OF

HORTICULTURE.

JANUARY, 1845.

ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS.

ART. I. A Retrospective View of the Progress of Horticul ture in the United States, during the year 1844. By the EDITOR.

TEN years have now elapsed since the first publication of the Magazine. It would, perhaps, be interesting to some of our readers to go back, and pass in review the changes and improvements which have taken place in the science of Horticulture during that period; to others who have been our constant readers from its commencement, it would probably only be repetition of what we have annually said under this head. We may however, take this opportunity to remark, that no subject of importance, connected with gardening, has been introduced during the existence of our Magazine, which has not been noticed in its pages. It indeed forms a complete history of gardening in the United States for the last ten years.

Since our first Retrospective View of gardening in 1838, (Vol. IV.) seven years ago, there has been no period when a more active zeal has been manifested in the pursuit of Horticultural science, and a desire to promote its advancement, than at the present moment. Renewed interest is everywhere apparent, and amateur and nursery collections are rapidly springing up in various parts of the country. Horticultural societies are steadily on the increase, and several have been organized, and held exhibitions, the year just passed.

The Massachusetts Horticultural Society, after two or three years' trial have succeeded in purchasing a piece of land in a central position in Boston, and have now erected a beauti1.

VOL. XI.-NO. I.

ful building in the Grecian style, which will be completed and opened for its exhibitions by the ensuing spring. It was through the exertions of this Society, while General Dearborn was at its head, and to whose zeal and taste much of its early success is to be attributed, that Mount Auburn was purchased for the purposes of a Cemetery and an Experimental Garden. The latter object was abandoned, as it should have been, as an undertaking involving too much expense; and the income resulting from the former, agreeably to the provisions of the charter, has enabled the Society to erect a building where its weekly and annual exhibitions can be held, in a hall, ample in its dimensions to accommodate the increasing taste of the public.

The diffusion of a greater taste for trees and shrubs is manifested in the general desire to plant trees by the sides of public roads, in burial grounds, and for objects of shade and shelter; this last is even extending among the enlightened farmers, who are reading as well as practical men, and the result will be a better appreciation of the beauties of landscape scenery, and a desire to ornament their grounds by plantations of trees and shrubs.

But it is in practical knowledge that we may particularly note a decided improvement. In the various modes of cultivation and propagation,-in the production of seedlings by hybridization, and in the general management of flowers, fruits, and ornamental plants, there is a great increase of knowledge. Beautiful specimens are becoming objects of greater attention, and the time we trust is close at hand, when these will rather be subjects deserving prizes, as they are in Great Britain, than those that are merely new and rare. The introduction of new fertilizing substances is another aid in scientific cultivation, already ascertained to be of great importance in the growth of plants.

To our last volume we must refer for details of cultivation and general management; our object now is, as usual, to recapitulate some of the more important subjects discussed, and to impress more particularly, upon many of our readers, hints and suggestions from which useful results may follow.

The season of 1844, like that of the preceding one, was exceedingly dry. The winter was very cold, and considera

ble quantities of snow fell which covered the ground until spring; in consequence of such severe weather, many trees were killed in various parts of New England, and in some instances trees of large size; many sorts of shrubs, particularly tree pæonies were much damaged. Isabella and Catawba grapes, which are rarely injured, were in some localities killed nearly to the ground. In April the weather was remarkably fine, and continued so throughout May, with frequent light and genial showers, which gave a rapid start to vegetation. June continued fine, but without rain, and before the close of the month, crops, on many light soils, were ' almost parched up: the potato crop suffered very much: grass, in many places was scarcely worth cutting; and garden vegetables were much injured by the drought. Dry weather continued until the latter part of July, when refreshing showers gave everything new life and vigor. With a succession of timely rains in August vegetation regained much of its strength. During September, dry weather again set in, but, from the advanced period of the season without material injury to the crops. A severe frost as early as the 28th of the month, destroyed the dahlias and all tender plants. October, was cool, accompanied with heavy rains; November continued mild with but little frost until the latter part of the month; December, up to the present time (the 14th), has been mild and pleasant, with but one or two light storms of snow. The season has been a most remarkable one for fruit: the crop of Apples was never more abundant, or of better quality: pears have also been very plentiful and fine: the crop of plums was so large that they were almost a drug in the market. In New England the peach crop was small, but in New Jersey most abundant and excellent.

HORTICULTURE.

A variety of interesting papers will be found in our tenth volume on the principal subjects which are now attracting attention. The discussion relative to the sexual character of the strawberry has been continued, and several writers have recorded their opinions on the subject; but no satisfactory conclusions have yet been arrived at. Mr. Longworth

still adheres to his opinion of staminate and pistillate plants, and the last season addressed a letter to the Cincinnati Horticultural Society, requesting a committee to be appointed to test the question experimentally. We have not heard, however, of any report of their labors. We are, nevertheless, perfectly satisfied that there is no such thing as staminate and pistillate plants of the same variety. If a variety is originally defective in its fructifying organs it will always remain So. But we are not prepared to say that plants, thus defective, will produce as abundant crops when growing at a great distance from perfect plants as the latter; or that it is not necessary to have some variety with an abundance of stamens near to those which are deficient in them. The idea, however, of male and female Keen's Seedling, Hudson, &c. appears to us quite absurd. We are certain that this error could only arise from two kinds, by negligence, running together, and subsequently supposed to be all of one variety. We shall wait the experiments which are now in course to arrive at some more positive conclusions.

The summer pruning of trees has been very ably written upon by our correspondent Mr. Carmichael, (pp. 164, 215,) but recently assistant in the London Horticultural Society's garden, under Mr. Thompson. The articles should receive the careful attention of every cultivator of trees: We have seen the principle carried out both in England and France, of which we shall speak hereafter, and of its immense importance there is no doubt. Some discussion has taken place in the Gardeners' Chronicle, and the merits of the system have been questioned. To those, however, who have any physological knowledge, there can be no hesitation as to the benefits which are to result from its successful practice: Some experience is required to prune with perfect success, but close attention and careful observation will point out the period when the operation should be done. Summer pruning and the use of the Quince stock, for several kinds of pears, will be the means of bringing into bearing many of those varieties which ordinarily require many years.

Root pruning has been further elucidated by the extract of an article from the pamphlet of Mr. Rivers, and an engraving representing a root pruned tree in full bearing. We had the

pleasure of seeing Mr. Rivers's plantation of root pruned trees the last autumn, and shall have occasion to notice them more particularly in the present volume. Unfortunately the last season was very unfavorable for the trees, owing to the long continued dry weather; they had suffered considerably and the foliage of several of them was quite yellow; very few of them produced any fruit the last season. Root pruning in our climate will require more caution in its practice, and its repetition should not be too often, or too close.

As a new mode of transplanting, successfully practised by our correspondent Capt. Lovett, (p. 161) we would call attention to its merits, and also to his mode of autumn grafting, with fruit bearing scions, to secure a crop the following season. Under his practice we have seen many fine specimens of fruit which were taken from scions inserted the preceding autumn. Its advantages are the speedy fruiting of a new variety, in order to test its merits before planting out one or more trees, and thus prevent the necessity of re-grafting after they have come into bearing.

The closing number of our last volume (X. p. 441,) contained a most excellent article by the Rev. Mr. Beecher, on the blight of the pear tree, which, we believe, has been read with unusual interest. Mr. Beecher has searched every publication for information on the subject, and his opinion is entitled to much weight. It is certainly evident that the blight of the West is not the blight of the New England States. It has been satisfactorily shown by Mr. Lowell and Dr. Harris that the blight, so termed, in this vicinity, is caused by the attacks of the Scolytus pyri. As described by Mr. Beecher, the blight of the West is a malignant disease which is destroying a great many of the fruit orchards in that section of country, and unless some remedy is discovered, will prevent the extensive cultivation of the pear. The Cincinnati Horticultural Society could not do a better service in the West, than the offer of a liberal premium for the discovery of a preventive of the blight.

The proper ripening of pears is a subject which has recently attracted much attention; it is well known that this fruit. varies so much, according to the manner in which it is kept, that some kinds can scarcely be recognized as the same va