DEC. 4 
« 0(0 
remarkably uniform, as though all from the 
same mold, of a bright cinnamon russet in col¬ 
or, and very spicy in scent. The flavor on eat¬ 
ing did not disappoint the expectations raised 
by these preliminaries. The dealer called them 
Fulton pears, said they were a native of that 
vicinity, abundantly produced and very popu¬ 
lar, The price was ten cents a dozen, with big 
Duchesses alongside selling at eight and ten 
cents each. I let the Duchesses alone and fill¬ 
ed a large pocket with the Fultons. filling its 
mate on the other side of my overcoat with 
Garden Royal apples. 
Returned home I now consulted my Downing 
and found the following description, with an 
outline perfectly corresponding in size and 
form to the Fulton as I saw them: 
“ This American pear is a native of Maine, 
and is a seedling from the farm of Mrs. Fulton, 
of Topsham, in that State. It is very hardy, 
and bears every year abundantly, Tree mod¬ 
erately vigorous. Young shoots rather slen¬ 
der, and yellowish reddish brown. Fruit be¬ 
low medium size, roundish, flattened. Skin 
at first entirely gray russet in color, but at 
maturity of a dark cinnamon rnssot. Flesh 
half buttery, moderately juicy with a sprightly, 
agreeable flavor. Very good, October and No¬ 
vember.” 
A word of the Garden Royal apple. I have 
not often noticed it elsewhere, but it was plen¬ 
tiful on all the fruit stalls in Portland, and ad¬ 
vertised by large placards. It is au excellent 
and very beautiful apple of its season. It is 
figured in Downing, rather below its real size 
as grown iu Maine. It originated in Sudberry, 
Mass. The Iree is very productive, fruit ten¬ 
der, juicy, rich, mild subacid, aromatic, best. 
Seasou September, but in Maine good until No¬ 
vember. The Fulton pear and Garden Royal 
apple are noble and equal companions in the 
aristocracy of tiuits. T. H. Hoskins, M. D. 
lawn. Though usually found on low and 
moist ground, I have seen many a fine speci¬ 
men growiug on the upland. I use it for 
lawn planting and shall continue to do so, as I 
find it to do well, besides being exceedingly 
ornamental at a time when most other plants 
have taken on the sober hues of Winter. 
The Golden Japan Retinospora,— This is 
now (Nov. 20) as golden as gold itself. There 
is no other evergreen that is more pleasing, 
more striking for the Winter garden, while 
its Spring growth of a feathery, soft, pale- 
green color is no less beautiful. Ithas proven 
entirely hardy here during six years, and we 
say to you. good reader, if you have evergreen 
shrubs to purchase next Spring, forget not the 
Retinospora plumosa aurea. 
I notice what Mr. Henderson says about pot- 
grown grape vines; but he fails to catch the 
point. Let me see if I can make it plainer. A 
man who has won public favor and confidence 
may do a good thing and be praised for it; or, 
at least, it will be accepted as a good thing, as 
it should be. Another man, who, iustead of 
public favor, has, for some reason, aroused 
against himself a stroLg prejudice on the part 
of his professional brethren and a part of the 
public, may do the same good thing and be 
abused for it. That was Dr. Grant’s case. 
While suffering most from it he said a time 
would come when a man could grow good pot 
vines without being abused for it. That 
time has been for several yearB. There 
can be no doubt that some vines, and especially 
the Delaware, were much enfeebled by being 
propagated from green wood ; but that was so 
great an evil that in time it corrected itself. 
There have been several other cases of a simi¬ 
lar nature, and all of them men who were em¬ 
inently benefactors of horticulture, but victims 
of unreasoning prejudice. It has always 
seemed to me that their punishment was alto¬ 
gether disproportionate to their foibles. As to 
grape-vines, my conviction is that a well- 
grown pot vine is about the best vine that can 
be grown, and the more we have the better. 
A year since I was surprised at tne 
result of an experiment by Mr. W. Fulker¬ 
son, of Clinton County, with the seeds of a sin¬ 
gle bunch of Wilder (Rogers's No. 24.) grape ; 
not so much on account of the high quality of 
the resultant varieties, as for the number of 
seedlings of fair quality. 
Another of our prominent fruit, growers, 
along with his experiments with seedling 
peaches, as heretofore noticed, has also direct¬ 
ed his attention to the grape, by planting a 
quantity of seeds of Salem (Rogers'sNo. 22). Of 
somewhat less than one hundred plants, de¬ 
rived from this planting, a considerable num¬ 
ber have now borne two years, and others only 
one year. Of these the originator has selected 
five white varieties and five other colors, sev¬ 
eral of them black; all of which he regards 
as highly promising and better iu quality than 
the parent; while one or more are thought to 
be of finer quality than Delaware, besides be¬ 
ing of larger size and the plants more vigorous. 
The plants cannot yet be supposed to have de¬ 
veloped their full quality, or the ultimate char¬ 
acteristics of the bunch; hence, while I regard 
them as eminently promising, I suspend j udg- 
ment respecting their ultimate value. 
What most surprises me is that these two 
Rogers's Hybrids Bnould possess such fixity of 
quality and constitution, as to so wondertully 
excel our presumably more obstinate pure na¬ 
tives in keeping up the general character of 
their progeny, and transmitting their unusual, 
and presumably fugitive, peculiarities to 
them. I, at least, will feel a peculiar interest 
in watching and noting the outcome of these 
experiments, and I look to them in connexion 
3 nd comparison with those of Ricketts, aud in 
contrast with the Prentiss, Niagara, Duchess, 
Brighton, and the Moore Seedlings, for a more 
full settlement of the so long doubtful question, 
how far it shall prove practicable to inter¬ 
weave and blend the desirable qualities of 
Vilis vinifera with those of any or all our na¬ 
tives without too great a sacrifice of vigor 
and adaptation to sustain the inflictions of our, 
in some respects, more trying climate. 
PLUMB. 
Michigan, especially Northern Michigan, 
is believed to possess a climate more than 
usually favorable to the growth and per¬ 
fection of the plum, whether we consider the 
healthfulness of the tree, or the beauty, quan¬ 
tity and quality of the fruit. The past season, 
however, has been exceptional in ibis respect, 
since, even at the extreme north, the weather 
at the time of ripening was such as to occa¬ 
sion extensive loss of crop. That such weath¬ 
er, however, will rarely occur, we may reason¬ 
ably anticipate. Little attention is bestowed 
upon the plum iu Southern Michigan, maiuly 
on account of the depredations of the eurculio. 
Still we are indebted to Lenawee County for a 
new variety—a medium-sized purple plum, 
which, so far, proves nearly or quite proof 
against the rotting of the fruit, and although 
not specially attractive in appearance, is said 
to be a good grower, hardy and productive. In 
quality it will rank as “ very good.” 
strawberries. 
In small fruits little advance has been made 
among Michigan growers, except in strawber¬ 
ries. Even with these the really valuable seem 
to attract little attention until taken up and 
brought to notice by more progressive growers 
abroad. As an illustration, the Bidwell even 
pig. 401. 
Rudbeckia hirta. —In the London Garden 
we find the following respecting this Cone 
Flower: 
“For planting in front of shrubs or making 
large masses in the grounds, this is oue of the 
fineBt plant.6 that can be grown. The flowers 
are single, orange-yellow, with a black center, 
and, like all single flowers, are greatly in 
favor with ladies when cut for the drawing¬ 
room. When grown in neb, heavy soil the 
plant remains In beauty from the end of 
August until the flowers are destroyed by frost. 
Another poiotio its favor is that it is easily and 
rapidly iuereasedbv division of the roots, and 
when fairly established annual top-dresslDg is 
all that it requires, but, like all the herbaceous 
tribe, it enjoys good fresh soil, and when the 
beds become crowded the plants should be 
broken up and replanted.” 
This flower is spreading rapidly over the 
Eastern States, where it seems to have been 
introduced with clover seed from the West, 
and it bids lair to become in many places as 
great a pest as is the Ox-Eye Daisy-Leucanthe- 
mam vulgare, Our English friends need not 
trouble themselves aB to how it may be in¬ 
creased or best cultivated. We can assure 
them that if left alone it will be found to take 
care of itself only too well. 
The mealy bug has been, aud still is, so very 
abundant as to give rise to very geneial and 
loud complaints. I noticed in many places 
last Summer such numbers of both mealy bug 
and scale hs I have never seen before, and I 
noticed at the same time a remarkable absence 
of the green fly. Many fine plants were hope¬ 
lessly ruined. A description of the condition 
of s plant lately brought to me by a lady ama¬ 
teur may help some to fight this pest somewhat 
successfully. She had several times gone care¬ 
fully over some plants, and killed every mealy 
bug she could see, but it would not be long 
before they were covered again. Finally she 
determined to know where they came from, 
and took a seat by the side of one of the worst, 
a Passiflora Decamneana. Presently she saw 
the mealy bugs coming out of the soil. She 
drew the earth away for about au inch around 
the stalk, and found the mealy bugs crowded 
together nearly half au inch thick. The top 
(about 20 feet) was ^ut off and the plant 
brought to me. It was iu a ten-inch pot. On 
being turned out of the pot the roots were 
found to be densely covered with mealy bugs 
from top to bottom. It is safe to 6ay that 
there was fully half a pint, of mealy bugs in 
that pot. She informs me that she found the 
roots of other plants to be covered in the same 
way, but not so badly, except a large specimen 
of Cereus flagelliformis. This lady’s discovery 
should be of great value to those not familiar 
with the habit of the mealy bug. 
CULTIVATION OF THE CRANBERRY 
A. B. ALLEN 
The cranberry being anti-scorbntic, makes 
it, perhaps, the most healthful of all our 
fruits ; and as it can be cooked in many differ¬ 
ent ways, it becomes one of the greatest lux¬ 
uries of the table. 
Soli Tor Cultivation. 
The crauberry can be grown on a great 
variety of soils, but those which yield best are, 
a deep, rich muck or peat; the bottoms of old 
mill ponds after the water Is drawn off; and 
black sand with a clay subsoil. The berry is 
so liable now to be attacked by many destruc¬ 
tive insects, and injured by various diseases, 
that the best soils ouly will yield sufficient to 
render it a good, paying, marketable crop. 
For home consumption poorer soils may be 
cultivated to a moderate extent by our farm¬ 
ers, as it makes little difference to them as to 
the profit of the yield of what they only want 
for family use. 
Location. 
The place chosen to make a cranberry 
meadow should he lined with abundant banks 
of clear, coarse sand, have fallenough to drain 
it well, and springe of water sufficient to over¬ 
flow it when required. One or more straight 
diteheB, according to the breadth of the land, 
must first be cut through its whole length two 
feet deep, and three to five feet wide, or broad 
aud deep enough to carry off all the water 
readily. Narrow ditches about one foot deep 
are then cut from 30 to 50 feet apart, accord¬ 
ing to necessity, at right angles to the mains 
in order to prevent any water from standing 
on the meadow, as it is essential to keep this 
in continued movement from the upper down 
to the lower end of the meadow. If it be a 
swamp with trees, these are cut down, the 
timber and brush removed, the stumps cut 
below the surface, all shrubs aud small roots 
grubbed up, and the land perfectly leveled. 
It is then generally sauded from two to eight 
inches deep, or as an extreme, 15 inches, 
according to the richness and depth of the 
muck. If a turfed meadow is selected, this is 
cut into blocks about a foot square, and car¬ 
ried off on the dry land, packed in heaps, and, 
when well rotted, returned and spread on the 
meadow whence it was removed; or it is 
turned over flat and left, remaining to decom¬ 
pose on the surface. A savanna or dry 
meadow found clear of all obstructions, may 
be plowed. In doing this a sharp, extra-wide 
share mu^t be used, so as to turn the sods flat 
over, and not have the furrow lapped in the 
slightest degree. After this, level the surface 
aud sand it as thick as required. 
Dam for Overflowing. 
A dam is now made at the foot of the meadow 
with a flume and gate for the purpose of shut¬ 
ting down to let the water rise to overflow the 
cranberry vines, and again opening to draw 
off the water when required. This dam can 
be formed of the most suitable and nearest 
RURALISMS 
In bringing forward the subject of labels I 
had no Intention of speaking ot those of zinc 
written on with a common lead pencil. I see 
that some speak of this use of zinc labels as 
something comparatively new ; but I was all 
over this ground a good many years ago, and 
could show, if necessary, some pretty old zinc 
labels written on with a common lead pencil. 
I think it mu6t be more than 25 years ago that 
I received from my old friend, the Hon. 
Marshall P. Wilder, a communication on this 
very subject, and published it. He had at that 
time, if I mistake not, been writing on zinc 
labels with a lead pencil for several years, and 
with satisfactory result. It was that commun¬ 
ication that first brought this use of zinc 
before the public, audit did much good; for 
many orehardists and others have from that 
time used the zinc and common lead pencil. 
Probably many more will use it now. I am 
familiar with all this, but still it does not meet 
the point I had in view. I want to stop that 
profanity, and zinc will not do it. 
In such a case my treatment would be of the 
heroic kind. I should turn the plant out of 
the pot, plunge the bail of earth in a tub of 
strong 6oap-suds, wash away all the soil, and 
clean rff every root. I should then repot 
carefully aud shade the plant till it showed 
signs of growth. If necessary I would top- 
prune. If the plant were not a valuable one I 
wonld destroy it. There is no insect pest so 
much to be dreaded in the green-house as the 
mealy bug, and none so difficult to destroy. It 
must not be supposed that you can drown 
them. I have plunged a plant to the bottom 
of a barrel of water and let it remain there 
three days without killing them. 
Horticola. 
[How would it do to dip the roots in alco¬ 
hol? Eds.] 
I had just written the above, to give credit 
where I know it is justly due. wnen I received 
a welcome letter from Mr. Wilder, from which 
I make an extract. It is interesting in show¬ 
ing how Mr. Wilder first came to use the com¬ 
mon lead pencil. Mr. Wilder says: “ I have 
noticed in the “Rural” the notes on zinc 
labels. The story is that some thirty or more 
years ago, when they were first introduced, the 
writing was done with a chemical ink of sal 
ammoniac, etc.; but not having this in my 
pocket,-1 wrote with the black lead pencil, 
and in a year or two L found that it became 
permanent, and I have used them ever since. 
This I made known (through tbe Horticultur¬ 
ist 1 think). [It was through the Horticultur¬ 
ist,] I use them also for my camellias and 
green-bou6e plants. The philosophy of the 
thing, is, that while the zinc corrodes, tbe 
plumbago is impervious to the atmosphere. 
I have been amused to see how many have 
claimed the discovery.” It was a “happy 
thought” which led Mr. Wilder to use the 
lead in this case. 
POMOLOGICAL IMPROVEMENT IN MICHI 
GAN. 
T. T. LYON, 
APPLES. 
In the matter of apples very little has re¬ 
cently been developed in tbo way of originat¬ 
ing and bringing out new varieties. It is, how¬ 
ever, true that the Shiawassee Beauty (a new 
fruit of twenty yearB 6inee) not only retains 
its popularity with those who try it, but that, 
with no one interested in pressing it upon pub¬ 
lic attention, it is slowly but Bteadily displac¬ 
ing tbatold favorite of the north, the Fameusa 
or Pomrae de Niege, on account of its compar¬ 
ative exemption from the uufortunate tendency 
of that old favorite to scab and crack. When 
both are perfect the “Beauty"(an exceedingly 
appropriate suffix) has all the delicious and 
attractive qualities of the Fameuse, only a lit- 
How very beautiful the Black Alder (Prinos 
verticillatus) is looking just now, especially 
on low grounds. In clumps and as single 
plants they seem to warm up the imbrowned 
landscape, and remind one of a warm Autumn 
sunset. Is there a more ornamental berry- 
bearing plant ? One could almost regret that 
they are native plants, as otherwise we might 
sometimes see them in the border or on the 
THE FULTON PEAR 
When I find myself iu a city my firBt visits 
are to the fruit stands and markets. The last 
week of October I was in Portland, Maine, and 
my eye was soon attracted by trays of beauti¬ 
ful pears, considerably larger than the Seekel, 
