Daily Republican., 1881-05-10
An Afternoons Ramble Amongst
Farms, Nurseries, and Floral Gar.
dense

=.
in silence, the next farm of note on the
road is that belonging to George q. Lob
dell the senior of the Lubdell Car Wheel
Company Of this city. Without eXag-
geraJion we are justified in giving Mr..
Lobdcll'H farm II place amongst the
hest half dozen in the State.
Mr.. Mciiowau is his tried and dtrusted
| farmer who never fails to have the best
of crops. He is busy now with manure
carts, plowS, harrOwS an c0rn-pLanterS
| planting corn for the coming year :
crop. The residence of Mr.. Loblcll is
pleasantly located, and almost hidden
from view from the public road 10y a
spacious lawn on which grow in bloom
ing lUNuriance a young forest of native
and imported pines and ccdarS. Mr..
| LOhdell is known as Il lover OF oloOded
horses, some OF his raising having at
tanned a national reputation, but as his
| manufacturing business increased, less
attention was paid to III" raising OF
horses though his stables yet contain
some fine specimens OF bIoodcd sock.
A little farther on are tn" widely
known nurseries OF Randolph Peter
who for many years past has made a
speciality Ut raising not only All KINDS
of fruit trees but of strawberries, straw
berry, grape and other vines. Mr., Pet
ers' farm contains POO acres. the whole
given up TO his extensive nurseries. En-
;erng an open gateway and follow
ing a winding avenue, after passing an
almost endless succession Of pear, ap-
pie, peach, cherry and other fruit trees,
past lots Of strawberry vines, white
with blossomS,p past ShruDhericH, crldrs,
pines and poplars, We found Mr.. Peters
and number OF hands, with sleeves
rolled up, busy setting ont Young grated
apple cuttings, for Il future supply,
Mr. Peters explained TO lis the mOdu>-
Operandi of grating truit which is a
very simple operation, requiring only a
piece OF apple root and Il small limb
cutting to make the tree; and knife
and piece OF string clipped in cement
with which To perform the operation.
This grating /, all done during the
winter and when done tn" trees are
buried in sand boxes iii which they are
kept until this season ot' the wear when
they are taken ou' and with a small
trowel are planted in shallow turrowN.
These plants will he ready for the mar
ket in the spring and fan OF 1883. The
roots into which the choice iruit is
grated are obtained from the apple
Seeding. The dry weather last year was
very hard on the young and lender
crafts. Mr.. Peters showed us lot ON
which stood $50, 600 young trees but all
he was able to save was 10000 which lie
had rrpantcd on a smaller space and
thereby economical grounds. Dry
weather and cold winters without deep
SHOWS are the worst enemies Of small
fruit trees. Speaking of the peach crop
Mr.. Peters S;Lid it was an entire Iail are
in Delaware,
There were no blossoms in his orchard
except on limb or two that had been
buried beneath the snow Large peach
trees were entirely killed while small
trees and tender buds which were Gov
cred by snow lived safely through the
winter and are the harder tins spring
for the protection which the snow al.
tOrded. Pointing to Il scope of land con-
tanning two or three acres, "thcre, said
Mr.. Peters "are 800, 600 peach trees
which will be ready for market next
spring
The trees have all to becaretully gone
over and all the buds stripped off except
the one that was inserted by grating
and which is to make the choice tree.
Mr.. Peters still has great faith in the
future of peach culture. This backSet
this summer will only develop it in a
more judiciOus and healthy manner.
Everybody will plant some peach trees
but none will devote their whole farms
to raising peaches as formerly. People
forget, he said, that one good season OF
peaches is worth several seasons of or.
dinary crops. He instauCed the case OF
Mr.. Hudson, near Clayton, who in one
year saved Sl4, 900 from his peach crop,
and when asked how long it would take
him to make that much money by the
ordinary process of farming, said 81
couldn't do it in life time There i
| but little money in evergreen shade
trees. 1t takes from eight to twelve
years to mature an evergreen, but moi
more than a dollar can be obtained
for it.
Besides this great nursery farm, Mr.
Peters has large fruit farm neal
Newark, Delaware, and :wo peacl
nursery farms in Maryland, one neaI
Denton and the other near Berlin. Thes,
three nursery farms constitute him pro
badly the largest grower of fruit tree
on the Peninsula. There are man
other items of interest about Mr. Peters
nursery which might fill up column,
of the REPUBLICAN, but as other new
must have some space we passed on
through Mr.. Peters large farm and at
ter a short drive lighted,at Landers, flo
raj establishment, green houses ano
graperies. The Messrs. Landers max,
II speciality of cultivating grapes fol
the Philadelphia market in hot houses
They have three houses devoted to thi
purpose. In two ofthem are large cluS
ters of grapes now large enough Il
weigh pound which will be ripe b,
the end OF the present month.
| When these grapes are taken to TIL
Philadelphia market they bring as higl
as $3.50 per pound and IN the average
bring $l.0O per pound. Judging from
the large clusters of grapes depending
from Mr.. Landers' vines he cannot thav
less than 500 pounds which will brin,
in q handsome revenue, early in tn
season. Besides grapes there are tw'
large floral hot houses with popula
flowers, but the market has been so goo,
that there are but few left to bring int
market.
The stock of roses has been entire |,
disposed of and more could be sold i
there were more to sell. Notwithstand
ing the large number who are engaging
in the cultivation of flowers the evi
dence of all engaged in the business i
that the trade is increasing. Messrs
Eanders are old florists and have beel
very successful at the business. Thei
little ten acre farm produces more thai
many others not tar from it of ten time
the size.