up to their sticks. If you have any leisure you may cut out the old wood which has borne this year, as it is now useless.

ESPALIERS. The espaliered fruit will now mature rapidly. Gather the ripening Peaches and Nectarines, and do not leave them on the trees till they are perfectly ripe, or they will not keep so well. They should be picked when their color shows the practised eye that a few days will make them mellow. Take them into the house and lay them in the coolest and driest place you have, and be particularly careful not to handle or press them, as the one removes the bloom, the other hastens decay.

-

The varieties of

The same holds good of Pears. No Pear should be allowed to fall to the ground, - whether worm-ripe or not, - as it can hardly do so without bruising other fruit in its passage, at the same time spoiling itself. Pears, even more than Peaches, should be gathered three or four days before they become mellow. Take them into the fruit room and lay them out on the shelves. Pears on the espaliers should give a regular succession of fruit from the middle of August to November, by which time the fruit of the orchard trees will be ready for use. Of the espaliers there are four Nectarine trees, five Apricots, ten Peaches, and twenty-four Pears. The Nectarines are Early Violet, Hunt's Tawney, Boston, New-white. The Apricots are Large Early, Brede, Peach, Roman, Moorpark; the Peaches, Early York, White Imperial, two George IV., Grosse Mignonne, two Crawford's Early, two Late Red Rareripes, Oldmixon; the Pears, two Bloodgood's, Madeline, two Dearborne's Seedlings, four Bartlett, three Andrews, two White Doyennè, four Seckel, two Fondante d'Automne, two Louise Bonne, two Beurre Capiaumont, two Duchess, two Glout Morceau. The Filberts are Gifford's and Frizzled.

MELONS.

Melons are now in their perfection, and should be used every day, as an early frost will very probably cut them off. When not done last month, put under each fine melon a shingle, to keep it from the ground, or its flavor will be injured by the earth. The Cantalopes, Musk, Nutmeg, and Green-fleshed, should all be ripe now if ever. The ripeness of all yellow melons is

shown by color; but those which have a green rind show ripeness by a gradual detaching of the footstalk, so that when raised by the hand the vine drops from the melon without resistance. Watermelons must be made much of now as they are in their prime. Various ways of ascertaining their ripeness are given: when rapped with the knuckles they give a hollow sound if ripe, because of a hollow interval left by the separation of the inner lobes, which have hitherto been all joined, but separate as they ripen. Another test is, pressing the melon between the hands; if ripe there will be a slight crackling (as the lobes crack), the same cavity in the centre offering no opposition to the pressure. Another test is, the decay of the tendril, which will be found on the side of the stem of the vine, opposite the footstalk of the fruit, until the latter is ripe, when it withers away.

PICKLES. Hoe carefully the pickle crops of Cucumbers, Mangoes, Peppers, and Martynias; gather all ripe Tomatoes, and lay the best and earliest ripe in the sun to get seed; the others, not needed for cooking, should be allowed to accumulate a day or two, being kept dark and cool, to stew for winter use, or for the market. Be very attentive to the ripening seeds; gather and dry all you wish for the next season, never selecting for seed those similar varieties which have grown near together, as they will have mixed.

Pinch off the ends of the Lima Bean runners early in the month, as this is the only way to force the vine to mature its seeds.

ROOT CROPS. - Look over the root crops, Beets, Parsnips, Turnips, Ruta Bagas, etc.; if any stray weeds are to be seen, get them out. Hoe the Cabbages wherever the earth seems to have fallen away from the stem. Dig your early Potatoes, and lay them in heaps, out of the sun and dew, in a dry place for a day or two, to dry thoroughly before putting them into the cellar. Gather seed ears of the early Corn as it ripens; dry well, strip together the husks, hang them up where they will be secure from rats and mice. Early Peas and Beans are now to be pulled up, the vines dried, and the seed threshed and cleaned; the vines or haulm will be greedily eaten by cattle if well dried, or they may

back and tie

be used for bedding. Gather seed of Summer Squashes and throw the vines and remaining Squash to the pigs. Dig over the portions of the kitchen-garden which have grown these early crops, to be ready for new planting.

Pull up and store away any early Turnips not used, as they will now be apt to run up to blossom stalks, or become hollow-hearted and corky. Cut, dry, and tie in bundles, and hang up pot-herbs, Sage, Rue, Sweet Marjoram, Summer Savory, etc., the last of the month.

Gather the Squashes, and pile them in some warm and dry place, or shelter the heaps with boards till they are well dried; then sell or store them. A light frost will injure them very much, and every bruise is followed by decay.

As soon as the tops of the Asparagus are fairly yellow, and the berries red, cut them, lay in piles in the alleys between the beds, and cover with manure; then dig all in, cover the beds with a dressing of well-rotted manure and salt, but do not dig in for fear of injuring the crowns of the roots, unless very lightly; if the manure is fine it will not impede the Asparagus shoots in the spring.

CHAPTER VII.

ORCHARD.

THE orchard now needs constant attention. The earliest Apples are mostly gone, and the autumn Apples are ripening. Send out every day a man with a barrow or a cart to collect all the decayed and "windfall" fruit for the pigs. Such as is good enough should be pared, sliced, and hung up for drying. Our Apples which will ripen this month, are Porter's, Gravenstein, Jersey Sweeting, Pumpkin Sweet, Maiden's Blush, Nonesuch, Seek-no-further, Scarlet Pearmain. They should all be carefully hand-picked before ripening, and laid out on shelves; - not barreled unless they are to go to market at once. The sale of autumn Apples requires much judgment, as they do not generally keep well, and are therefore hurried into the market until it is often overstocked. When carefully gathered and well barreled, they are in demand for export to the most Northern States and to Canada. For carelessly gathered fall Apples there is no such demand. A careful picker, barreller, and marketer, will sell his Apples for nearly double the price commanded by ordinary Apples.

Pears must also be well attended to. Go over the dwarfs, and pinch back the new growth that was not thus checked in August, to secure thorough ripening of the wood and save labor in the spring. In gathering and storing use the same care directed for the espalier fruit. The Pears that ripen this month are Andrews, Buffum, Beurré de Capiaumont, Beurré Bosc, Beurré Diel, Bergamot, Bon Chretien Fondante d'Automne, White Doyenné, Manning's Elizabeth, Flemish Beauty, Napoleon, Rostiezer, Seckle. These Pears should all be gathered at least a week before they are fully ripe, and be placed on the shelves of the fruit room, or in baskets and buckets, as will be hereafter described (for drawings of which see the October work), and kept cool and dark till quite ripe. If ripened thus,