8o6 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
December 11 
Ail communications intended for this 
department should, for the next seven 
months, he addressed toE. S. Carman, No. 
5 West 82nd Street , New York . 
THE LIVINGSTON’S BANNER AND 
THE R r N.-Y. POTATOES. 
On page 741, we note what is said about the 
Livingston’s Banner and Sir Walter Raleigh pota¬ 
toes. Early last spring, we think it was, some 
of your correspondents tried to make out that 
Carman No. 1 and Carman No. 3 were the same 
as Banner. 1. We are pleased to have the Ban¬ 
ner put in comparison with such good kinds; we 
take it as a compliment for our variety. We have 
heard quite often, also, that the R. N.-Y. No. 2 
and Banner resemble each other very much in 
some respects, but almost invariably, that the 
Banner is far superior in quality, also that the 
skin is more netted. 2. One grower states that 
he could easily distinguish the difference in 
growth or color of the tops at quite a distance 
from his field. 
There has been so much said about this mat¬ 
ter at different times in The R. N.-Y., and for 
fear that some of your readers may have got 
the impression that we introduced one or the 
other of your varieties under the name of Liv¬ 
ingston’s Banner, you should, in justice to us, 
give them a few facts. When we introduced this 
potato a few years ago, we stated in our Seed 
Annual that we secured it from one of our grow¬ 
ers in central Ohio, who had grown it from seed, 
etc. Last week, this grower was in the store at 
the time The R. N.-Y. arrived, and we called his 
attention to the item. He says that he never had 
a R. N.-Y. No. 2 potato on his farm, and that the 
only claim you have on his seedling is that you 
advised your readers about 1880 or 1881 to grow 
some seedling potatoes, and he sent the following 
spring to a Mr. Perkins at Sioux City, la , for a 
packet of seed, and after growing the product of 
this seed for several years, finally discarded all 
but the one which he sold to us with all rights 
to name, introduce, etc., as we thought best. 
This grower we have known for over 30 years as 
an honorable man. He has taken The R. N.-Y. for 
many years, and says, “ You should not go back 
on me,as The R. N.-Y. is my preacher on potatoes.” 
3. It seems strange that so many of your potatoes 
should look like Livingston’s Banner. Could it 
be possible that an error in marking might have 
occurred at your grounds, and you have intro¬ 
duced our potato by mistake ? If it cannot be 
accounted for in this way, it must be that the 
“ready writer” is better with the pen than 
in the potato patch and bin, for we presume that 
no two of the five sorts are alike in all particu¬ 
lars. 4. In what year did you i ntroduce the R. 
N.-Y. No. 2 ? A. W. LIVINGSTON’S SONS. 
tioned potatoes has ever borne seed 
balls at the Rural Grounds. 
The Cumberland Blackcap. —Plants 
were received from Jackson & Perkins, 
of Newark, N. Y , during the fall of 
1896. July 1, 1897, we made the fol¬ 
lowing notes : Berries large, black, with 
scarcely any bloom (drupelets small), 
quality excellent, about the size of 
Dregg; firm, and of far better quality. 
We do not know of a blackcap of better 
quality. * * * Among the earliest 
to ripen; beautiful, glossy black ber¬ 
ries. Plants very prolific, from 10 to 14 
berries in a cluster. Highly promising. 
The plants stood the winter without 
injury. The Cumberland originated 
with David Miller, of Camp Hill, Pa. 
See Fig. 339, page 802. 
There are few lovers of pears that, 
after they have eaten their first well- 
grown, well-ripened Anjou, do not ask 
its name with a view to buying more for 
immediate use, or planting Anjou trees 
in their own gardens or orchards. If a 
vote among all the judges of pears in 
the country were taken as to which is 
the best variety of its season, we think 
that the Anjou would be elected by an 
“ overwhelming majority.” The Seckel 
is a little earlier, and few will dispute 
that, in regard to fineness of flesh, rich¬ 
ness and spiciness, it has no rival. But 
the Anjou and Seckel scarcely collide. 
Each holds a first place in a field of its 
own. One might eat his “ fill ” of the 
spicy Seckel, yet find a place for the 
refreshing Anjou; and so, too, after 
making one’s chief meal of the Anjou, 
he might enjoy a Seckel for a dessert. 
No other firm or individual has done 
more to popularize the Anjou than Ell- 
wanger & Barry. Year after year, they 
have, at this season of the year, sent 
liberal boxes of the Anjou to acquain¬ 
tances and to leading rural papers, so 
that its real value has become more and 
more widely known and appreciated. 
A box was received by the writer No¬ 
vember 1. It contained about 50, the 
average size being, as nearly as esti¬ 
mated, lY/i inches the long circum¬ 
ference by 10 the shorter. All were of 
the same obovate shape, with short, fat 
stems, the color being a medium yel¬ 
lowish green, with a scarcely noticeable 
dull red cheek. 
1. We have never heard that aDy one 
tried to make it appear that Carman No. 
1 and Carman No. 3 are the same, or that 
either is the same as Livingston’s Ban¬ 
ner. Two experiment stations have re¬ 
ported that the Banner is the same as 
the R. N.-Y. No. 2. According to our 
own trials, the Banner and R. N.-Y. No. 
2 are closely alike, but they are not the 
same, differing, as we have before stated, 
in that the No. 2 is a heavier yielder and 
less inclined to be netted, while, as 
grown at the Rural Grounds, it is in¬ 
ferior in quality to the Banner. 2. We 
have been unable to distinguish the 
slightest difference in the color of the 
vines or in the color of the blossoms, 
which are distinctively white and pur¬ 
ple. 3. No, we fancy that this is wholly 
out of the question. Our first trial of 
the Livingston’s Banner was made, as we 
recall it, two years ago. 4. The No 2 
originated at the Rural Grounds in 1883. 
The Carman No. 3 originated in 1888. 
The Carman No. 1 originated in 1889, 
the Sir Walter Raleigh in 1892 or 1893, 
we are not positive which. It will be 
seen, therefore, that we cannot, by any 
possibility, have introduced the Banner 
as any one of our own varieties. We 
may add that not one of the above men- 
We planted our first Anjou pears, 
dwarf and standard, at the Rural 
Grounds, about 20 years ago, but neither 
has ever given us fruit that, in excel¬ 
lence, has compared favorably with such 
kinds as Superfin, Bose or Sheldon. But 
it succeeds splendidly in many other 
States, as we have before noted, also in 
Ontario and Nova hcotia. These States 
are Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Geor¬ 
gia, South and North Carolina, Califor¬ 
nia, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, 
Missouri, Illinois, Tennessee, Kentucky, 
West Virginia, Virginia, Delaware, 
Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
Oregon, Michigan (T. T. Lyon gives it 
double stars for every part of the State), 
New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, 
Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hamp¬ 
shire, Maine. 
The Laurel-Leaf Willow. —Fig. 338, 
page 802, shows a portrait of a Laurel- 
leaf willow grown from a cutting sent 
to Mr. George E. Scott by The R. N.-Y. 
16 years ago. He says that it is now 
nearly 40 feet in height, and at least 25 
feet wide. “ It is very handsome when 
in full leaf, and has been greatly ad¬ 
mired by lovers of trees and as a lawn 
adorner.” The first specimen of this 
beautiful willow planted at the Rural 
Grounds was bought from the late A. S. 
Fuller 22 years ago. Cuttings root 
readily and grow with wonderful rapid - 
ity, the leaves being ovate-lanceolate in 
shape, and often nine inches in length 
with a surface as glossy as if it had been 
varnished. It will grow almost any 
where, but the leaves do not attain so 
large a size unless the plant is growing 
in soil that never suffers from drought. 
Catalogues give the botanical name as 
Salix Laurifolia, an appropriate name, 
certainly, because the leaves do resemble 
those of the Laurel. Laurifolia, how¬ 
ever, is not the correct specific name 
What it is we cannot say, as many lead¬ 
ing arboriculturists to whom we havf 
submitted specimens fail to agree as to 
its specific name. Because of its rapid 
growth, it makes a fine shrub in two or 
three years. After that, the shrubs 
may readily be transplanted to out-of- 
the-way places—behind the barn, about 
the wood-shed, back of the kitchen—and 
in two or three years afterwards, they 
may be used for kindling wood, substi¬ 
tuting smaller plants in their stead. 
Mb. J.’C. Sengeb, of Virginia, writes 
us - interestingly as to clovers bearing 
more than three leaves. His children 
I 
extends beyond the present 
generation. Its marvelous 
durability makes it an heir¬ 
loom—always accurate. 
Elgin Full Ruby Jeweled 
movements represent the best 
in time-keeping machinery. 
In sizes for ladies and gentle¬ 
men. Approved Holiday gifts. 
An Elgin watch always has the word “Elgin” 
engraved on the works — fully guaranteed. 
discovered a plant growing about two 
feet beyond the borders of a field which 
he sowed to Red clover early last winter. 
He calls this plant a veritable Multifolia 
pratense, the stems with only three 
leaves being decidedly in the minority. 
There were a few stems bearing four 
leaves. Those with five leaves were in 
the majority. He is now protecting this 
plant with the intention of ascertaining 
whether, in the course of time, it may 
or may not be possible to fix this sport¬ 
ing prolificacy. “ An additional leaf,” 
he says, “may not mean much in the 
aggregate weight of hay, but it might 
give us one-third more nitrogen traps, so 
that we might reasonably hope to get 
four pounds of free nitrogen for every 
three we now obtain. If the seed from 
this plant will give only one plant with 
like tendency, there would be sufficient 
encouragement to continue the experi¬ 
ment.”. 
•‘Intensive Cultivation is the Keynote to Success!" 
SUCCESS 
Waits on all who subscribe to 
talfelN (jlRMNIi 
* * $1.00 a Year. ^ Every Saturday. 
A Complete Practical Guide to Every Phase of 
Plant Culture in the Open and Under Glass 
and the Development of Land and Home. 
THE SOIL’S PRODUCTIVENESS INCREASED. 
Send $1.00 for a year’s subscription; it will earn 
you $100 before the twelve months are up. A 
premium to every subscriber. Sample copy free. 
State where you saw this advertisement and address 
ill. BtHOEHIKG, P.0. Box 1697, Mew lori 
LOCAL MANAGER 
in every town. Commission or salary; payable 
weekly; work steady. Address, with business 
references, slating age, 
GLEN BROS., Rochester, N. Y. 
\\J _ DAV CASH each WEEK the year round, if 
YY C V r\ I you sell Stark Trees. Outfit free. 
STARK NURSERY. LOUISIANA, MO., Stark, Mo., Rockport, III., Dansvillt, N. I 
Don’t JStarve 
Because Your Stomach Will Not 
Digest Food. 
Take Hood’s -Sarsaparilla and be cured. It 
will tone and strengthen your stomach and create 
an appetite. Then you may eat without fear of 
distress, your food will be digested and as¬ 
similated, and you will grow strong and healthy. 
H00d’S S ?a?ma 
#1.50 for 1,000 Brandywine Stberry Pits. Orders 
booked now for spring. T. C. Kevltt, Athenia, N. J. 
Aftl IIUDI AM Raspberries, 8,000 quarts per 
llULUKIBI All acre. 50,000 sets. 
T. G. ASHMEAD, Nursery, Williamson, N. Y. 
200.000 
LUCUETIA DEWBERRY TIPS; very 
line, heavily rooted. Price, $1 per 
100; $6 per 1,000; $25 per 5 000-by 
freight or express. My new 32-page Illustrated 
Strawberry Catalogue now ready. Best out. Sent 
f i-nn AdfirAtlfi 
W. F. ALLEN, JR., Salisbury, Md. 
SPRAYING CROPS : Why, 
When and How to Do It.— By Prof. Clar¬ 
ence M. Weed. Illustrated. 
This little book tells in plain, understandable 
Is the best—in fact the One True Blood Purifier. 
Hood’s Pills cure all liver ills. 25 cents. 
Grape Vines™ 
Extra fine stock of CURRANTS, including the 
new and unrivalled WILDER. Lowest rates .Quality 
extra .Warranted true. T. s. uubbard CO., Fredoda, H.T 
English, just what the ordinary farmer and fruit 
grower most needs to know. It describes all the 
insecticides and fungicides used in spraying; all 
the principal appliances used ; tells when to 
spray; what precautions to observe ; describes 
the insects and fungi against which it is neces¬ 
sary to guard; in fact, is a complete, condensed, 
convenient handbook on the whole subject. Price 
in stiff paper covers, is but 25 cents, postpaid. 
The Rural New-Yobkkb, New York. 
BUSINESS 
LJ ET D I ET O to plant tor business and for profit, are 
CV rC tv I EL Montmorency, English Morello, Louis 
Philippe, Black Tartarian, Black Eagle, Napoleon and Windsor. We have others, but these are 
the ones you waot. Our catalogue will tell you our prices for these and other fresh-dug business 
trees. - We have no novelties, no catchpenny schemes, offer no chromos, do not pay 50 cents freight, 
and add $5 to price of your trees, but we give full value in trees for your money. All stock 
^ of inspection with every'shipment. " ROGERS NURSERIES, DANSV1LLE, N. Y. 
5,000 KEIFFER PEAR TREES 
Three years. Clean, bright, healthy, thrifty. Just the kind to plant a new orchard or REPLANT an 
old one. All the leading sorts of Fruit Trees and Plants. PRICES RIGHT. Catalogue Free. 
A-RTHUri j. COXjXjINTS, Moorestown, JNT. J. 
TDCCC SHRUBS, FLOWERS AHD FRUITS. 
Most complete General Collection in America. 3,000 
I I I ■■ ■■ varieties described in a 200-page (free) Catalogue- 
“The Leading Nero England Nursery.** JACOB W. MANNING, Reading, Mass. 
etc. advertise themselves. The foest 
always cheapest. Can supply all your wants 
from Flower aud Vegetable Seeds to 
Street Trees at low rates. We publish one of 
the leadiug Seed, Plant aud Tree Cata- 
__ __^ logues issued which we mail tree. Try us, 
our stock and prices will please you. Can refer 
you to customers in every state and territory in the Union. 43 years of square dealing has made us 
patrons and friends far and near. Have hundreds of car-loads of FRUIT AND ORNAMEN¬ 
TAL TREES, SHIELDS, ROSES, PLANTS, ETC. We send by mail postpaid Seeds, 
Plants, Bulbs, Roses, Small Trees, etc., safe arrival and satisfaction guaranteed, larger by express 
or freight. 44 th year. 32 Greenhouses. 1,000 acres. 
THE STORRS & HARRISON CO., Box 26, PAINESVILLE, O. 
