6 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
.lamiary 5 
Ruralisms ; 
MOTES FRO Ml THE RURAL GROUNDS. 
Obanges for Pot Culture. —The 
growing of orange or lemon trees from 
seeds is an interesting operation for the 
window gardener, but as time passes and 
they grow strong and bulky, without 
showing signs of fruiting, one begins 
to question their value from even a 
decorative standpoint and to consider 
the advisability of grafting or budding 
to some known fruitful variety, or dis¬ 
carding the subjects altogether. It is 
rare indeed that a seedling Citrus tree 
will bloom and bear fruit until it is 
nearly 10 years old and has reached an 
unwieldy size, and the fruits, when final¬ 
ly produced, are rarely of any value. The 
seedlings of cultivated oranges ana 
lemons are even less likely to repro¬ 
duce the good qualities of the parent 
than are our northern orchard fruits, 
and we all know how frequently the 
latter revert to useless primitive types. 
In the Otaheite orange, a dwarf form of 
the common sweet orange. Citrus 
Sinensis, and the kumquat. Citrus 
Japonica, both of comparatively recent 
introduction to American culture, we 
have two handsome and practicable 
plants for the window or small green¬ 
house. The Otaheite orange is now well 
known, and is extensively grown. In 
pot culture it makes a sturdy little bush 
with glossy green leaves and little 
bright yellow oranges, which hang on 
with great persistency for several 
months after they have colored up. They 
are edible but of low quality, the fiavor 
being sweetish and insipid, though oc¬ 
casionally a sour or bitter fruit is met 
with. The culture is very simple, a fruit¬ 
ing plant growing well for several sea¬ 
sons in a five or six-inch pot. It is not 
unusual for little plants in two or three- 
inch pots to flower and mature fruits, 
but under ordinary window conditions 
such small receptacles cannot be kept 
sufficiently moist. A good compact soil, 
containing some crushed or ground 
bones, suits these oranges very well. 
For the rest they like plenty of sunlight 
and a moderately warm situation. The 
leaves should be kept free from dust and 
black fungus by frequent showerings of 
warm water, and scales. Mealy bugs and 
other insects may be readily removed by 
scrubbing with soapsuds in which a 
little kerosene oil can be incorporated. 
The blooms of the Otaheite orange have 
the true orange-flower odor, but are 
smaller than those of the edible varieties 
and generally of a pinkish color. 
The kumquat is to be preferred to 
the Otaheite orange, in that it freel> 
bears fruits delicious to the taste as well 
as pleasing in appearance. It is a native 
of southern China, and forms a large 
bush or small tree when grown on its 
own roots in a locality free from frost. 
It is extensively cultivated in Japan, 
and has lately been planted in consider¬ 
able quantity in Florida and California. 
The little fruits are much prized for 
preserving, and are eaten fresh to a 
large extent. A sweet gelatinous layer 
is found between the sour central pulp 
and the thin, pleasantly-flavored rind, 
and forms an agreeable combination 
when the fruit is eaten whole. Two 
varieties are grown, one having round 
fruits and somewhat thorny branches, 
and the other plum-shaped fruits an 
inch in diameter and 1^4 to two inches 
long. The trees bearing the oval or 
plum-shaped fruits are almost thornless. 
For pot culture kumquats are grafted 
on hardy orange. Citrus trifoliata, 
stocks which dwarf them very much 
and is said to render them hardier when 
grown in the open. Little trees less 
than two feet high bear as many as 100 
fruits, which come to full maturity and 
flavor in a window or under glass, if 
given plenty of sunlight and a tempera¬ 
ture sufficient to keep geraniums In a 
growing condition. They require about 
the same treatment as the dwarf orange, 
but those grafted or budded on hardy 
stocks often become quite dormant after 
fruiting, and can be stored in a light, 
frost-proof cellar until Spring if the soil 
about the roots is kept moderately 
moist. During the flowering period, in 
June or July, the trees should be placed 
outside so that bees and other insects 
can have access to the blooms and in¬ 
sure pollenization. If plunged in ashes 
or other sharp material and faithfully 
watered these dwarfed Citrus plants may 
well spend the Summer out in the sun¬ 
shine, but should be taken inside before 
the nights turn very chilly, especially if 
well set with fruits. The portraits of 
the two Citrus fruits, shown at Figs. 
1 and 4, on first and third page, are taken 
from specimens grown on the Rural 
Grounds under the most ordinary con¬ 
ditions. The Otaheite orange tree is 16 
inches high and is established in a six- 
incn pot. It bore 14 perfect oranges this 
season. The kumquat is 22 inches high 
and growing in an eight-inch pot; 73 
fruits were ripened. Each plant is about 
five years old, and has bore repeated 
crops. The pictures show the fruits 
somewhat reduced in size. 
Rhubarb anu Celery. —On Decembei 
12 we bedded five large roots of Victoria 
rhubarb in each of the two cellars on 
the Rural Grounds, placing one lot 
sufficiently near hot water pipes to 
secure a soil temperature of 55 degrees. 
The other lot is in an unheated cellar 
in which the Winter temperature rarely 
exceeds 40 degrees, and in which slight 
frost may penetrate. The clumps were 
loosened just before a sharp freeze, and 
transferred to the cellar while the ban 
of earth was solidly frozen, loose soil 
worked between them, and weli-watered 
after thawing out. All this is in the 
usual method adopted by rhubarb 
forcers, but we wish to note the effect 
in earliness and amount of product of 
the different temperatures; all other 
conditions being about the same. 
As noted on page 34 of the last 
volume, celery is grown on the Rural 
Grounds without banking or earthing 
up, except a slight handling when a 
severe frost seems imminent in order to 
protect the young growth in the center 
to some extent. The plants are cul¬ 
tivated in the usual manner, except that 
the soil is kept entirely level, the celery 
growing in as free and unrestrained a 
manner as cabbage or iettuce. These 
clumps are lifted and placed dost 
together on the earthen floor in the 
coolest part of a cellar, and the soil 
watered whenever it shows signs of dry¬ 
ing out, taking care not to wet the 
foliage. The result has always been a 
strong, erect and delicately-bleached 
growth from the center, at the expense 
of the reserve materials stored in the 
thick rootstock, that to our taste excels 
in quality any celery bleached by earth 
banking or other means available in 
trenches. In this last week of Decem¬ 
ber we have 700 fine bunches developing 
in storage just as the market surplus is 
diminishing. Under these conditions 
celery will keep until March if not at¬ 
tacked by aphides or plant lice, and is 
instantly available when wanted. If 
aphides appear it is best used rapidly, 
as nothing but the use of tobacco in the 
form of smoke, infusion or powder will 
check them unless facilities for using 
carbon bisulphide or hydrocyanic acid 
gas are created. We have never been 
troubled with the insects until late in 
February, by which time the celery is 
chiefly a memory. No novelty is claimed 
for this practical method of storing 
celery, but we feel like calling repeated 
attention to its value. w. v. r. 
The Rise of Ruby Queen 
A. J. P. of this place Informed me that 
his Ruby Queen rose has made the aston¬ 
ishing growth of over 140 feet since May. 
I have just called to look at the plant in 
his greenhouse, and after measuring one of 
the numerous runners myself, I am satis¬ 
fied his claim is correct. This exceeds 
greatly any growth claimed thus far for 
the Ruby Queen in The R. N.-T. The plant 
is in fine growth. The grower also has 
several new layers of it growing. w. p. 
Port Chester, N. Y. 
The R. N.-Y. is glad to publish the 
above remarkable growth of a Ruby 
Queen rose from the little plant sent out 
last May. We will venture the opinion, 
however, that few, if any, blooms will 
be produced on this plant as long as it is 
kept under glass. Rosa Wichuraiana 
and its immediate hybrids produce their 
flowers from wood of the previous year’s 
growth after it has been checked and 
ripened by a lengthened period of cold 
weather. Dormant plants taken inside, 
bloom finely if of sufficient size, but 
glass-grown shoots have never bloomed 
on the Rural Grounds. Ihe great in¬ 
herent vigor of the variety iS well shown 
by a growth of 140 feet of branches in 
less than eight months. 
FRUIT MOTES FROM MONTANA. 
There are a number of the Idaho pear 
trees in this State, and quite a good 
many came through the hard Winter 
two years ago, which killed off a large 
percentage of our pear orchards, and set 
back the remainder. 1 was plowing one 
day and the next morning the thermom¬ 
eter had dropped to 22 degrees below 
zero without snow. That was the start¬ 
er of the damage. The pear is a good 
one, undoubtedly, but our standards are 
Bartlett, Clapp and Flemish Beauty. 
Perhaps laaho wili outdo them, but such 
is not the verdict at present, chiefly per¬ 
haps as there are not many of the trees 
in the State. In apples, we think we 
can beat the world, as v.e have no in¬ 
sect pests or fungous diseases. The or¬ 
chard inspection last year, a very thor¬ 
ough one, only revealed three cases of 
Codling-moth in Montana orchards. 
Why the moth is not more plentiful 
seems curious, as the fruit inspectors 
found that it has been shipped into the 
State by the carload. We are now get¬ 
ting in shape to supply our home mar¬ 
ket, and have many ^arge orchards of 
several hundred acres. My own, of 
about 1,500 trees, is considered quite 
small. As far as shipping east is con¬ 
cerned It would be quite possible to put 
on the market in perfect condition. In 
a conversation I had with the represen¬ 
tative of tne Northern Pacific Railroau 
a year or so ago, he told me we could 
never ship east of Chicago or to Europe 
at. a profit, as we then came into compe¬ 
tition with your big orchards, with the 
disadvaniage of freight added. How¬ 
ever, he said that we had an unlimited 
market in the country immediately east 
of us, in which we would have the ad¬ 
vantage of freight distance over our 
great competitors, Oregon and Washing¬ 
ton, quality also giving us an advan¬ 
tage over these two States, where 
wormy apples are strongly in evidence. 
It may interest you to know that 
Wealthy is a late Fall and Winter apple 
with us. H. C. B. COLYn.L. 
When you write advertisers mention The R. N.-Y., 
and you will get a quick reply and “ a square deal.” 
See our guarantee 8th page. 
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goes farther and gives quicker 
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j^^iULLTHE TRIGGER 
Pat Npv. g7.t900 
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Wheels with tire on, S 7 .!i 5 
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