Part 5

To any one of common observation, I think it must be evident that the cultivation of the orchard has not been a success among us. Old orchards, with few exceptions, are comparatively worthless, and their place is not being well supplied. Appearances are that our farmers will soon have to procure from a distance, and at unnecessary expense, their supply of that most healthy and favorite of all fruits, the apple, which they should have in abundance, and at little cost, at home. The fault does not lie in that trees enough have not been planted; nurserymen and tree planters can vouch for that. The natural question comes to be, wherein lies the cause of failure? Many reasons are advanced, such as poor trees, our severe winters, &c. No doubt these have much to do with it, but much can be done to help us out of these difficulties. I suggest first, that we want hardy trees, and if I succeed in naming to your readers trees really hardy for this neighborhood, I think I will have gained one point. Any little knowledge I may have in the matter I have learned from observation, and rather dear bought experience. When I planted my first orchard, I thought I had so well posted myself up in the opinion of good authorities, that success was a certainty, but soon discovered my mistake. As to varieties, Downing names hundreds that will thrive well in his favored climate on the banks of the Hudson, that are of no value to us here. The same may be said of many of our large growers in the West, and other milder climates. Some trees succeed here that are worthless in the Ottawa valley. Many trees are classed in the catalogues as hardy that will not stand our Winters; of these I’ll name a few I am convinced will never be profitable with me, nor do I think they will thrive in our neighborhood, viz: Rhode Island Greening, Wagner, Northern Spy, Baldwin, and Spitzenburg. I have tried them all repeatedly, and they will not answer; I wish they would, as they are all first class apples. True, they are all hardy kinds, but not hardy enough for our locality. Under favorable circumstances some of them might live, but my advice is, leave them alone. Then most catalogues give us long lists of so called hardy apples, (too many to mention), that are worthless here; I’ll pass them over, and name some of those I have tried, and have no hesitation in recommending. As to Summer apples I can say little, as, excepting a few for family use, I don’t consider them profitable. Red and White Astracan, and Brockville Beauty are good kinds. Tetofsky and Early Harvest are well recommended. Autumn apples; Fameuse or Snow, St. Lawrence, and Duchess of Oldenburg, are quite reliable, and deserve all the praise they get. Seek-no-Further is a good apple, but I have found the tree short lived. Emperor Alexander is well spoken of. Winter apples; here my list will be small, but I think reliable: Talman’s Sweet, Pomme Grise, American Golden Russet, and McIntosh Red. Of the latter variety it is said in the _Canada Farmer_ for 1875, p. 125: “The parent tree originated where it now stands, in Matilda, Dundas Co. Ont., some seventy years ago, and has borne every year since the oldest inhabitants can remember, and is still perfectly hardy, the apple also being good in every respect. It has been propagated from, and distributed in the neighborhood, and evidence is given of the most positive character, as to the hardiness, productiveness, and longevity of the tree, and the quality, size and keeping properties of the apple.” I have not had this variety long enough in my orchard to speak positively of its bearing qualities, but the few apples I have had, are equal to the description, and my trees are healthy and hardy. I planted in faith sixty trees last Spring, and ten some years ago. I would be inclined to try a few of the Baxter and Peach Apples, both Winter kinds, and well spoken of.

Many of your readers, when they come to the end of my list, will say (and they are right,) the number of Winter apples, the good long-keeping fellows we like to have in the Spring, are reduced to very few. I don’t pretend to say the above are all the good Winter apples that will succeed here, but it is all I have found to succeed, and I will feel under obligation to any one in these counties who will name one or more other kinds faithfully tried and found good. Although my list is small, there is in it enough to have a good supply of apples nearly the year round, for home consumption and the market. When speaking of the very limited number of varieties that will succeed here, an experienced nurserymen gave me the advice which I will pass to your readers: “Buy your Winter apples; grow and sell Fameuse to pay for them.” I believe the advice on the whole to be good; would, however, recommend planting a few of the kinds above recommended. The Fameuse I consider decidedly the most desirable tree to plant, a hardy tree, an early and abundant bearer, and a universal favorite. Last Fall, from two trees of this variety, I gathered 17 barrels of apples, and sold them for $51. “Tall figures,” perhaps some will say, but true.

Charles Downing, the great American Pomologist, says that the McIntosh Red is an apple of medium size or above, skin whitish yellow, very nearly covered with dark rich red or crimson, almost purplish in the sun; flesh white, fine, very tender, juicy, sub-acid, refreshing, with a peculiar, slightly quince-like flavor. In use from November to February.

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ON PHOSPHATES.

BY P. E. BUCKE, OTTAWA.

Some enquiries having been made at the Winter meeting of the Fruit Growers’ Association, in February last, regarding phosphates, the following facts may not be without interest.

Deposits of the richest description of this ore are found on the River du Lievre, which flows into the Ottawa river, 18 miles below Ottawa city. Scientific analysis has proved beyond doubt that these beds of phosphates are decidedly the richest ever mined in any quarter of the globe, ranging, as they do, from 85 to 95 per cent. The rocks bearing this mineral are traced through five townships, and though the area is scarcely yet known to a certainty, owing to the country not having yet been cleared up, and the localities being covered with moss, leaves, trees, shrubs, and soil; it is not improbable that it extends over many miles of territory, besides penetrating to a considerable depth into the earth’s crust. In many places the deposits are high up in the hills, the country about the section in which the phosphates are found being of a very uneven and broken nature. Already a number of enterprising individuals are engaged in getting out large quantities for shipment this Spring, and though this industry has been greatly retarded by reason of the small quantity of snow that has fallen during the Winter, yet it is expected that some four thousand tons will be delivered on the banks of the Ottawa or on the navigable waters of the Lievre, ready for shipment in barges, either to New York city or to Montreal, where it will be reshipped to Britain, France, Germany, and Spain. The price realized per ton is about $15, which varies according to the assay, when deposited on the wharf. In Liverpool or New York it is worth, in its crude state, from $28 to $32 per ton; and when manufactured into superphosphate, by treatment with sulphuric acid, it brings $50 per ton on this continent. This manure is principally used, on this side of the Atlantic, in the southern States, where the climate is of a humid nature; further north, or in Canada, it is stated it cannot be used with success, as our atmosphere is not sufficiently moist, and it would therefore lay inactive in the soil; should this apprehension prove to be correct, it can never come largely into use here until some means of irrigation is devised to dissolve it, so that it may be absorbed by the tender rootlets of young and growing plants. This fertilizer is principally used in England for turnips, and is drilled in with the seed. When applied to this crop it produces the most wonderful effects, stimulating the young plants to a rapid growth, thereby overcoming the ravages of the fly so destructive in its early stages.

The great rival to the Canada phosphate beds are those of South Carolina, which were opened ten years ago. I find by the United States, government returns, that in 1870 the sum of six millions of dollars was then invested by capitalists in working them, and the products from these mines have been shipped to Europe in large quantities. These phosphates are not nearly so pure as those on the Ottawa, yielding only 40 per cent., and as ours become better known in the old world, they will be the more sought after.

The Canadian phosphates supplied to the States are principally used there to mix with the poorer class received from South Carolina, which are manufactured into superphosphate at Brooklyn; the sulphuric acid used for treating the ores being that which has already done service in the coal oil refineries of Ohio and Pennsylvania. The margin is so great between the phosphate and the superphosphate, the former being worth $15, and the latter $50 per ton, that the question of manufacturing an article ready for use ought to be seriously taken into consideration by some of our capitalists. The refuse sulphuric acid could no doubt be very cheaply had from the London and Hamilton oil refineries, and it would only be a question whether it would be better to convey the acid to the phosphate or the phosphate to the acid, as the latter is not a very easy thing to handle. Should it be found necessary to manufacture the acid, it is understood there is any quantity of material for the purpose in the eastern townships, both as regards copper pyrites and sulphur beds; and if our deposits of phosphates turn out anything like what present indications would lead one to expect, at no distant day large manufactories, both of the acid and of the superphosphates will be established, most probably near Montreal, that being the most central point for operations.

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THE POMME GRISE, AND THE SWAYZIE POMME GRISE.

BY REV. R. BURNET, LONDON, ONT.

The former of these apples has a number of synonyms. From the peculiar tawny color of the skin, the French are in the habit of calling it “Pomme de Cuir.” English people, acquainted with its French name, call it “Gray Apple.” This designation suits its appearance exceedingly well, for it is singularly marked, and once known can never be forgotten. Its excellence in Canada cannot be called in question; unquestionably it is the finest dessert apple we have. It is of French origin, and holds the same relation to apples, as the Seckel does to pears. Its exceedingly marked peary flavor has recommended its cultivation wherever known. Several Summer apples are exquisite in their flavor, and of great beauty, but for modesty of look, and real genuine goodness, commend us to the Pomme Grise. Some find fault with its size; it is easy to find fault, in fact that is the commonest accomplishment of mankind. It bears prolifically, and this may in part account for its diminutive size. Great size and fruitfulness, seldom distinguish one variety of fruit. The tree is a strong grower, and requires no particular extra care. Its home, like that of the Fameuse or Snow Apple, is the isle of Montreal. It has taken kindly to its trans-atlantic location. Nor is this to be wondered at, Hamilton beach is on the parallel of Cape Finisterre, on the north-west of Spain, and should St. Malo and neighborhood prove to be the country of its birth, it is not to be wondered at that it suits the climate of eastern Canada. It takes kindly to the soil of Ontario, and luxuriates in the western peninsula, succeeding more especially in the neighborhood of Niagara and Grimsby. We have never seen them excelled as grown on the Niagara river. The Messrs. Brown, perhaps, raise as good Pomme Grise as are grown anywhere. Mr. George Leslie, Jr., Toronto, has shown fine samples grown in his grounds, and the same may be said of samples from various parts of Yonge street.

We are led in the same connection to speak of the Swayzie Pomme Grise, so named, we have been told, from Col. Swayzie, an inhabitant of the Niagara District. Beadle’s “_Canadian Gardener_” expresses the opinion that the apple originated on this farm. The original tree was blown down, the author says, during the Summer of 1870, and was standing in an irregular clump of apple trees, having the appearance of being the original seedling nursery, from which were raised the first apple trees planted out in orchard form on the farm. However this may be, we confidently affirm that this variety of apple is not as widely cultivated as it ought to be. To some tastes it is superior to its congener, the Pomme Grise. Certainly its flavor and delicacy go far to recommend it. It, too, might appropriately enough be called leather-skin, only it is of a lighter color than the Pomme Grise; sometimes with a blush on the cheek, and sometimes not, oftener with none. Both varieties are noble keepers, only fit for use about this season of the year. To those who have cultivated the varieties, and have plenty of them, it need not be said that they are as good for cooking as for dessert. Their dessert and cooking qualities are unexceptionable. The best mode, perhaps, to keep them is to store them in barrels, and only open when about to be used. Their long-keeping qualities commend them to dealers in fruit. We are not acquainted with any two other varieties more likely to give satisfaction to fruit growers than these. The F. G. A. of Ontario did well to disseminate the Swayzie Pomme Grise. It will find its way wherever tried, and prove a lasting comfort to the planter. We strongly advise fruit producers, especially the producers of apples, to largely plant winter varieties, as being profitable and satisfactory. Planting many varieties is like reading many books, apt to dissipate the energies. For Winter use, few varieties can compare with the Pomme Grise, Swayzie Pomme Grise, Golden Russet of western New York, Grimes’ Golden, Northern Spy, Esopus Spitzenburg, and Rhode Island Greening.

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JOHN FREED.

(_Late a Director of the Fruit Growers’ Association._)

IN MEMORIAM, BY W. H. MILLS, HAMILTON.

The subject of this sketch was born in the parish of East Sutton, England, on the 13th day of January, 1813; and died in the city of Hamilton, March, 1878, at the age of sixty-five years. Previous to his emigration into Canada, which took place some time in the year 1843, he received his initial taste for fruits and flowers on his father’s farm. Thus early and deeply imbued with a love for horticulture, at the age of thirty, Mr. John Freed left his native place and sailed for the United States of America. After remaining there but a few months he came to Canada, and took up his residence in the then town, but now city, of Hamilton, in the County of Wentworth, entering at once upon his loved occupation of gardening, and the production of trees for nursery stock, as affording him the best means of indulging his taste for the creation of new fruits and flowers. As soon as his limited means enabled him to put up a glass structure, the better to give him the requisite conditions and facilities to carry out his objects, he did so; and then commenced a system of cross fertilization, out of which has sprung some remarkable flowers, fruits and vegetables, among which we need only to name in the class Verbena, his “Wentworth,” “Total Eclipse,” “Sea Nymph,” and “Excelsis;” in class Petunia, his “Behemoth,” “Clipper,” “Stipe,” “Velvet Cushion,” “Crimson Glow,” and “Freed’s Gem.” In class Geranium, are his “Wax Work,” “Gold Dust,” and many others, among which his “Mrs. Freed” stands unrivalled, half double, of exquisite pink color, and immense truss. Among fruits, his New Canadian Orleans Plum, of fine quality, is worthy of special mention. He also originated that fine crisp Dwarf Celery, so popular in the Hamilton market, and to which he gave his own name. He, in connection with Dr. Craigie, of horticultural fame, succeeded in establishing in this locality for a time a strong public taste for the cultivation of our native flowers, and under this effort brought out some rare specimens of great beauty. He was connected for years with the Hamilton Horticultural Society, and its success, in a great degree, may be traced to his horticultural skill and perseverance. As one of the Directors of the Fruit Growers’ Association of Ontario, he was selected to take charge of our Canadian fruits at the great Centennial Exhibition held at Philadelphia, and performed that duty with great credit to our Province.

He was also an active member of the South Wentworth Agricultural Society, whose enthusiasm and untiring service will not be easily supplied. A good man has passed from out our ranks and gone to his rest,

“No more to walk into the garden, As the white days lengthen, To feel the pulse of nature, And see her young life strengthen.

“And peer into the borders, Pierced through with bud and sheath, And fancy all that’s doing In secret underneath.

“Too well he knew she’s working Away from mortal sight, With loom and still and palette, Brushes, and colors bright.

“And weaving leaves and branches, And filling honey cells, And shaping stems and blossoms, And fairy-cups and bells.”

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THE SECRET OF SUCCESS IN TRANSPLANTING TREES

In nearly every instance, lies in bringing the soil into close contact with the roots. It is not enough to throw the soil loosely over them, there is danger of hollows or cellars in which the roots, not being in contact with the soil, cannot absorb moisture so as to supply the waste by evaporation; pulverize the ground thoroughly and pack it firmly about the roots.

=VOL. I.]= =APRIL, 1878.= =[NO. 4.=

SOME RECENTLY DESCRIBED HARDY APPLES.

We are under obligations to Mr. T. C. Robinson, of Owen Sound, for calling our attention to an article written for the _Rural New Yorker_, by Dr. S. H. Hoskins, in which he describes some apples recently discovered through the exertions of the Montreal Horticultural Society, and which are as yet mostly unpropagated, although many of them have been long known among the French population of the Province of Quebec. Several of these apples are regarded by Dr. Hoskins as belonging to the Fameuse or Snow Apple class, and seem to be descendants of that well known and highly esteemed apple. The descriptions given are those of Dr. Hoskins as they appear in the extract sent by Mr. Robinson.

FAMEUSE SUCRE.—This is an inviting blackish-red little dessert apple, it is of the same size as Fameuse, but much darker in color than the reddest of that very variable variety in respect of color; form roundish, or slightly oblate; flesh white, deeply stained with red; and very crisp, yet tender, at once mildly sub-acid and sugary, with an aroma of the most peculiar, penetrating, and enduring quality, more like that of some spicy foreign grape than of an apple. I am bold to say that no known apple equals Fameuse Sucre in delicacy and piquancy of taste. It is a true revelation, in apples, of a capacity for flavor which we might look for in some rare tropical fruit, than in an apple from the extreme north. It is not a sweet apple, it is a deliciously sugared apple, as its name indicates, with a distinct aromatic acidity beneath the saccharine, like, yet unlike, the highest flavored strawberry. The season of Fameuse Sucre is from the middle of September until the last of October, or later. The tree seems as hardy as Fameuse; it is upright in growth, it spreads but gradually, its branches bear the bright gloss of health. Like Fameuse, it bears light and heavy crops alternately; those who have it say it equals Fameuse in yield.

ROSEAU.—This is not the Roseau of any of the books. The fruit is of even, medium size, oblate, basin wrinkled; color, a very dark red; flesh white, stained with red, crisp, juicy, sub-acid, high flavored. Season, September. Tree hardy and long lived, a moderate grower, with an upright close head; an early, yearly, moderate bearer.

MOUNTAIN BEET.—This is, in some respects, the most singular apple I ever saw. It is of medium size, roundish-conical, very dark-red, almost black, yet with the clear red shining through. But the curious thing about it is its flesh, as deeply red to the core as a blood-beet, with a red juice, staining the fingers like that of a strawberry. The fruit has the aroma, but not the sugared quality of the Fameuse Sucre—a sort of “country cousin” of that variety. This tree is in the hands of at least one nurseryman, is regarded as productive and hardy, and is being set for profit in the well-known fruit growing town of Abbotsford, P. Q. It is the only variety in this list of which I have yet been able to procure cions. Season of fruit, October and November.

CANADA BALDWIN.—Fruit, size of Fameuse; roundish-oblate, overspread with streaks and splashes of dark, over light red, with many distinct grey specks. Flesh white, often much stained with red, tender, crisp, juicy, mildly sub-acid. Keeps till May or June. The tree is a vigorous grower, with a somewhat upright though gradually spreading head. It has fruit spurs distributed evenly along its branches, and bears as young as the Fameuse, in alternately heavy and light crops. This variety has got out of the hands of the French, and is propagated and planted to some extent. It has the fault, on light soils, of sunscalding upon the bark, but is otherwise hardy. Would probably do well top-grafted.

POMME DE FER.—This is the late keeper of the Province of Quebec. There is a tradition that it was brought from Philadelphia over a hundred years ago, by the Seigneur of Chambly; but this is improbable, as it is not recognized as much resembling any American apple, while its seedling, the Canadian Baldwin described above, is of the distinct Canadian type. Tree fairly hardy, a moderate bearer. Fruit, above medium, roundish to a roundish-oblong, dull-red, with many very distinct grey dots, somewhat like the Flushing Spitzenburg. Flesh yellow, very firm, moderately juicy, mildly sub-acid, somewhat aromatic. This apple keeps till June or July, but is not highly recommended by the Montreal Society.

STRAWBERRY OF MONTREAL.—This is none of the “Strawberry” apples of the books. The tree is extra hardy, and its stout and vigorous growth, and clean, glossy bark, show it to be especially adapted to the cold north. It is erect in growth, without having a dense head. Fruit above medium in size, sometimes large, roundish-conic, yellowish, mostly splashed with red. Flesh yellowish, tender, moderately juicy, mildly sub-acid. It ripens with the Duchess of Oldenburg, but is a better dessert apple. Placed by many growers among the best five for profit, and I recommend it to the attention of your readers in the cold north-west.