from the fields. 
The plow, which is commonly drawn 
by a buffalo or bullock, is a rude 
implement • but probably answers 
the purpose much better than ours 
would, which has been found to be 
too heavy and unmanageable for the 
Chinese. As the land is always 
flooded with water before it is plowed, 
this operation may be described as the 
turning up a layer of mud and water, 
six or eight inches deep, which lies on 
a solid floor of hard stiff clay. The 
plow never goes deeper than this mud 
and water, and consequently the 
plowman and his bullock in wading 
through the field find a solid footing 
at this depth below the surface. Th * 
water buffalo generally employed in 
the south, is well adapted for this 
work, as he delights to wallow amongst 
the mud, and is often found swim¬ 
ming and amusing himself in the 
canals on the sides of the rice fields. 
But it seems a most disagreeable and 
unhealthy operation for the poor la¬ 
borer, who nevertheless goes along 
cheerful and happy. After the plow, 
comes the harrow • this is chiefly used 
