gentlemen of all portions of the country for their enlightened co-operation and disinterested services.

In closing, I cannot repress the conviction that a new era is dawning upon the agriculture of our country, in which intelligence and progress will cheapen production and enhance the wealth and increase the happiness of the people.

His Excellency ANDREW JOHNSON, President,

ISAAC NEWTON, Commissioner of Agriculture.

REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF THE EXPERIMENTAL GARDEN.

SIR: I have the honor to submit the following notes and observations on various subjects connected with the garden:

STRAWBERRIES.

The best soil for strawberries is a clayey loam. As a rule the foreign varieties are not profitable on light sandy soils, unless they are well enriched and heavily mulched during summer.

Previous to planting, the ground should be prepared by deep working and heavy manuring; if immediately preceded by a potato crop, the soil will be left clean, and it has been proved the best rotation.

To produce best crops plant singly, not closer than eighteen inches in garden culture; in field culture rows may be three feet apart, and plants from fourteen to sixteen inches in the rows.

Keep all runners down, as well as weeds, during growth. Stir the ground when necessary after the crop is removed. If possible do not allow any surface stirring from the beginning of September until after the crop is gathered, so as not to disturb the roots formed during that period, as they are essential to the plants while fruiting.

Protect the plants in winter by slightly covering with straw or long manure. Even the hardiest and most robust varieties will show an extra produce when thus sheltered from the drying action of frosty winds.

There is no danger in having the soil too rich when the runners are constantly removed and the plants kept distinct.

A plantation set with good runners in September will give a fair crop the fol lowing summer.

The Jucunda and Triomphe de Gand are not yet excelled on soils suited to their kinds.

The Agriculturist proves to be a fruit of much value, large berry, and flavor very good. The plant is also quite productive.

Russell's Prolific is a very fine flavored berry, of good size. Plants only moderately productive.

New Jersey Scarlet is very productive; fruit soft and deficient in flavor. French's Strawberry proves unworthy of further attention here. Golden Queen, as received, seems identical with Trollope's Victoria. Lady's Finger is a profitable variety; fruit firm; flavor medium; best in a rather wet season.

Raising from seed.-Few fruit-bearing plants can be so early tested as the strawberry. The mode adopted here, in producing from seed, is as follows: When the fruit is thoroughly ripened the berries are bruised and the seeds washed out, as far as practicable, from the pulp. This operation is facilitated. by paring thinly the outer surface of the berry, which, of course, includes the seeds. By this means much of the pulp is rejected. When washed and separated they are laid on paper and dried. Well-drained, shallow boxes are filled with light sandy soil, firmly pressed to a level, smooth surface. The seeds are rubbed between the finger and thumb to separate them from the adhering pulp, and sown thinly. A slight sprinkling of sand is sown over them, and the whole

surface pressed carefully. Deep covering is to be avoided. The boxes are now placed in a shady position, such as the north side of a wall or hedge, and covered with boards during the day until the seeds vegetate. This covering prevents drying, and obviates frequent waterings, which have a tendency to disturb the seeds.

As soon as the young plants appear they require to be fully exposed at night, although still partially shaded from bright sun. Any direct covering during the night (except it is necessary to protect against heavy dashing rains) is injurious, causing the young plants to damp and decay.

As soon as true leaves are formed the plants are carefully separated and replanted, either in portable shallow boxes, or in a frame; soil similar to that used for the seeds. They should not be set nearer than two inches apart; the soil settled about the roots by watering over them through a fine rose or syringe. Shade for a few days until they commence growth. Never allow them to suffer for water, and allow them full exposure, both day and night.

About the beginning of September the plants will be ready for permanent. planting. The soil being fully prepared and pulverized, set the plants in rows three feet apart, and allow eighteen inches from plant to plant. They will grow into good sized plants before frosts, and form numerous flower beds for fruiting the following summer. A slight covering should be given them during winter. Managed in this way, fruit is produced in less than twelve months from the time of sowing the seeds; and, if the various details of transplanting, &c., have proved favorable to constant and uninterrupted growth, the crop produced will be quite large.

The quality of the fruit should not be determined by one year's trial; but the second year's growth and fruitage will exhibit the normal state of the plant, and until this is ascertained all runners should be carefully removed.

GRAPES.

For several years past the department has occasionally received packages of foreign grapes. Some of the varieties were accompanied with high recommendations of excellence, and all of them have received proper attention. Their fate has been the same that has befallen all other foreign grapes when grown in the open air east of the Rocky mountains-they are all dead.

It would seem that the experience of at least seventy years ought to suffice in this matter of the foreign grape. All attempts to grow them profitably in ordinary vineyard culture have failed; still there are those who cannot be convinced of this fact except by ocular demonstration. The circumstance that an occasional season occurs when their growth seems quite satisfactory, and also that in some peculiarly sheltered situations, such as in city yards, they sometimes produce tolerably fair crops, has a tendency to maintain a lingering hope of ultimate success; but, sooner or later, their fate is certain, and at no time can confidence be placed in their permanency.

A few years ago, when the Yeddo grape was imported from Japan, high hopes were entertained of at last possessing a foreign grape that would adapt itself to this climate. These hopes seemed reasonable. The climate of that country, in many respects, closely resembled our own, and our flower gardens and shrubberies were much indebted to it for their beauty and interest; but the Yeddo grape has proved a failure in field culture, and the fruit is not of sufficient worth to warrant its culture under glass.

It has long been a favorite idea with some that our only hope of ever improving our native grapes, so as to render them of particular value either as a table fruit or for the production of wine, is to hybridize them with the foreign species. Many pomologists, on the other hand, maintain that the true course is to per severe in producing seedlings from native varieties, hoping by this means to

secure a plant possessing the valuable qualities required, by one of those sudden changes that often occur, and of which physiology has given no explanation, although a process that has given us nearly all our best fruits and flowers.

Several reputed hybrids are now in cultivation, but none of them give evidence of great improvement, and, in some respects, their reputed origin is open to doubt.

Concerning native grapes I have but little to add to former reports. The Concord still maintains its place as the most useful. In some situations the fruit rotted considerably in July, owing to heavy rains; but the leaves are rarely injured by mildew, and, as a consequence, the wood is always well matured.

Ives's Seedling proves to be very hardy, and satisfactory as to growth. The fruit certainly cannot rank highly for table use, whatever value it may have for wine. Allen's Hybrid proves to be tender, and wholly unreliable. The foreign grape element predominates too largely in this variety for it ever to become permanently valuable for vineyard purposes. Its habits have a close resemblance to the Golden Chasselas.

Iona is very liable to mildew, so much so that it seldom ripens any wood without summer protection.

Adirondack is also extremely liable to mildew. Under protection it grows. very freely, and is the best early grape, but doubtful for general culture.

Israella is vigorous in growth, not so liable to mildew as some others, and is so far very promising.

Creveling succeeds very well, and produces fruit of a fair quality. Possibly its greatest fault is a disposition to set the berries thinly on the bunch.

Taylor's Bullitt cannot be considered as of much value for general uses, and, if discarded, the grape list would not feel its loss. The same remarks apply with equal justice to Franklin, Anna, and To-Kalon.

Maxatawny makes very poor bunches, and but few of them set well; and, although it is one of the finest flavored berries, it will not become popular.

Cuyahoga, like Rebecca, requires a somewhat sheltered, if not a shaded position, to attain perfection. Certainly the finest crops I have seen were on plants thus situated.

Christine is a good black grape, early, and worthy of attention.

Little Giant and Hamill's Seedling prove to be so near like Isabella, as not to show any distinguishing feature from that variety.

Mead's Seedling has the same relation as above to Catawba.

New Buda: a variety received under this name, proves to be Concord.

Clara, Canadian Chief, Clappier, Emily, Jacobi, and Brandywine are seedlings of foreign grapes, hence not reliable here.

Flickwir, same as Clinton.

PEARS.

The culture of the pear has long been of peculiar interest. The great excellence of the fruit, and its nearly continuous season of perfection-some late keeping varieties nearly meeting the earliest ripening sorts-and its great beauty as a tree, have always maintained its culture as one of the most refined.

Notwithstanding that it is one of the most anciently cultivated trees, the fruit is still scarce in our markets. Indeed, as a market fruit, the finest varieties are rarely seen, so that fine pears are but little known among the general public. This fact has often been noticed, and various reasons have been adduced, from time to time, for this scarcity. One prominent cause of failure is blight. In some sections this fatality is very prevalent, and materially retards extensive culture. Occasionally the crop is severely injured by late spring frosts destroying the blossoms, or heavy rains preventing a proper distribution of the pollen and setting of the fruit; all of which casualties tend to create a degree of uncertainty with regard to the economical culture of the tree in many sections of the country.

For many years the dwarf pear has been planted very extensively, and while a considerable amount of success has resulted, it cannot be denied that great disappointments have also been experienced, and that, too, in cases where a knowledge of tree culture was by no means of an inferior order. It is a common remark that dwarf pears are always successful under proper treatment. This may be so, but what proper treatment really is has not been very satisfactorily defined.

I have observed that in some plantations, considered successful, the most peculiar point of treatment consisted in immediately filling up blanks with healthy plants. Considering the small amount of first cost, this plan may be deemed worthy of special recommendation.

Dwarfing, in this connection, is merely a technical term, indicating that the tree has been worked upon a plant of weaker growth in order to hasten its maturity, a system based upon a well-known law in vegetable physiology. In order to effect this change in the pear it is grown upon the roots of the quince, and although, in the case of strong growing varieties, the desired object is undoubtedly secured, yet the indiscriminate use of the quince for all the varieties of pears will lead to disappointment, as many of the weaker kinds are thus enfeebled beyond general healthiness, which defeats the end in view.

The desire to produce pyramidal-formed trees has also had an effect prejudicial to quince stocks. The roots of this plant being rather small and fibrous, do not afford sufficient strength to support a tall, heavy foliaged tree; consequently, when heavy storms of rain and wind soften the soil and sway the tree, the roots are twisted or broken, and the tree laid prostrate. Injury from this cause may be greatly modified by keeping the plants low, in spreading bush fashion; so far as pruning will direct this form the same rules should be adopted as recommended for keeping a hedge—that is, the centre shoots should be shortened during summer, and the lower side shoots in winter pruning. When tall trees are shortened by removing the top branches, a point is formed for the emission of numerous small shoots, which should be frequently removed or pruned back, otherwise the centre of the tree will assume a thick set, hedgy appearance. The best mode is to commence with the young tree, and endeavor to have the lower branches proceed from as near the base as possible, spreading out uniformly round the stem, the upper shoots bending outward as in the form of a vase. There are some varieties, with strong upright tendency of growth, that cannot well be induced to present this form, but even these, if long shoots are encouraged, will gradually assume it, assisted as they will be by the weight of fruit on such branches, and when once this slightly pendant fruiting habit has obtained, no great difficulty will be found in maintaining it. If other modes fail, mechanical means may be used, such as tying down the branches to a ring of wire, fastened to the ground with pegs.

With reference to standard pears, those grafted on pear stocks, although perfectly able to support themselves against all ordinary storms, yet they also should be encouraged to branch low on the stem; grown, as they usually are, in the nursery, in close rows, the lower branches are rarely sufficiently developed, hence it is necessary to prune the tops rather severely at planting, in order to produce side shoots. When the foundation of the plant is thus fairly established, any further pruning should be carefully and rather sparingly performed; great mistakes are constantly made by supposing that a yearly pruning is a necessity. Instead of shortening in, as it is termed, the annual growths at winter pruning, fruiting spurs will be more certainly and much earlier developed by leaving the growths untouched. This winter-shortening of the previous year's growth results in increasing the number of slender shoots, a good practice for the production of basket-making material when confined to the willow, but a very useless one on the pear where fruit is the main object.

A collection of standard pear trees planted in the garden, spring of 1863, have not been pruned since the fall of that year, and some varieties have pro