1817 . 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
THE ORCHARD AND THE GARDEN. 
Albany and Rensselaer Horticultural Socie¬ 
ty. —An union Horticultural Society having been late¬ 
ly formed between the counties of Albanjr and Rens¬ 
selaer, the first exhibition was held at the Geological 
Rooms, Albany, on the 3d of July. The show was all 
which could have been anticipated for the first effort, 
being indeed highly creditable in all respects. In the 
floral department, especially, there was a good dis¬ 
play and quite a general competition. The principal 
contributors to the exhibition were Messrs. Newcomb, 
of Pittstown; Walsh, of Lansingburgh; Warren, H. 
Vail, D. D. Y. Vail, of Troy; Menand and Moore, 
of Watervliet; Douw, Chapman, and Haydock, of 
Greenbush; Rathbone, Prentice, Wendell, Wil¬ 
son, Hall, Kanouse, Denniston, and March, of 
Albany. There were shown several fine varieties of 
cherries and strawberries. Mr. James Wilson re¬ 
ceived the premium for Swainstone’s seedling, as the 
best strawberry, and Dr. H. Wendell the premium 
for the greatest number of varieties of cherries of the 
best quality. Among several other kinds, Dr. W. ex¬ 
hibited two which were raised by him from seed plant¬ 
ed seven or eight years ago. One of them is decidedly 
of the Bigarreau class, and promises, when at maturi¬ 
ty, to be a superior fruit, both in appearance and qua¬ 
lity. The other seedling is of rather small size, but 
of very pleasant flavor. Being the first season that it 
has been tried, its character can hardly be fully deter¬ 
mined. 
The exhibitions of the Society are to be holden al¬ 
ternately at Albany and Troy, on the first and third 
Saturdays of each month, during the warm season, and 
monthly the remainder of the year. There is eve¬ 
ry prospect that the society will be productive of great 
benefit to the Section in which it is located, and we 
have no doubt that it will have the liberal support of 
the citizens of Albany and Troy, and the friends of 
horticulture generally in the vicinity. * 
Horticultural Exhibition at Aurora. —We had 
the pleasure of attending a Horticultural exhibition at 
Aurora, Cayuga county, on the 23d of June last. 
There was a fine show of the fruits, vegetables, and 
flowers of the season. Of strawberries there was a 
good assortment, which were generally of superior 
quality. Henry Morgan, Esq., of Aurora, presented 
several varieties; among them were some of very large 
size labelled rather inappropriately, - u Aurora Dwarf.” 
They might have been better styled giants than dwarfs. 
Some, however, believed them to be Ross’s Phoenix. 
But from superior cultivation, or some other cause, 
they had attained a most uncommon size—one berry 
being 5^ inches in circumference, and in a large dish 
full there were none of much smaller size. It was ra¬ 
ther early in the season for cherries, but there were 
fine specimens of the Mayduke, Bigarreau, and Black 
Tartarian—the two latter not quite ripe. Of vegeta¬ 
bles, there were fine cauliflowers, new potatoes of 
good size for table use, pie-plant of different varieties, 
&c. There was a handsome display of roses and other 
flowers, which, under the direction of that zealous flo¬ 
rist, Dr. Thompson, assisted by several devoted lady 
amateurs, made a most attractive appearance. The 
collection of roses, from the garden of David Thomas, 
Greatfield, near Aurora, for which he received the pre¬ 
mium, was particularly fine. There were several 
splendid bouquets and ornaments of different kinds, 
composed of flowers. A beautiful u floral design,” 
somewhat unique in its character, was presented by 
Mrs. E. T. Throop Martin, of Auburn. The flowers, 
comprising many varieties, were beautifully and taste¬ 
fully blended, and pressed in a frame under glass in 
such a manner as to resemble, at a little . distance, a 
splendid painting. Being kept from the air they do" 
not quickly fade, but retain for some time their fresh 
natural tints. 
The occasion called together quite a numerous as¬ 
semblage of persons of both sexes; and not less inte¬ 
resting to us than any other part of the exhibition, was 
the kind social feeling, and the spirit of generous rival¬ 
ry in the improvement of the produces of the garden 
and orchard, which appeared to be generally diffused. 
The Aurora Horticultural Society has existed but for 
a few years, though the community here, through the 
influence of some distinguished cultivators, has long 
been celebrated for rural taste, and for the production 
of choice fruits. 
Blight in Fruit Trees. —In our last number, we 
spoke of a blight in apple trees, similar to the il fire 
blight.” Since then, we have noticed, in a tour through 
several counties in western New-York, that the apple, 
pear, quince, and in several instances, thorns of vari¬ 
ous kinds, are more or less affected by the malady 
mentioned. Some believe it to have been occasioned 
by a frost, which, it is said, occurred a few nights pre¬ 
vious to its first appearance. On the night alluded to, 
it was expected by many that there would be a frost, 
which, by fishermen and others who were out at twelve 
or one o’clock, was found to have taken place to such 
a degree that the leaves of trees were frozen, and the 
grass was crisp under foot; but a south wind which 
set in about the middle of the night, so raised the tem¬ 
perature that before sunrise the next morning, the 
frost, had all been dissipated, leaving vegetation appa¬ 
rently uninjured. At present, it is difficult for us to 
reconcile with this conjecture, all the facts connected 
with the"blight. Trees are attacked in some situa¬ 
tions, where it is pretty certain, from close observa¬ 
tion, that no frost occurred for two or three weeks be¬ 
fore the appearance of the blight. Dr. Herman Wen¬ 
dell, of this city, lately showed us a small pear tree 
which was brought from the interior of France last 
fall, and was not unpacked till very late last spring, 
the planting being purposely deferred till late in the 
season, in order to be certain of mild weather after¬ 
wards. Dr. W. is confident that no frost has occurred 
since the tree was set, as the most tender plants in 
the garden have exhibited none of its effects, but the 
tree is badly affected by blight, and will be probably 
ruined. For ourselves, we must wait for more know¬ 
ledge and more facts, before we shall venture any con¬ 
clusion in regard to the cause of the malady in question. 
Salt for Plum Trees. —Judge Cheever, has 
called on us to say that he had lost three plum trees 
in consequence of putting salt round them. The trees 
were from two to three inches in diameter, and he used 
two quarts of salt to each,. He was induced to apply 
the salt in consequence of having seen it recommended 
as a remedy for certain diseases in the plum tree, and 
as a promotive, also, of their growth and thrift. As 
to the quantity, he Thought he had seen it advised in 
the Cultivator . In this we think lie must have been 
mistaken, as we can find nothing of the kind. In the 
