170 
THE RURAE NEW-YORKER 
February 20, 
Ruralisms 
The Western Wolths Grass. —This 
is apparently a sport or “mutation” of 
the well-known Italian rye-grass, Lo- 
lium. Italicum, said to have been found 
by a laborer growing in a very poor, 
sandy soil in the county of Wester- 
wolde, Holland, near the German bor¬ 
der. Though practically an annual in 
this country Italian rye-grass is iin 
Europe a perennial, lasting two or three 
years in good soils. T lie Western 
Wolths variety is claimed to be strictly 
an annual plant, far surpassing the 
Italian in rapidity of growth and luxu¬ 
riance of leafage. In Holland in good 
soils, top-dressed with soluble nitrates, 
it may be cut five or six *times in a 
Summer. It thrives on all soils, but 
succeeds best on those of a heavy and 
moist character. The European intro¬ 
ducer especially recommends it for 
one-year stands of hay or pasture 
when grown mixed with Red clove . 
Italian rye-grass is most useful in this 
country for mixing with pasture and 
lawn grasses, as it stands the first 
Winter well when Fall-sown, and keeps 
its freshness throughout the hottest 
months and during prolonged droughts. 
Whether the Western Wolths variety 
is an improvement for use over here 
is yet to be determined. We do not 
know that it is yet offered in this 
country. 
Good Words for the Ponderosa 
Lemon. —J. W. Minich, Grand Isle, 
Louisiana, writes thus interestingly 
about the Ponderosa lemon as grown in 
his locality: 
Don’t, doubt the claims made by the 
catalogues. Two and a half pounds 
weight is conservative. A full-grown 
fruit will flavor a round half dozen “nine- 
inch” pies. A neighbor has a tree fully 
eight foot high, which last season matured 
over three dozen, none of which weighed 
less than 1% pound, and one fully 42 
ounces. Only a couple of weeks ago he 
culled another weighing 38 ounces. Ihe 
tree stands in the open on a base of the 
poorest soil to be found here, almost pure 
beach sand, with very shallow top soil and 
dressings—it was frozen to the ground m 
1905. There is no doubt that with proper 
cultivation in this climate the Ponderosa 
could be made to fulfill the most extrava¬ 
gant claims made for it by the catalogue- 
men. One pound? Why, we grow here the 
common Louisiana orange up to 3% inches 
diameter and weighing fully one pound— 
fact! 
From this it appears that the Wonder 
or Ponderosa lemon is not without 
value in suitable climates. Prof. G. B. 
Brackett, United States Pomologist, 
kindly furnishes the following addi¬ 
tional information: 
Fruits of this lemon were first received 
at the pomoiogist’s office January 15, 1901, 
sent by Schmidt & Botley, Springfield,, O. 
This nursery firm had described the Ponde¬ 
rosa in their catalogue of the previous year, 
giving it a full-page illustration in color. 
They informed me the lemon originated 
with Mr. George Bowman, Hagerstown, 
Maryland, as a chance seedling, 
some .14 years previously. They also 
made the claim that it comes true from 
seeds, needing no budding or grafting to 
perpetuate the variety. Fruits have since 
been received from various sources and 
there was recently a fine exhibit of it at 
the Des Moines meeting of the Iowa State 
Horticultural Society. It is quite probable 
that it is a hybrid between the pomelo or 
grape fruit and the lemon, although for 
practical purposes it is a lemon. It is vig¬ 
orous in growth and produces well as 
grown by florists of this city (Washington, 
D. C.). It is in every way an interesting 
plant. 
Many Citrus Hybrids. —Tbe several 
Citrus species are not only variable 
within themselves, but with scarcely an 
exception readily hybridize together 
when opportunity presents. When seed¬ 
lings are fruited in quantity strange 
mongrels may almost be expected to 
occur. Very few appear to. be worth 
commercial propagation, but it seems 
that the Ponderosa lemon, assuming it 
is of mixed parentage, is likely to prove 
an exception. R. N.-Y. readers have 
been advised of the successful attempts 
of plant breeders, under government 
direction and otherwise, to develop 
hardier edible oranges than we now 
possess by crossing the hardy but inedi¬ 
ble Citrus trifoliata with commercial 
sweet oranges. Several hybrids of 
promise have been raised and are being 
tested at the various southern experi¬ 
ment stations to determine frost resis¬ 
tance before general dissemination. 
Those hybrids of Trifoliata have for 
convenience of classification been 
termed citranges. Other crosses be- 
twen the Tangerine or Mandarin 
orange and the sweet orange and with 
the pomelo, showing useful character¬ 
istics, have been named Tangelo. The 
field for such work is illimitable, hut 
as results are slow and the proportion 
of useful to worthless mongrels so 
small it is an occupation for the Gov¬ 
ernment employee rather than that of 
the private experimenter. Citrus devel¬ 
opment has hitherto been a matter of 
chance, but it is likely that in the future 
the breeding of specialized varieties 
may become a methodical occupation 
where the requisite support is forth¬ 
coming. 
A P/EONY Bulletin. —Several years 
ago the horticultural department of the 
Cornell (N. Y.) Experiment Station 
became impressed with the unsatisfac¬ 
tory condition of paeony nomenclature. 
Dealers at home and abroad offered 
long lists of named varieties, hut when 
purchased and bloomed plants of the 
same name from different sources 
rarely turned out to he similar. No two 
growers, apparently, could agree on 
the proper name to be given any par¬ 
ticularly desirable variety. The con¬ 
fusion deepened when in response to 
increased demand foreign dealers would 
supply five or six distinct kinds under 
the same label to fill their urgent ex¬ 
port orders. The Cornell Station, in co¬ 
operation with the American Paeony 
Society, has attempted to bring order 
out of chaos by planting large collec¬ 
tions from every available source, and 
by comparison with the originator’s or 
introducer’s descriptions, when obtain¬ 
able, to develop gradually a standard 
classification for this most valuable 
decorative plant. Thousands of paeony 
roots under innumerable varietal names 
have been purchased and donated for 
the purpose. Some of the earliest 
plantings have bloomed, and work of 
comparison and tabulation is now under 
way. A bulletin, “The Paeony and Its 
Culture,” freely illustrated, containing 
the history, classification and culture of 
the plant as far as they have been 
worked out, is now issued, and will be 
sent to all florists, nurserymen and 
plant-growers in New York State who 
desire it, and also to interested plants- 
men in other localities who may apply 
for it by addressing the Horticultural 
Department, College of Agriculture, 
Ithaca, N. Y. 
New Yellow Peonies. —The possi¬ 
bilities of paeony culture have been 
enriched by the recent addition of sev¬ 
eral yellow-flowered species from Cen¬ 
tral Asia. The first to come, P. lutea, 
belongs to the shrubby section, of which 
the common tree paeony, P. Moutan, 
is the chief representative. It has al¬ 
ready been hybridized with Moutan, 
resulting in a handsome large flowered 
yellow and rose variety since named 
Maxime Cornu. Another hybrid raised 
by the enterprising growers, Lemoine 
fet Fils, Nancy, France, has large dou¬ 
ble sweet-scented blooms, much resem- 
ling the hardy rose Golden Sun. Three 
species from the Caucasus have been 
named respectively P. Wittmanniana, P. 
macrophylla and P. Mlokosewitschii. 
All have yellow flowers, and are allied 
to the old dwarf-growing herbaceous 
species, P. corallina, the parent of 
inany prized garden kinds. P. Mlokose¬ 
witschii is said to be the handsomest 
of all and is quite hardy. Several hy¬ 
brids of P. Wittmanniana are offered 
by the Lemoines. All are described as 
early blooming and luxuriant in growth. 
The blooms are large and of yellow 
or salmon coloring. As many paeony 
fanciers are working with the yellow 
species it is likely that notable addi¬ 
tions will eventually be made in the 
way of new color effects in garden 
paeonies. w. v. f» 
Government Whitewash. 
A. C. S., Newton, N. J .—J remember 
some time ago reading in some paper of 
a recipe to make Government whitewash 
that will not rub off hut do not remember 
what it is. Can you suppiy the recipe? 
Ans. —You probably refer to what is 
known as “Government whitewash.” 
This wash is said to be used on many 
Government buildings. It is not a paint, 
and will rub off in time, as all white¬ 
washes do, btit is better than the plain 
mixture of lime and water. Slake one- 
half bushel of good stone lime in hot 
water, keeping it covered while slaking. 
Strain and add four quarts of salt dis¬ 
solved in warm water, three pounds of 
ground rice, boiled to a thin paste, half 
a pound of powdered Spanish whiting, 
and one pound of clear glue, dissolved 
in warm water. Mix and let stand for 
several days. Apply as hot as possible. 
IT PATS TO SPRAY 
Tho Iron A go 4-row Sprayer gives I SAVE 
perfect satisfaction. Puts solution. % HIRED 
fust where needed and in fog-lik© W p. p 
mist. Pump delivers spray under - ncLr 
high pressure, thus reaching every 
part o f vine, effectually b il ling bugs 
and preventing blight. Has 
Orchard Spraying attach- - 
ment. Write for free W r . 
catalog illustrat* Al ' Iron Age 
Ing this and ^ I Four-Row 
AgCtOOlT - Sprsyer 
Nozzle Strainer 
Prevent* Clopfring: 
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POTATOES PAY 
Make them pay by using tbe machines that 
really do the work— 
CUT, PLANT, 
SPRAY, 
DIG and 
SORT 
There’s nothing In 
potato machinery 
up to 
ASPBNWALL EQUIPMENT 
Write for copy of our free book telling how 
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ASPINWALL MFG. CO. 
437 sabln St., Jackson, Mich.,U.S.A. 
Pioneer Makers of Potato Machinery 
SAN JOSE SCALE 
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MADE ONLY BY 
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Send for booklet telling you how to 
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New York Office - 29 Broadway. 
SPRAYING OUTFIT 
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on 16-inch wheels. Complete as 
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PRICE CHICAGO 
CHICAGO 
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28 Jay Street, Rochester, N. Y. 
Save Your Plants From Bugs 
Don’t have your toinntocs, potatoes, cabbages, or 
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plants early and often with a solution of 
Good’s c \vhaie P ou sh Soap No. 3 
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50 lbs. $2.50; 100 lbs. $1.50 ? larger 
quantities proportionately less. 
James Good, Original Maker, 945 No. Front St.,PliiIa. 
QETTHE BEST 
{ 
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THE ECLIPSE ] 
is a good pump. As 
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Box 525 * Traverse City, Mich. 
SEE THEM GROW 
WHEN YOU HAVE SPRAYED YOUR TREES, PLANTS AND VINES WITH 
NIAGARA BRAND 
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Address NIAGARA SPRAYER CO., Middleport, N. 
Empire 
He who attempts to grow fruits without a Sprayer is band!- 
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THOMAS PEPPLER, Box 45, Hlghtstown. N. J. 
pr*tt s« SC ALECIDE 
• •WILL POSITIVELY 
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SAN JOSE SCALE 
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“ PnniTFT TMAUV TXrTPPTT OPP4V D A T .TT'MTl A T? PPPP. TTT* 'VOTT TVT'R'N’T TOT\T TTTTR PAPER.’* 
PRICES 
Not an experiment 
b. New York. 
POCKET DIARY WITH SPRAY CALENDAR FREE IF YOU MENTION THIS PAPER. 
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Gr. Pratt Co., JVEfg. Chemists, Dept. 3NT, 50 Church St. New York City 
