THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
155 
THE NORTH STAR CURRANT. 
One of the mo.st important of the .small fruits is the cur¬ 
rant. Its popularity is general, and none of the small fruits 
repays better a reasonable amount of care and attention. It 
is easily grown and therefore the stock is readily salable. 
Rut it would be strange, indeed, if with the marked improve¬ 
ment of recent years in all domestic fruit the currant should 
not have kept pace. That it has done so is proved by the 
handsome frontispiece presented with this issue, representing 
the North Star currant now coming rapidly into general use. 
The desirability of securing a variety with the hardiness 
and vigor of the best and the requisite conditions of quality, 
size and productiveness of fruit, led to experiments which 
produced a new seedling, now known as the North Star. 
This seedling was selected from a large number by the 
originator, a skillful fruit grower, because of its wonderful 
vigor and growth. 
The points of excellence are its hardiness, vigorous 
growth of wood, early fruiting and great productiveness. 
It may be unhesitatingly said that as the result of a test of 
several years, this currant represents to-day the highest 
results that have been attained with this fruit. 
The North Star is undoubtedly an accidental seedling of 
the Victoria, with a test of nearly ten years. It is a vigor¬ 
ous grower, frequently making a growth of three feet in a 
single season, while it is perfectly hardy in any climate. 
The fruit is very uniform in size, of a bright red color, and 
is the sweetest and best flavored currant known. It is an 
early and prolific fruiter, many of the clusters measuring 
from three to five inches in length. The fruit is of a large 
size, larger than the Red Dutch or Victoria, rivaling the 
Cherry currant, and in field culture it will average fully as 
large a berry as the latter, while each bush will carry about 
double the amount of fruit. The North Star is much less 
acid, sweeter, and more agreeable to eat out of hand than 
any of the other varieties. The clusters are e:j^tremely long 
and densely packed with fruit, involving only half the labor 
in harvesting the crop. Again, the berries cling to the 
branches long after the fruit is ripe, so that one is not 
compelled to harvest the crop from the ground. This 
habit also lengthens the season of this currant from two to 
four weeks beyond that of any other known sort. 1 his 
variety also has the faculty of holding its foliage until very 
late in the fall, thus aiding to develop the strongest possible 
fruit buds. It is never affected by borers and it is such a 
.strong, vigorous grower that it is readily adapted to any 
locality. In order to get the best results it must be ferti¬ 
lized liberally. Where the grounds are limited its rapid 
growth renders it particularly desirable for cultivation in the 
tree form, as it requires but little pruning to keep it in that 
shape. To avoid a common annoyance a metal seal is 
attached to each plant of the North Star as a guaranty that 
the plants are genuine. This currant is propagated by one 
of the largest and most progressive firms in the West. 
A PLEA FOR THE DEALER. 
We know in theory it is right to buy of the producer or 
manufacturer direct, instead of through middlemen or agents, 
says a writer in The Agricultural Epitomist. \Wc believe- 
in it and practice it, when we are assured of fair dealing. 
But in practice we have found more of disappointment than 
of success. In buying of the middleman or agent you can 
see what you are getting before you pay, while in ordering 
direct it is usually pay in advance of shipment, and any 
claim for mistakes or damages is generally more trouble 
and expense than any amount to be received. If all men 
were honest then it would be the ideal method of doing 
business, but, as a rule, there is not that honesty that will 
give the stranger and distant buyer the same consideration 
as to a friend who is present. Then the goods that the 
farmer usually needs to order are perishable and easily dam¬ 
aged, and as he is likely to be some miles from freight and 
express office, he is at much trouble, even if everything is 
done promptly and fairly ; but, if not, he generally prefers 
to suffer loss rather than to .spend time in getting redress. 
We have no favoritism to show to the fruit tree agent or 
“ tree peddler,” as he is slightingly called, but he has always 
treated us well, and we see no reason to shie a stone at him. 
He comes to your home, takes your order, delivers your 
trees on a certain day, of which you have due notice. You 
have your duplicate order and, if they are not there on time 
or not according to agreement, you do not have to take 
them, and you pay nothing until everything is satisfactory. 
We are at present twenty-one miles from railroad .station, 
and extra trips are a serious burden. If all nurserymen or 
dealers were honest and trustworthy in every way and trans- 
.sportation companies were prompt in delivering goods, there 
would be much .satisfaction in ordering from first hands, for 
a box of plants, generously sent us was packed in such 
a thorough manner and previous notice of shipment sent, 
that we received them just as and when expected ; and the 
same can be said of those received from one of our readers 
in our Riverdale home. Possibly the good wishes coming 
with them kept them warm and from freezing in mid-winter. 
But one of the high-priced novelties, and on which the ex- 
pressage was thrice the first cost, is completely ruined, and 
no word from our letters of inquiry, though the loss was 
clearly from failure in packing, and a return the third time 
from the station without a fifty-dollar bill of trees makes us 
discouraged, and think that we will let the “ tree peddler ” 
take the risks. We are no more unfortunate than others, 
for we saw three other bills delivered that were completely 
dried out and utterly worthless. As to mail orders in 
seeds and plants we have fared better, as there is no delay 
in the route, though we lost one-third of one order by in¬ 
sufficient wrapping. If nurseiymen and seedsmen want to 
have direct trade they must guarantee prompt deliver)-. 
A Woodburn, Oregon, nurseryman lately placed an 
order for 20,000 prune trees. 
