Chapter IV: Leading Varieties of Cherries (6)

_All Saints._ =9.= Truchsess-Heim _Kirschensort_. 661-668. 1819.
=10.= Prince _Pom. Man._ =2=:152, 153. 1832. =11.= Dochnahl _Führ.
Obstkunde_ =3=:72. 1858. =12.= Hogg _Fruit Man._ 277. 1884. =13.=
Mathieu _Nom. Pom._ 332. 1889.

Toussaint is a marked deviation from its species. Instead of bearing blossoms normally this variety sends out small branches from the buds. In the axis of the first four leaves are borne the buds destined to produce similar branches the following spring. As the branches elongate these buds remain dormant but others are borne which produce flowers in umbel-like clusters of two or three. The trees begin blooming three or four weeks later than other cherries and new buds and flowers appear continually until August or thereabouts. The tree, too, is most striking in appearance, being dwarfish in stature, thickly set with pendant branchlets and, all in all, attractive enough to make it a rather handsome ornamental. The cherries are of little or no value, being quite too acid to eat out of hand but furnishing very late fruit which may be used for culinary purposes. The description given is compiled.

The history of the variety is uncertain. Leroy says that it was mentioned by Daléchamp, a French writer, as early as 1586. Duhamel seems to have been the first pomologist to describe it which he did in 1768 under the name Cerisier de la Toussaint. The variety is well known in Europe, being widely distributed in Austria, Germany, Belgium, France and England, pomologists and nurserymen in all these countries seeming to be well acquainted with it. There are no records of its culture in America, although Prince and Elliott describe it from European fruit books.

Tree small, hardy, moderately productive; branches slender,
numerous, pendant.

Fruit small, flattened on the ends and sides; stem long; color
clear red, darker on maturing, rather transparent; flesh white
somewhat red at the center, with reddish juice; flavor, if mature,
sour, though not excellent; stone large, long, clings to the flesh
more than to the stem. The fruit borne in October never reaches
maturity.

VLADIMIR

_Prunus cerasus_

=1.= _Ia. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 84, 85. 1882. =2.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt._
75. 1883. =3.= _Ia. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 327, 328. 1885. =4.= _Ia.
Sta. Bul._ =19=:550. 1892. =5.= _Ia. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 454. 1895.
=6.= _Del. Sta. An. Rpt._ 12:128, 129. 1900. =7.= _Ia. Sta. Bul._
=73=:87. 1903. =8.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Cat._ 27. 1909.

Vladimir is a Morello-like cherry not more promising in New York, at least in the orchard of this Station, than any other of the many competitors of English Morello. The cherries are large, very similar in size and appearance to those of English Morello; the pit is small, the skin very thin and separating readily from the pulp. The variety is further characterized by the very dark red flesh and dark colored juice which is too astringent and sour to eat out of hand but does very well for culinary purposes. The tree is much like that of English Morello but is far more dwarfish and not as productive, these being fatal faults for commercial planting in New York. It falls short of English Morello in another respect--the fruit ripens very unevenly. Vladimir has the reputation of being one of the hardiest of all cherries. It is said to come true from seed and does better on its own roots than on either Mazzard or Mahaleb. The Russians, according to Budd, succeed best with it when it is propagated from sprouts and allowed to form a bushy plant with several stems, the oldest of which are cut from time to time. There seems to be little in the variety to commend it for either home or commercial plantings in New York.

Vladimir is a generic name for a group of varieties grown in Russia, principally in the province of Vladimir east of Moscow. Most of these cherries are large, black fruits with highly colored juice and good quality, much valued for market use in their native country. Professor J. L. Budd imported a number of these Vladimir cherries from Orel in Central Russia and grew them at the Experiment Station grounds in Iowa, giving to each a seedling number as a distinguishing characteristic. One, Orel No. 25, was selected as being superior in many respects to the others and was finally named Vladimir. This variety, typical of these Russian cherries, has been considerably propagated and is generally distributed throughout this country. The American Pomological Society added Vladimir to its list of recommended fruits in 1909.

Tree dwarfish, round-topped, very hardy, productive; trunk medium
or below in size; branches willowy, drooping, reddish-brown
slightly overspread with ash-gray; branchlets slender, long,
smooth, with a few small, raised lenticels.

Leaves numerous, three inches long, one and three-fourths inches
wide, folded upward, oval, thick; upper surface dull, dark green,
smooth; lower surface light green, with a few scattering hairs;
apex acute, base slightly abrupt; margin finely serrate, with dark
colored glands; petiole one-half inch long, tinged with red, with
a few scattering hairs along the stalk, glandless or with from one
to four small, reniform, greenish-yellow glands at the base of the
blade.

Buds small, short, very obtuse, plump, free, arranged singly as
lateral buds and in small clusters on small spurs; leaf-scars
obscure; season of bloom intermediate; flowers white, one and
one-fourth inches across; borne in scattering clusters in twos,
threes and fours; pedicels three-fourths of an inch long, rather
slender, glabrous, greenish; calyx-tube with a tinge of red,
somewhat obconic, glabrous; calyx-lobes reddish, broad, obtuse,
serrate, glabrous within and without, reflexed; petals roundish or
slightly obovate, irregularly crenate, with short, blunt claws,
apex entire; filaments over one-fourth inch long; pistil glabrous,
shorter than the stamens.

Fruit matures very late; three-eighths of an inch long,
seven-eighths of an inch wide, roundish-cordate, slightly
compressed; cavity rather shallow; suture a line; apex roundish;
color dark red almost black at full maturity; dots numerous,
small, russet, inconspicuous; stem slender, one and one-half
inches or more in length, adherent to the fruit; skin thin,
separating from the pulp; flesh dark red, with very dark colored
juice, slightly stringy, melting, sprightly, astringent, sour; of
fair quality; stone semi-clinging, rather large, long-ovate to
oval, with smooth surfaces, tinged with red.

WATERLOO

_Prunus avium × (Prunus avium × Prunus cerasus)_

=1.= Prince _Treat. Hort._ 29. 1828. =2.= _Lond. Hort. Soc. Cat._
56. 1831. =3.= Prince _Pom. Man._ =2=:118. 1832. =4.= Downing
_Fr. Trees Am._ 178. 1845. =5.= Floy-Lindley _Guide Orch. Gard._
101, 102. 1846. =6.= Elliott _Fr. Book_ 213, 214. 1854. =7.= Hogg
_Fruit Man._ 314. 1884.

This old sort, seemingly well thought of in Europe, has not been popular in America and has only historical value to cherry-growers of this country. It is an interesting cherry resembling the Bigarreaus in tree and leaf-characters while the flowers are more like those of the Dukes, the fruit, too, taking on more the aspect of the Dukes than of the Sweet Cherry. The variety has long since passed from general cultivation in the United States and can now be found only in collections or as an occasional dooryard tree.

This cherry was raised early in the Nineteenth Century by T. A. Knight, Downton Castle, Wiltshire, England, and first fruited in 1815, shortly after the Battle of Waterloo, hence its name. It was supposed to be a cross between Yellow Spanish and May Duke. The variety was brought to this country by Honorable John Lowell of Newton, Massachusetts, though it was described by Prince in 1828 from European fruit books. The following description is compiled:

Tree vigorous, thrifty, rather irregular and spreading,
productive; branchlets thick, stocky, grayish; leaves large,
drooping, wavy; margin slightly serrate; flowers large; stamens
shorter than the pistil.

Fruit matures the last of June or early in July; large,
obtuse-cordate, broad at the base, convex on one side, flattened
on the other; stem one and one-half to two inches in length,
slender; color dark purplish-red becoming nearly black at
maturity; skin thin; flesh purplish-red becoming darker next
to the stone, firm but tender, juicy, fine flavored, sweet;
good in quality; stone separating readily from the pulp, small,
roundish-ovate, compressed.

WHITE BIGARREAU

_Prunus avium_

=1.= Thacher _Am. Orch._ 217. 1822. =2.= Prince _Pom. Man._
=2=:125. 1832. =3.= _Mag. Hort._ =8=:283. 1842. =4.= Downing _Fr.
Trees Am._ 180 fig., 181. 1845. =5.= Thomas _Am. Fruit Cult._ 366.
1849. =6.= McIntosh _Bk. Gard._ =2=:541. 1855.

_Tradescant._ =7.= Coxe _Cult. Fr. Trees_ 250. 1817.

_White Oxheart._ =8.= Kenrick _Am. Orch._ 278. 1832.

White Bigarreau is a cherry of the past, having been considered one of the good sorts of a century ago. Rivers, the English pomologist, believed it to have come originally from Russia. It is reputed to have been brought to America from France by Chancellor Livingston of Revolutionary fame. Thacher, in 1822, described the variety first under its present name. The variety, as the synonymy shows, has been grown under many names both in America and Europe. In 1845, according to Downing, this cherry was common in the neighborhood of New York and Philadelphia but since Downing's time no one seems to have mentioned it. The variety is usually spoken of in the United States as neither hardy nor productive. The fruit books describe it as follows:

Tree medium in size, spreading, very tender, unproductive; leaves
narrow, waved.

Fruit matures the last of June or early in July; large to very
large, heart-shaped, somewhat pointed; color yellowish-white with
a bright red cheek, mottled; flesh very firm, breaking, pleasantly
flavored, sweet; very good in quality; stone separating readily
from the flesh.

WHITE HEART

_Prunus avium_

=1.= Bradley _Gard._ 211. 1739. =2.= Downing _Fr. Trees Am._
173, 174 fig. 1845. =3.= Elliott _Fr. Book_ 216. 1854. =4.=
_Horticulturist_ =15=:327, Pl. fig. 1. 1860. =5.= Hogg _Fruit
Man._ 315. 1884.

_Amber Heart._ =6.= Miller _Gard. Kal._ 154. 1734. =7.= _Jour. Roy
Hort. Soc._ =21=:355. 1898.

_Frühe Bernsteinkirsche._ =8.= Truchsess-Heim _Kirschensort._ 304,
305. 1819. =9.= Dochnahl _Führ. Obstkunde_ =3=:39. 1858. =10.= Mas
_Pom. Gen._ =11=:45, 46, fig. 23. 1882. =11.= Mathieu _Nom. Pom._
348. 1889.

_Kentish Bigarreau._ =12.= Bunyard-Thomas _Fr. Gard._ 43. 1904.

White Heart is mentioned in _The Cherries of New York_ only because of its reputation in Europe and the frequent references, therefore, that American cherry-growers see to it in European publications. Bunyard and Thomas, in the reference given, speak of it as one of the best and most profitable cherries grown in the famous Kent cherry orchards. Early American horticulturists describe it but it seems not to have been widely grown in America and has probably long since passed from cultivation. It failed, according to Elliott, because it was a "variable and uncertain bearer" and while an early cherry "not early enough to compete with many new varieties."

White Heart seems to have been mentioned first by Miller in 1734. A little later it is found to be described in both Germany and France, indicating that it must have been known and widely distributed before the time given. It seems to have been brought to America before the War of the Revolution and to have been grown in this country under the several different names which are given in the list of synonyms. The following description is compiled:

Tree large, vigorous, somewhat erect, very healthy, rather
productive; branches stocky, somewhat angular, with large,
roundish, light colored lenticels; internodes of unequal length;
leaves medium in size, oval or obovate, sharply pointed; margin
finely serrate; petiole short, slender, tipped with two reniform,
orange-red glands; flowers medium in size; petals obovate.

Fruit matures early in June; rather small, roundish-cordate,
often one-sided, with a distinct suture; color whitish-yellow,
tinged and speckled with pale red in the sun; stem long, slender,
inserted in a wide, shallow cavity; skin firm; flesh light
colored, firm, half-tender, breaking, juicy, sugary, pleasant;
first quality; stone rather large, roundish-oval, with a pointed
apex.

WINDSOR

_Prunus avium_

=1.= _Gard. Mon._ =24=:208. 1882. =2.= _Cult._ & _Count. Gent._
=49=:636. 1884. =3.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Cat._ 22. 1885. =4.= _Del.
Sta. Bul._ =35=:16 fig. 7. 1897. =5.= _Ont. Fr. Exp. Sta. Rpt._
=5=:41 fig. 1898. =6.= _Am. Gard._ 21:76. 1900. =7.= _Can. Hort._
=25=:3, 262 fig., 263. 1902. =8.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt._ 56, 57.
1907.

Windsor is the standard late Bigarreau and one of the most profitable of the hard-fleshed cherries grown in New York. Both fruit and trees deserve the approbation of cherry-growers. In color the cherries meet the market demand, buyers preferring a dark-colored Sweet Cherry. None would find fault with the appearance of Windsor. The flesh is firm and the product stands harvesting and shipping well and at a season of the year when brown-rot is usually rife this variety is fairly free from this scourge of the Sweet Cherry. The quality is from good to very good, equaled but not surpassed by others of its class. But it is in its tree-characters that the superiority of Windsor is best shown. The trees have the reputation of being the hardiest of the Bigarreaus and of thriving in many soils. They are usually fruitful. To offset these merits, the trees have two or three rather serious faults. Thus, they do not come in bearing early; they are tall and upright in growth, being almost fastigiate, making it difficult to harvest the crop; and the load of fruit is too much clustered. Cherry-growers agree that the worst of all pests of this fruit is the robin and that the Windsor, for some reason or other, is the freest of its kind from this and other thieving birds. From the behavior of the variety in New York, we can heartily join with practically all who are growing this variety in recommending it as a late, market Sweet Cherry.

Windsor originated in the latter half of the Nineteenth Century on the farm of James Dougall, Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and was introduced to fruit-growers in 1881 by Ellwanger & Barry, Rochester, New York. It has been planted extensively in many sections of this country for both home and market use and is now offered for sale by a large number of nurserymen. The American Pomological Society added Windsor to its fruit catalog list in 1885 and the variety still holds a place there. Though rather widely known in the United States the commercial culture of this variety is almost wholly confined to New York. It seems as yet not to have found its way to Europe, a fact to be regretted, for its many good qualities would soon make it known in the Old World where the Sweet Cherry is better grown and more appreciated than in America.

Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, open-topped, very productive; trunk thick, shaggy; branches stocky, very smooth, brown nearly overspread with ash-gray, with large lenticels; branchlets thick, rather short, brown overspread with light ash-gray, smooth, with few small, inconspicuous lenticels.

Leaves four inches long, two inches wide, folded upward, obovate to oval, thin; upper surface dark green, slightly rugose; lower surface light green, pubescent; margin doubly crenate, glandular; petiole one and one-fourth inches long, tinged with dull red, with from one to three globose, reddish glands of medium size on the stalk.

Buds conical or pointed, plump, free, arranged singly as lateral buds and in very numerous clusters variable in size, on short spurs; leaf-scars somewhat prominent; season of bloom intermediate; flowers white, one and one-fourth inches across; borne in scattering clusters, in ones and twos; pedicels one inch long, slender, glabrous, greenish; calyx-tube green, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes greenish or with a tinge of red, acute, glabrous within and without, reflexed; petals broad-oval, slightly crenate, with short, blunt claws; filaments five-sixteenths of an inch long; pistil glabrous, shorter than the stamens.

Fruit matures in late mid-season; three-fourths of an inch in diameter, slightly oblong to conical, compressed; cavity deep, wide, flaring; suture a line; apex roundish, with a depression at the center; color very dark red becoming almost black; dots numerous, small, russet, obscure; stem slender, one and one-fourth inches long, adherent to the fruit; skin thin, adhering to the pulp; flesh light red, with reddish juice, tender, meaty, crisp, mild, sweet; good to very good in quality; stone semi-free, ovate, flattened, blunt-pointed, with smooth surfaces; ventral suture rather prominent near the apex.

WOOD

_Prunus avium_

=1.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Cat._ 26. 1909.

_Governor Wood._ =2.= Elliott _Fr. Book_ 196 fig. 1854. =3.= _Am.
Pom. Soc. Cat._ 108. 1856. =4.= Leroy _Dict. Pom._ =5=:324 fig.
1877.

Wood is preeminently a Sweet Cherry for the amateur, having many qualities that fit it for the home orchard and but few to commend it to commercial growers. The trees are a little tender to cold, are not quite productive enough to make the variety profitable and are, too, somewhat fastidious as to soils. To offset these defects, they are vigorous and healthy and bear early. But the chief fault of the cherry from the cherry-grower's standpoint is to be found in the fruit. The flesh is soft and the cherries will not stand handling in harvesting and shipping and are very susceptible to brown-rot and crack badly in wet weather. Wood has special merit in the home collection, however, because of its earliness, its beautiful appearance and delicious flavor. It is one of the first of the Sweet Cherries, is large and, as the color-plate shows, is a beautiful yellowish-white tinted with shades of crimson, with conspicuous russet dots--a beautiful fruit. The flesh separates readily from the skin, is tender, juicy, with an abundance of colorless juice and a flavor that has given it the reputation, wherever grown in America, of being one of the best in quality. It would be hard to name another cherry better suited for small plantations and it is to be hoped that it will long be kept in the gardens of connoisseurs of good fruit.

Wood is one of the best of Professor J. P. Kirtland's[83] seedlings. It was raised by him in 1842 at Cleveland, Ohio, and named in honor of Reuben Wood, at one time Governor of Ohio. In 1856, it was added to the fruit list of the American Pomological Society where it still remains, being changed in 1909 to Wood with Governor Wood as a synonym. Its popularity is shown in the United States by the fact that practically every nurseryman in this country lists this variety.

Tree vigorous, upright-spreading, open, productive; trunk stout;
branches thick, smooth, dull reddish-brown covered with ash-gray,
with a few small lenticels; branchlets thick, reddish-brown
slightly overspread with ash-gray, smooth, glabrous, with a few
inconspicuous, raised lenticels.

Leaves numerous, four and one-half inches long, two and one-half
inches wide, folded upward, obovate, thin; upper surface light
green, smooth; lower surface dull green, lightly pubescent; apex
acute, base abrupt; margin coarsely and doubly serrate, glandular;
petiole one and one-half inches long, slender, tinged with dull
red, with from one to three reniform, reddish glands on the stalk.

Buds large, long, pointed, very plump, free, arranged singly as
lateral buds or in small clusters on short spurs; leaf-scars
prominent; season of bloom intermediate; flowers one inch
across, arranged in twos and threes; pedicels one inch long,
slender, glabrous, greenish; calyx-tube tinged with red, obconic,
glabrous; calyx-lobes reddish, long, acute, glabrous on both
surfaces, reflexed; petals roundish, crenate, with short, blunt
claws; anthers yellowish; filaments one-eighth inch long; pistil
glabrous, equal to the stamens in length, sometimes defective.

Fruit matures in early mid-season; nearly one inch in diameter,
roundish-cordate, compressed; cavity of medium depth, wide,
flaring; suture variable in depth, distinct, wide; apex roundish;
color shades of crimson on a yellowish-white background; dots
numerous, small, light russet, somewhat conspicuous, especially
just before maturity; stem slender, one and one-half inches long,
adhering well to the fruit; skin thin, tender, separating from
the pulp; flesh whitish, with colorless juice, tender, meaty,
mild, sweet; very good in quality; stone clinging, rather large,
roundish, blunt, with smooth surfaces; with a broad, ventral
suture.

[83] Jared P. Kirtland, M. D., though now less well known than
some of his contemporaries, was one of the great pomologists of
his time and a man of notable achievements in other branches
of natural history as well. Professor Kirtland was born at
Wallingford, Connecticut, November 10, 1793, and died at East
Rockport, near Cleveland, Ohio, December 11, 1877. For sixty
years of a long life his avocation was the production of new
varieties of fruits and flowers and, though a half century has
passed since he ceased active work, the results of his labors
are yet to be found in the gardens and orchards of the whole
country. In pomology he gave special attention to breeding grapes,
raspberries, pears and cherries. He achieved success, too, as a
hybridizer of peonies and in the introduction of rare foreign
magnolias. Professor Kirtland is given credit as being the first
horticulturist successfully to bud and graft magnolias, an
achievement which has made possible their cultivation under many
conditions and to a degree of excellence that otherwise could
not be obtained. He was the founder of the Cleveland Society of
Natural History and was for many years its president. He was
a member of the American Philosophical Society, the highest
recognition for scientific work to be obtained in his time in this
country. He served as professor in several medical schools and
filled other places of honor and trust. From his boyhood we are
told that he was interested in natural history and was intimately
acquainted with the plants and animals of Ohio, having special
knowledge of birds and fishes, the propagation of the latter being
one of his hobbies. In pomology we owe him most for the many new
cherries he has given us, thirty varieties described in _The
Cherries of New York_ having come from his breeding grounds. Among
these are Wood, Pontiac, Powhatan, Tecumseh, Osceola, Kirtland and
Red Jacket, sorts scarcely surpassed for high quality and grown
commonly in America and to some extent wherever Sweet Cherries
will thrive. His 84 years seem to have been well ordered, given
almost wholly for the good of the public, and his name should be
cherished by pomologists among those who have done most for fruits
and fruit-growing on this continent.

WRAGG

_Prunus cerasus_

=1.= _Ia. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 171. 1884. =2.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt._
95. 1887. =3.= _Can. Exp. Farm Bul._ =17=:15 fig. 8. 1892. =4.=
_Neb. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 39. 1892. =5.= _Am. Gard._ =20=:178. 1899.
=6.= _Del. Sta. An. Rpt._ =12=:119, 120. 1900. =7.= _Ia. Sta.
Bul._ =73=:89, fig. 26. 1903. =8.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Sp. Rpt._ 38.
1904-05. =9.= _Wash. Sta. Bul._ =92=:22, 23. 1910.

Wragg is either English Morello or a strain of that variety. Trees on the grounds of this Station are identical with English Morello but it may be that here, and occasionally elsewhere, the older sort has been substituted for Wragg. In Iowa, where the new variety is most largely grown, pomologists claim that it is distinct and that it is an improvement on English Morello. Professor J. L. Budd, an authority on Russian cherries, believed that this sort is distinct and of Russian origin having, according to him, been brought to America by Ellwanger & Barry of Rochester, New York, in an importation of Russian trees. Captain C. L. Watrous of Des Moines, Iowa, another prominent pomologist of that State, was of the opinion that Wragg came to light on the grounds of J. Wragg, Waukee, Iowa, as a sprout from another tree. Colonel G. B. Brackett, pomologist of the United States Department of Agriculture, who visited Mr. Wragg's place some years ago and compared the new cherry with the English Morello, could find no distinguishing characters between the two. On the other hand, Mr. Wragg insisted that they were distinct. The American Pomological Society calls Wragg and English Morello the same. Those who believe that the two are distinct say that the fruit of Wragg is larger, the trees hardier and that the cherries ripen a little later than those of English Morello. With the information now at hand it is impossible to say here whether or not Wragg is distinct. A compiled description taken from the text describing this cherry is so unsatisfactory that we offer none and refer the reader to that of English Morello from which it differs but little, if at all.

YELLOW SPANISH

_Prunus avium_

=1.= Miller _Gard. Dict._ =1=:1754. =2.= Forsyth _Treat. Fr.
Trees_ 42. 1803. =3.= Prince _Treat. Hort._ 28. 1828. =4.= Prince
_Pom. Man._ =2=:125. 1832. =5.= Thomas _Am. Fruit Cult._ 372.
1867. =6.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Cat._ 17. 1897. =7.= Budd-Hansen _Am.
Hort. Man._ =2=:291. 1903.

_Biguarre Cherrie._ =8.= Parkinson _Par. Ter._ 572. 1629. =9.=
_Rea Flora_ 205. 1676.

_Spanish._ =10.= Gerarde _Herball_ 1503, fig. 3. 1636.

_Bigarreau Commun._ =11.= Duhamel _Trait. Arb. Fr._ =1=:167,
168. 1768. =12.= Prince _Pom. Man._ =2=:128. 1832. =13.= Poiteau
_Pom. Franc._ =2=: No. 5, Pl. 1846. =14.= Mortillet _Le Cerisier_
=2=:115-119, fig. 26. 1866. 15. _Pom. France_ 7: No. 2, Pl. 2.
1871. 16. Leroy _Dict. Pom._ =5=:188-191, fig. 1877. 17. _Cat.
Cong. Pom. France_ 20, fig. 1906.

_Gemeine Marmorkirsche._ =18.= Truchsess-Heim Kirschensort.
301-303. 1819. =19.= _Ill. Handb._ 123 fig., 124. 1860.

_Graffion._ =20.= Truchsess-Heim _Kirschensort._ 338-340. 1819.
=21.= Brookshaw _Hort. Reposit._ =1=:69, Pl. 34 fig. 1. 1823.
=22.= Prince _Pom. Man._ =2=:137, 138. 1832. =23.= _Cultivator_ N.
S. =6=:21, fig. 6. 1849. =24.= Elliott _Fr. Book_ 208. 1854.

_Bigarreau._ =25.= _Mag. Hort._ =9=:202. 1843. =26.= Downing _Fr.
Trees Am._ 179 fig., 180. 1845. =27.= Floy-Lindley _Guide Orch.
Gard._ 102. 1846. =28.= _Proc. Nat. Con. Fr. Gr._ 52. 1848. =29.=
_Cole Am. Fr. Book_ 233 fig. 31. 1849. 30. Hogg _Fruit Man._ 281,
282. 1884.

For centuries Yellow Spanish must have been the best of all the Bigarreaus and it is only in comparatively late years that it has had rivals. Even yet in tree-characters it is hardly equaled, surpassing Windsor, which has a notable tree, in several respects and falling short of it only in hardiness. The trees are large,--perhaps the largest of all the varieties of _Prunus avium_,--having an upright-spreading top which gives a large bearing surface and forms a canopy of splendid foliage. The trees are vigorous, bear abundantly and regularly and come in bearing young, with the crop well distributed and not in clusters as is the case and the fault of Windsor. Unfortunately, the cherries, though very good in most characters, do not come up to the trees in points of superiority. They are rather smaller than those of Napoleon, the greatest competitor of Yellow Spanish, and are more subject to attacks of brown-rot than several others of the Bigarreaus. As may be seen by comparing the color-plates, however, Yellow Spanish is rather the handsomer of the two cherries, the crimson color being more evenly distributed and the skin not having the mottled appearance of Napoleon. In quality Yellow Spanish is the better of the two, having tenderer flesh and a sweeter and richer flavor. Yellow Spanish is notable in the nursery for its strong, upright growth and its large leaves, the leaves of no other cherry attaining so great a size. In blossoming time the variety may be distinguished by the whiteness of the blossoms as they open and a reddish tint as they drop. It is a mid-season cherry, ripening after Wood and a few days before Napoleon. Despite the great age of the variety it still remains one of the best, furnishing proof, by the way, that varieties of cherries do not degenerate with age. In New York Yellow Spanish cannot be spared from either home or commercial plantings.

Yellow Spanish is so old and so widely disseminated that its origin can only be conjectured. From the name we naturally infer a Spanish nativity and yet it is almost equally well known as Bigarreau, a word of French derivation. Under the last name French pomologists believe that they trace its history to the First Century of the Christian Era as the variety described by Pliny under the name Cerasum Duracinum. The Germans and Austrians certainly knew this variety in the Eighteenth Century and probably much earlier, an inference to be drawn from the references given. Parkinson, the English herbalist, described a cherry in 1629 which he called the Biguarre Cherrie which later came to be known as the Bigarreau or Graffion by English writers and which we now know to be Yellow Spanish. Seven years later Gerarde described a Spanish cherry the description of which is not unlike our Yellow Spanish. Miller and Forsyth, English writers, also at an early date described a Spanish cherry which may be the fruit of this discussion.

Fortunately we are well informed as to the history of Yellow Spanish in America. Prince, one of the most accurate of American pomologists, in 1832, gave the following historical account of the Graffion, or Yellow Spanish: "This tree was imported from London by the father of the author, in the year 1802, under the name Yellow Spanish, and one of the original trees is now growing in his garden, where it produces abundantly, and there is little doubt that from his stock have originated most of the trees of this kind now in our country, as he has taken much pains to recommend it." Why Prince and other Americans came to call the variety introduced by the elder Prince of Europe as Yellow Spanish, as Bigarreau and Graffion, does not appear unless the younger Prince wanted to make the name in this country conform to that in most common usage in England at the time. Besides the names already given, Yellow Spanish has been rather widely grown in America as Ox Heart and White Caroon. This variety was placed on the recommended list of the National Congress of Fruit Growers, which afterwards became the American Pomological Society, in 1848, under the name Bigarreau. The name was changed in 1897 to Yellow Spanish and it now appears on the list of that organization as Spanish.

Tree very large and vigorous, upright-spreading, rather
open-topped, productive; trunk thick, of medium smoothness;
branches stocky, reddish-brown covered with ash-gray, smooth
except for the numerous large lenticels; branchlets short, brown
nearly overspread with ash-gray, smooth, with small, slightly
raised, inconspicuous lenticels.

Leaves numerous five and one-half inches long, two and one-half
inches wide, folded upward, obovate to elliptical; upper surface
dark green, nearly smooth, grooved along the midrib; lower
surface light green, lightly pubescent; apex acute, base variable
in shape; margin coarsely and doubly serrate, with small, dark
glands; petiole one and three-fourths inches long, thick, heavily
tinged with dull red, grooved along the upper surface, with from
one to four large, reniform, reddish-yellow glands variable in
position.

Buds conical, plump, free, arranged singly or in small clusters
as lateral buds and from short spurs; leaf-scars prominent;
season of bloom intermediate; flowers white, one and one-fourth
inches across; borne in well-distributed clusters, in twos and in
threes; pedicels about one inch long, glabrous, green; calyx-tube
greenish, obconic, glabrous; calyx-lobes acute, reflexed; petals
oval, entire, strongly dentate at the apex, tapering to short,
blunt claws; filaments three-eighths inch long; pistil glabrous,
equal to the stamens in length.

Fruit matures in mid-season; one inch or over in diameter,
cordate, compressed; cavity deep, wide, flaring; suture a mere
line; apex roundish, not depressed; color bright amber-yellow
with a reddish blush, slightly mottled; dots numerous, small,
light russet, obscure; stem one and one-half inches long, adherent
to the fruit; skin thin, tough, separating from the pulp; flesh
whitish, with colorless juice, tender, meaty, crisp, aromatic,
sprightly, sweet; very good to best in quality; stone free, ovate,
slightly flattened, oblique, with smooth surfaces; with two small,
blunt ridges along the ventral suture near the apex.