been a day on which T could uot have picked 
a dish of really handsome and delioious 
fruit from these plants. Of course the ber¬ 
ries would uot oompare with the larger 
sorts in size; still they are strawberries, 
and very good ones, too. I have thorough¬ 
ly tested the fancy Alpllio sorts, such as 
Autumnal Galande, Janus and Mexican 
Everbearing, but the two sorts known as 
Bush Alpine, suit me best. The plants 
form large stools and produce no runners, 
consequently are less t roublesome to cult i¬ 
vate, and T think produce far move abun¬ 
dantly. They require rich soil and plenty of 
water, and then one can obtain fruit con¬ 
tinuously throughout the Summer and Au¬ 
tumn. T should think these sorts would be 
valuable in Colorado, California and other 
localities where irrigation is practiced in¬ 
tensively. The plants are the hardiest of 
all the known species, and I here would be 
little danger of winter-killing in the cold¬ 
est regions of the Rocky Mountains. In 
propagating these Bush Alpines the old 
stools are pulled to pieces, and each little 
offset is planted separately, these soon 
forming large clumps. 
Thu First Frost-—Oc/.l l.—T.ast night wo 
had our first frost, and this morning the 
garden looks desolate enough. The im¬ 
mense leaves of my hundreds of Ca Indiums 
and Cumins have wit hered and lie dead up¬ 
on tbeground. luihllas, Coleuses, Gerani¬ 
ums and the various bedding plants have 
lost their glorious colors, and all are now a 
faded, useless mass, only tit to go into the 
compost heap. 
The glory of Hummer and Summer flow- 
era has departed and now Autumn reigns 
supreme. Now comes the busy time for 
gardeners and those who have good flower 
gardens; for the tender bulbs and tubers 
must bo taken up, dried and stored away 
for Winter. Last year we had a severe 
frost on the Jilst, of September; therefore 
JMorifultuntl 
graft. When the stem of t he vine Is young, 
or if it is furnished with vigorous shoots at 
the base, wo have recourse to layer draft¬ 
ing. A small trench or hole is made at n, 
in which the shoot is to bo layered; the 
shoot to be grafted is then out down to the 
third eye, as at a. The other shoots of the 
same stock are removed, or out short, or 
grafted in the same way. The cion is 
grafted at a in the English fashion, then 
cut «o as to leave two or three eyes over¬ 
ground, and fastened to a stake. Should 
the stock offer any resistance, it. can be 
pegged down in the bottom of the trench 
with a forked stick; the hole or trench n 
should then be Idled with good, free soil, 
which will facilitate the production of the 
new roots. 
Instead of previously shortening the 
stook, it may be grafted entire, so that it 
may not be mutilated to no purpose, should 
the graft inis». The cion A is out as at c; 
the stock ti is prepared to receive it by 
making three incisions in, and raising the 
bark, as at i>. The two parts are then 
brought together, as at k, in the same way 
as in grafting by approach; the cion hav¬ 
ing its base, f, buried, in order to form 
roots, or merely for the purpose of keeping 
it alive. The graft is bandaged, and oovered 
with mastic or grafting wax. When the 
operation is performed in Spring, the upper 
part of the stock is to be gradually removed 
in the course of the same year. We begin 
to do this in a week after grafting, by cut¬ 
ting away some of the branches, and repeat 
the operation at intervals during the Sum¬ 
mer, in proportion as wo boo the shoots of 
the graft develop themselves. The process 
is finally completed by the removal of the 
stump in thu following year. If the sepa¬ 
ration of the lower part of the cion from 
tho ground can be dispensed with, its 
chances of a lengthened existence will bo 
doubled. If it is necessary, however, it is 
best accomplished gradually, by successive 
annular incisions, which will, by degrees, 
accustom it to draw its sustenance entiiely 
from tho stock. 
Cutting-Grafting on a Tail Stock.— 
If the cion is not long enough to be at the 
same time planted as u cutting and grafted 
at a certain liigltt on the stock, we make 
good the deficiency by using a vessel tilled 
with earth, or a bottle of water raised to 
the required bight, and receiving the lower 
part of the clou. Cool sand is much better 
for tliia purpose than vegetable mold, as it 
is not bo liable to become dry. Should tho 
grafting tako place during tho period of 
vegetation, while tho sap is Honing, wo 
should prefer using a vessel of water, c, at 
the bottom of which should be a layer of 
powdered charcoal, in order to prevent tho 
decomposition of the water, which other¬ 
wise must bo renewed frequently. The 
cion, », should bo stripped of its leaves; in 
the case of deciduous subjects these should 
be cut off close to the stalk ; in evergreens 
it will bo sufficient to cut the half of each 
leaf away. Tho graft, which is made either 
by veneering, or in the English fashion, 
should be covered with grafting-clay, and 
shaded with paper. The removal of the 
upper part of the stock, which is begun in 
Summer by gradually cutting away tho 
branches, A, mid the top of tlie main stem, 
should not be completed (asat E) until after 
the growth of the year following. At tho 
same time the heel of the cion should be 
cut away level at its junction witli the 
stook, the office of the auxiliary sand or 
water having now ended.— 0. Ballet. 
CUTTING-GRAFTING 
DAILY RURAL LIFE 
The ordinary modes of grafting have been 
fully illustrated in the Run vl Nicw- York¬ 
er. From a series of articles on the A rt 
of Grafting, being published in an English 
journal. The Garden, we copy tho follow¬ 
ing on cutting-grafting which will bo novel 
to many of our readers, though generally 
well known to professional horticulturists; 
Tn order to propagate various kinds of 
trees or shrubs, which succeed as cuttings, 
and not so well when grafted in the ordi¬ 
nary way, wo have recourse to a mixed 
process, the base of which is tho employ¬ 
ment of a cion or a stock in the condition 
FROM THE DIARY OF A GENTLEMAN NEAR NEW YORK CITY 
Wliat the Mails Bring mo.— Oct. 7.— 
The mails bring me some curious things. 
Sometimes the contents of packages re¬ 
ceived are very valuable, at least 1 appreci¬ 
ate them highly, although others might con¬ 
sider them mere trash; and it is well that we 
do not all think alike or follow each other 
in the same track. One package received 
to-day contained a horned toad (Phyrno- 
LAYKH-GHAFTINU (ANOTHER METHOD). 
of a cutting. Tho new roots which spring 
from the cutting strengthen the graft by 
supplying It with additional vital elements. 
It is, so to speak, half grafting by approach, 
and often a case of root-grafting. Some¬ 
times the cion is the cutting, and some¬ 
times the stock, and occasionally both are 
cuttings united by grafting. Adepts in 
grafting, they say, should succeed in graft¬ 
ing a cion of orange tree on the midrib of 
a leaf of a citron tree which has been newly 
slipped! 
Grafting with the Cion a Cutting. 
In this method the cion only is a cutting— 
the sl ock is a tree which has been at least a 
year planted. It may bo left entire or 
headed down at the time of grafting, and 
may be grafted either close to the ground or 
at some distance from it, under tho surface 
of t he soil, or above it. 
Cutting-Grafting on a Low Stem.— 
There are two principal methods based on 
the previous amputation of tho stem or 
otherwise. Hero tho stock is shortened to 
within four or eight inches from the neck. 
We then take a cion branch of sufficient 
CUTTING-GRAFTING. 
soma regale, Girard), the Tarantula of 
Texas (Mygalc Hentzii), and a number of 
small beetles; among the latter I found sev¬ 
eral species which I value highly, inasmuch 
as they are new to my cabinet, while the 
toads and spiders were not. In another 
package from Missouri 1 found a specimen 
of that very scarce insect, the Stag-beetle, 
(Lucanun eldphus, Fa hr.) The horns or 
jaws of the male give it a most formidable 
appearance, although it is harmless, and is 
not injurious to vegetation, as its larva lives 
in old rotten logs. Although this beetle is 
quite a rare one, there are others closely 
allied, which have not as yet appeared in 
many entomological cabinets. Among the 
latter I may mention the Sinodorulroil ru- 
gosum, Manx, which is found in Oregon, 
from whence the mail has just brought me 
a pair. The male has quite a long horn 
projecting from the top of his head, some¬ 
what after the style of that of a Rhinocer¬ 
os. In another package from the same 
State I found a number of specimens of 
two speeles of the Omus, another very rare 
beetle. A few years since the Pacific coast 
was a far-off land to the naturalist; but 
the railroad, and consequent increased fa¬ 
cilities for carrying the mails, brings those 
distant regions so near that wo 
can exchange the products of the 
Atlantic coast for those of the 
Pacific without any apparent loss 
of time. The insects, plants and 
minerals found from California io 
A laska are becoming as familiar 
to us as those of our older States. 
Acorns Sprouting.—Oct. 8.— 
The white and blaok Oak acorns 
that fell from the trees two or 
three weeks since have already 1 
commenced to grow, and in I 
many, examined to-day, I found 
tho root (radicle) had pene- ^ 
trated the earth two inches, f 
and oould not be pulled up with¬ 
out breaking off a portion of 
the lower end. Hero is a lesson 
for those who wish to raise Oak seedlings; 
sow as soon as tho acorns fall from the tree, 
in shallow trenches, and not cover more 
than a half inch deep until cool weather; 
then add a little more earth. The acorns 
as they fall under the trees are exposed 
until the leaves fall, then they are well pro¬ 
tected. Acorns are like many other seeds 
of forest trees; and if once they become 
thoroughly dried their vitality is gone, and 
no amount of soaking or freezing will make 
them grow. 
Strawberries iu Autumn.— Oct, 9.—I 
have two beds of Bush Alpine strawberries 
—one of the Red and the other White. 
They were planted in good, rich soil, and 
given good culture; and from the first of 
j une until the present time there has not 
be likely to suffer. 1 have never been 
caught, napping when I attended to my 
plants myRelf; but when 1 trusted to a fore¬ 
man, as I did last year, scores of choice 
things usually got frosted. My green-house 
is already gay with flowers. Bon rardias, 
Geraniums, Heliotropes and Hoses are in 
full bloom, and 1 have only to passfrmn the 
chill air outside into one under glass redo¬ 
lent with the fragrance of flowers. Here I 
shall pass the greater part of the coming 
Winter, being my own foreman and garden¬ 
er. It is a good many years since I have 
managed a green-hoime myself; but 1 think 
the old love for tender plants will, iu a 
measure, bring back a portion of my old 
skill in their cultivation. If the ruses mil¬ 
dew, and lice and other vermin destroy the 
tender plants, then T will confess that my 
hands have lost, their cunning. I expect to 
have a good time all by myself, among the 
flowers and various insects which T intend 
to breed this winter. Blocks of wood full 
of tho larvto and pupte of beetles have 
already been collected; cocoons and chrys¬ 
alids of butterflies and moths are being 
WHAT I KNOW OF FALL PLANTING 
Last fall I purchased 130 apple t rees. I 
had read so many accounts in favor of Fall 
planting that I was induced to plant some 
90, and 40 T heeled until in Spring. The 
land had been cultivated with potatoes— 
the first crop taken off the land; was twice 
plowed and was in fine condition. I plant¬ 
ed 90 trees, and in the Spring counted 2(i 
that made a start; now there is not one 
healthy tree among them. Tho baric is yel¬ 
low and knotty. The other 40 I planted in 
the Spring on newly broken sod; all lived 
but two. Some of my neighbors bought 
trees at tho Same time and place and plant¬ 
ed in the Fall with The same success. My 
neighbors condemned the trees as being too 
small and deficient In roots. The trees were 
very poor; most of the roots were left iti 
the nursery grounds. T also planted 113 
more apples and pears that I purchased of 
a Geneva firm, and only lost one. These 
last liftvo grown from 6 to 13 inches this 
summer. If you should think proper to 
print tliis and save some poor man’s trees, 
my experience will not be in vain. 
Bt. Lawrence Co., N. Y. W. S'rORU. 
LAYER-GRAFTING-. 
collected for next Winter’s campaign under 
glass. By the way, 1 wonder if our ento¬ 
mologists know that a good conservatory, 
heated with hot water or steam, is one of 
the best places imaginable to rear insects? 
It is far ahead of any office breeding-case, 
besides being a delightful place to conduct 
experiments. It is passing strange that so 
few of our florists take any interest in 
entomology, considering the opportunities 
they enjoy for study and investigation. If 
every insect could be sold for a half dime, 
they would no doubt take hold of it with a 
will; and I am not quite sure but some of 
them would sell their heads as well as their 
souls for cash; but this is their business 
and the consequoucos would be theirs and 
not mine. 
OUSTING—GRAFTING ON A TALL STOCK. 
length, that when its extremity is buried 
in the soil as a cutting, close to the stock, 
it may be grafted on the stock, and have a 
couple of buds above tho graft. Tho stock 
is channeled with the gauge, and the bark 
is removed from that part of tho cion 
which is to be placed in the groove. They 
are then bandaged and covered with mastic. 
When a vine is grafted in this way, tho soil 
is heaped up about it so as to cover tho 
