Peach Trees In New England

Mr. Edmund Hersey, of Hingham, Mass., says that fifty years ago good crops of peaches could be had every year in Southern and Middle New England. Today the crop is uncertain anywhere. Then the practice was to raise seedling peaches, and to grow the trees in grass. He contends that nursery practices in peach propagation and culture have weakened the vital power of the tree, which is therefore unable to resist depressing influences as formerly.

The Largest Peaches

The Salway and the Lord Palmerston are regarded as the two largest peaches in the Old World.

Sweet Lemons

Sweet lemons are a favorite Mexican dainty. They are the shape, color and size of the lemons of commerce, but are sweeter than bananas.

Gum Bands In The Garden

In the Old World Cos lettuce is popular. The leaves are blanched by tying them up with bast bands. The kinds are not much grown here as the labor of tying is too great. But India rubber bands have been introduced there which saves much of the labor.

Potato Culture

Some carefully conducted experiments have been made in England at Chis-wick, which Dr. Masters summarises as follows:

1, earthing up produces a crop of more uniform and of superior quality, even if less in quantity;

2, that bending the haulms occasions a diminished yield; 3, that a larger aggregate produce is derived from planting old tubers than from the employment of cut sets.

Sow-Thistle Spinach

It is said that the young hearts of the sow-thistle, Sonchus oleracea, make a delicious vegetable when cooked like spinach.

Forced Strawberries And Tomatoes

For all her efforts, Florida cannot get strawberries and tomatoes early enough for Northern epicureans, and quite a profitable trade is growing for these fruits forced. Pierpont Willson, of Vineland, New Jersey, has been in the business some years and feels encouraged. His strawberries in February brought $4.50 to $5 a quart, and tomatoes 45 cents a quart.

Dwarf Tomatoes

In the Old World where the best tomatoes are grown by means of glass culture, the efforts with introducers of new varieties are in the direction of producing dwarf kinds. "Somebody's Dwarf," "Extra Dwarf," and similar suffixes are common in the advertisements.

Northern And Southern Sweet Corn

We are asked why is sweet corn raised in the North sweeter than the same corn raised in the South? We will first ask, is this a fact?

Empire State Grape

Size is but a secondary quality in a bunch of grapes, but it is a good quality when the grape itself is good. This variety has a very large bunch, usually seven inches long by five wide.