Chapter III: Leading Varieties of Plums (4)

Flowers fifteen-sixteenths inch across, the buds creamy
changing to white when expanded; borne in clusters on lateral
spurs, usually in pairs; pedicels nine-sixteenths inch long,
sparingly pubescent, greenish; calyx-tube green, campanulate,
nearly glabrous; calyx-lobes obtuse, pubescent on both
surfaces, glandular-serrate, somewhat reflexed; petals broadly
oval, crenate or sometimes notched at the apex, tapering
below to short, broad claws; anthers yellowish; filaments
five-sixteenths inch long; pistil glabrous, equal to the
stamens in length.

Fruit mid-season; one and one-eighth inches by one inch in
size, roundish-oval, compressed, halves equal; cavity shallow,
narrow, flaring; suture very shallow, often a line; apex
roundish or depressed; color greenish-yellow changing to
golden-yellow, somewhat mottled and blotched, occasionally with
a faint bronze blush on the exposed cheek, overspread with
thin bloom; dots numerous, small, whitish, inconspicuous; stem
slender, sparingly pubescent, adhering well to the fruit; skin
thin, separating readily; flesh light golden-yellow, moderately
juicy, coarse, firm but tender, sweet, mild; of good quality;
stone free, five-eighths inch by one-half inch in size, oval,
flattened, nearly smooth, blunt at the base and apex; ventral
suture wide, blunt, smooth; dorsal suture shallowly grooved.

DUANE

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= Prince _Treat. Hort._ 25. 1828. =2.= Kenrick _Am. Orch._
260. 1832. =3.= Prince _Pom. Man._ =2=:100. 1832. =4.= Downing
_Fr. Trees Am._ 297. 1845. =5.= _Horticulturist_ =1=:115, 116
fig. 36. 1846. =6.= Floy-Lindley _Guide Orch. Gard._ 419. 1846.
=7.= Thomas _Am. Fruit Cult._ 343. 1849. =8.= Elliott _Fr.
Book_ 418. 1854. =9.= _Horticulturist_ =10=:253. 1855. =10.=
_Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt._ 191. 1856. =11.= Hooper _W. Fr. Book_ 244,
250. 1857. =12.= Bridgeman _Gard. Ass’t_ =3=:127. 1857. =13.=
Downing _Fr. Trees Am._ 910. 1869. =14.= _Mich. Pom. Soc. Rpt._
303, 1878. =15.= Mas _Le Verger_ =6=:77, fig. 39. 1866-73,
=16.= _Mich. Sta. Bul._ =103=:32. 1894. =17.= _Cornell Sta.
Bul._ =131=:184. 1897. =18.= _Ohio Sta. Bul._ =162=:254, 255.
1905. =19.= Waugh _Plum Cult._ 100, 102 fig. 1901.

_Apricot_ 5 incor. _Dame Aubert Violet_ 12. Duane’s Plum 5
incor. Duane’s Purple 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 17.
_Duane’s Purple_ 15, 19. Duane’s Purple French 1, 2, 3, 4.
Duane’s French Purple 12. _Duane’s Large Purple_ 3. _Duane’s
Large Orleans_ 3. _Duane’s Purple French_ 8, 9. _English Pond’s
Seedling_ 8. Pourprée De Duane 15. _Pourprêe Duane_ 13. _Purple
Magnum Bonum_ of some 12, 13. _Purple Egg_ of some 12. Red
Magnum Bonum of some 9.

This handsome, purple plum, very well shown in the color-plate, is one of the half-dozen leading fruits of its kind grown in New York, favorably known the country over and in Europe as well. Its popularity is due to its large size, well-turned shape, royal purple color, and firm, golden flesh, characters which fit it admirably for the store and the stand. But appearance is the only asset of the fruit so far as the consumer is concerned—the flesh is dry, tough, sour and clings to the stone, making a plum unfit for dessert though it does very well for culinary purposes. The fruit ripens slowly and colors a week or more before ripe; it is at its best only when fully mature. The trees excel in size, vigor and productiveness and are usually hardy and bear their crops well distributed and not clustered as in most varieties of plums. In minor characters, the trees are distinguished by large leaves, pubescence on the under side and by grayish-drab shoots covered with dense pubescence. Duane is generally found to be a very profitable market plum and if it were only better in quality we could heartily join in recommending it.

Duane originated as a seedling in the garden of James Duane, Duanesburgh, New York, about 1820. For several years, the variety was distributed by the Prince nurseries under the name Duane’s Purple French. This error was caused by Judge Duane’s accidentally sending William Prince, of Flushing, grafts of this seedling instead of a French plum[210] which he had imported in 1820. When this mistake was discovered by Downing and Tomlinson about 1846, the word French was dropped and the plum became known as Duane’s Purple and later, according to the rules of the American Pomological Society, as Duane. In 1856, it was listed by the American Pomological Society as promising well and in 1862 it was placed on the list of the fruit catalog.

Tree large, vigorous, round and dense-topped, hardy and
productive; branches ash-gray, smooth except for the numerous
small, raised lenticels; branchlets medium to thick, variable
in length, with short internodes, greenish-red changing to dark
brownish-drab, dull, thickly pubescent, with raised lenticels
intermediate in number and size; leaf-buds of average size and
length, conical or pointed, free.

Leaves folded backward, obovate or oval, one and one-half
inches wide, three and one-half inches long; upper surface
dark green, pubescent, rugose, with a narrow groove on the
midrib; lower surface silvery-green, pubescent; apex acute,
base cuneate, margin serrate, eglandular or with small amber
glands; petiole one-half inch long, pubescent, tinged with red,
eglandular or with one or two small, globose, greenish-brown
glands on the stalk or base of the leaf.

Blooming season rather early, of average length; flowers
appearing before the leaves, one inch across, white; developing
from lateral buds, singly or in pairs; pedicels nine-sixteenths
inch long, thick, pubescent, greenish; calyx-tube green,
campanulate, pubescent; calyx-lobes broad, obtuse, pubescent
on both surfaces, glandular-serrate, erect; petals roundish,
entire, short-clawed; anthers yellowish; filaments one-quarter
inch long; pistil pubescent on the ovary, longer than the
stamens.

Fruit mid-season, ripening period of average length; one and
three-quarters inches by one and five-eighths inches in size,
broadly oblong-oval or obovate, compressed, halves unequal;
cavity shallow, narrow, abrupt; suture variable in depth; apex
roundish or depressed; color dark reddish-purple changing to
purplish-black on the sunny side, overspread with thick bloom;
dots numerous, light russet; stem three-quarters inch long,
pubescent, adhering well to the fruit; skin below medium in
thickness, tough, sour, separating readily; flesh pale yellow,
lacking in juice, firm, sour unless fully ripe; of fair
quality; stone adhering, seven-eighths inch by five-eighths
inch in size, oval, with pitted surfaces, blunt at the base and
apex; ventral suture wide, blunt; dorsal suture with a broad,
deep groove.

EARLIEST OF ALL

_Prunus triflora_

=1.= _Gard. Mon._ 368. 1887. =2.= _Cornell Sta. Bul._ =62=:32,
1894. =3.= Normand _Cat._ =2.= 1895-96. =4.= Thomas _Am. Fruit
Cult._ 516. 1897. =5.= _Cornell Sta. Bul._ =175=:130, fig. 24.
1899. =6.= Waugh _Plum Cult._ 135. 1901.

_Earliest of All_ 4. _Wasse Sumomo_ 5, 6. Wasse Sumomo 3.
Yosobe 1. Yosete 4. _Yosebe_ 5, 6. _Yosobe_ 2. Yosebe 2.

Earliest of All was imported by H. H. Berger of San Francisco from Japan under the name Yosebe, which later became changed to Yosobe, and in 1897 L. H. Bailey gave the variety the name Earliest of All to avoid the confusion in the earlier nomenclature. The Wasse Sumomo introduced by J. L. Normand, Marksville, Louisiana, in 1895, is the Earliest of All. The variety may have some value because of its extreme earliness. It is, however, too small, too unattractive in color and too poor in quality ever to be other than a kitchen plum.

Tree intermediate in size and vigor, vasiform, unproductive;
branchlets dark red, marked with thick scarf-skin; leaf-scars
prominent; leaves reddish late in the season, narrow-obovate,
one and one-half inches wide, three inches long; margin finely
serrate, with small, reddish-black glands; petiole tinged red,
glandless or with from one to seven glands usually on the
stalk; blooming season early; flowers appearing before the
leaves, white with a little pink; borne in threes and fours.

Fruit very early; one inch in diameter, roundish or
roundish-oblong, light or dark pinkish-red, covered with thin
bloom; flesh light yellow, rather dry, soft, inferior in
flavor; of poor quality; stone clinging, five-eighths inch by
three-eighths inch in size, flattened, oval.

EARLY ORLEANS

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= Duhamel _Trait. Arb. Fr._ =2=:80, Pl. XX fig. 1. 1768.
=2.= Forsyth _Treat. Fr. Trees_ 21. 1803. =3.= _Lond. Hort.
Soc. Cat._ 150, 151. 1831. =4.= Prince _Pom. Man._ =2=:62, 68.
1832. =5.= Kenrick _Am. Orch._ 260, 269. 1832. =6.= Downing
_Fr. Trees Am._ 304. 1845. =7.= Floy-Lindley _Guide Orch.
Gard._ 286, 289, 294, 382, 383. 1846. =8.= Poiteau _Pom.
Franc._ =1=:1846. =9.= Thompson _Gard. Ass’t_ 516. 1859. =10.=
Hogg _Fruit Man._ 360. 1866. =11.= _Pom. France_ =7=: No. 16.
1871. =12.= Mas _Le Verger_ =6=:85. 1866-73. =13.= Mathieu
_Nom. Pom._ 430. 1882. =14.= _Traité Prat. Sech. Fruits_ 172.
1893. =15.= _Guide Prat._ 152, 360. 1895. =16.= _Soc. Nat.
Hort. France Pom._ 542 fig. 1904.

_Altesse du Roi_ 16. _Damascena Dominicalis Praecox_ 13, 15.
De Monsieur 16. _De Monsieur Hâtive_ 15. _Du Roi_ 15. _Early
Monsieur_ 12. Early Monsieur 4, 5. _Early Orleans_ 11, 12, 13,
15. Frühe Herrnpflaume 13. _Frühe Herrnpflaume_ 11. _Frühe
Herzogspflaume_ 11, 13, 15. _Frühe Hernnpflaume_ 12. _Frühe
Herrnpflaume_ 15. _Grimwood Early Orleans_ 10, 13. _Grimwood’s
Early Orleans_ 3, 6, 9, 11, 15. _Hampton Court_ 3, 6, 7, 9, 10,
11, 13, 15. _Königspflaume_ 11, ?13, ?15. _Monsieur_ 11, 13 &
15 incor. Monsieur Hâtif 1, 7, 11, 12, 15. _Monsieur Hâtif_ 3,
4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13, 16. _Monsieur Hâtive_ 4. _Monsieur
Hâtif de Montmorency_ 3, 6, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15. _New Early
Orleans_ 3, 6, 9, 11, 13, 14, 15. _New Orleans_ 3, 6, 9, 10,
13, 15, 16. _New Orleans_ 11. _Orleans_ 3. _Prune de Monsieur
Hâtif_ 13. Prune de Monsieur Hâtif 8. _Prune de Monsieur
Hâtive_ 12. _Prunus damascena dominicalis praecox_ 11. Prune
du Roi 14. _Prune du Roi_ 11, 13. _Red Orleans_ 11, 13, 15.
Wilmot’s Early Orleans 4, 7. _Wilmot’s Early Orleans_ 3, 9, 10,
11, 13, 15. _Wilmot’s Large Orleans_ 3, 4, 6. _Wilmot’s Late
Orleans_ ?7. Wilmot’s New Early Orleans 3, 5, 6. _Wilmot’s New
Early Orleans_ 7. _Wilmot’s Orleans_ 3, 7, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15.

Early Orleans has been planted very little in America and then chiefly because of its reputation in Europe. While it appears to be a very good plum in most respects as it grows on the Station grounds, being attractive in appearance, of good flavor, a freestone and firm enough to ship well, it surpasses in none of these characters and the fruit is so small as to make it a poor competitor among the purple plums of its season. It does not deserve the reputation in America that pomologists have given it in Europe. In France the Early Orleans, under the name of Prune du Roi, is used in prune-making but it seems not to have been so used in America.

Early Orleans is old and of unknown origin. Duhamel in 1768 considered it a variety of the Orleans, differing only in the time of ripening but there are additional differences as can be seen in the descriptions of the two. It is true, however, that these two plums are very similar. According to Kenrick, Wilmot’s New Early Orleans was raised by John Wilmot, an Englishman. Though it may be of separate origin it is practically identical with the Early Orleans.

Tree small, upright-spreading, hardy, productive; branches
ash-gray, smooth, with small, inconspicuous, oval lenticels;
branchlets thick, with rather short internodes, covered with
thin bloom and marked with scarf-skin, dull brownish-drab,
pubescent, with a medium number of small, raised lenticels;
leaf-buds intermediate in size and length, conical, free,
plump; leaf-scars enlarged.

Leaves folded upward, two and one-quarter inches wide, four
inches long, roundish-oval or obovate, thick; apex abruptly
pointed, base acute, margin crenate and with small, dark
glands; upper surface light green, sparingly pubescent and
with a grooved midrib; lower surface silvery-green, pubescent;
petiole three-quarters inch long, thick, pubescent, faintly
tinged red, with from one to three large, globose glands mostly
on the stalk.

Season of bloom intermediate in time and length; flowers
appearing after the leaves, nearly one-half inch across, white,
the buds yellow-tipped as they unfold; borne in clusters on
short lateral spurs, in pairs; pedicels one-half inch long,
thick, pubescent, green; calyx-tube greenish, campanulate,
thinly pubescent; calyx-lobes broad, obtuse, glandular,
pubescent on both surfaces, reflexed; petals roundish, entire,
not clawed; filaments five-sixteenths inch long; pistil
glabrous, equal to the stamens in length.

Fruit early, season short; one and one-quarter inches in diameter, roundish-oval, slightly truncate, halves equal; cavity shallow, narrow, abrupt; suture shallow or a line; apex roundish to flattened or sometimes depressed, often oblique; color dark reddish-purple, covered with thick bloom; dots numerous, small, russet, inconspicuous; stem of average thickness, five-eighths inch long, pubescent, adhering well to the fruit; skin thin, tough, not astringent, separating readily; flesh lemon-yellow, juicy, coarse, firm, sweet, mild but pleasant; very good; stone free, three-quarters inch by five-eighths inch in size, oval, slightly oblique, blunt-pointed, with rough and slightly honeycombed surfaces.

EARLY RIVERS

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= Downing _Fr. Trees Am._ 314, 1845. =2.= _Horticulturist_
=4=:40. 1849. =3.= Elliott _Fr. Book_ 419. 1854. =4.= Downing
_Fr. Trees Am_. 912. 1869. =5.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt._ 99.
1871. =6.= Mas _Pom. Gen._ =2=:117. 1873. =7.= _Jour. Hort._
=30=:273. 1876. =8.= Oberdieck _Deut. Obst. Sort._ 409, 411.
1881. =9.= Hogg _Fruit Man._ 699. 1884. =10.= Mathieu _Nom.
Pom._ 447. 1889. =11.= Lucas _Vollst. Hand. Obst._ 470. 1894.
=12.= _Guide Prat._ 152, 356. 1895. =13.= Rivers _Cat._ 35.
1898.

_Early Fruchtbare_ 12. Early Prolific 4. _Early Rivers_ 4, 10,
12. _Early Prolific_ 2, 3, 6, 10, 12, 13. _Fertile Précoce_ 10.
Fertile Précoce 6, 12. _Frühe Fruchtbare_ 6. Frühe Fruchtbare
8. _Prolifique Hâtive_ 10, 12. _Rivers’ Early No. 2_ 1, 2, 3,
4, 10. Rivers’ Early Prolific Plum 2. _Rivers’ Early Prolific_
4, 9, 10, 12. _Rivers’ Early_ 6. River’s Early 5. Rivers’ Blue
Prolific 7. _Rivers’ No. 2_ 9, 10, 12. Rivers Frühpflaume 8,
11. Rivers’ Frühe Fruchtbare 10.

Early Rivers is widely known because of its earliness, productiveness, regularity of bearing and desirability for culinary purposes. In New York, however, the plums are so small and drop so badly as they ripen that the variety is worthless for commercial purposes. Hogg, in the reference given above, notes the following peculiarity of the trees of this variety: “The original tree throws up suckers, which, when removed and planted out, do not bloom for several years; but scions taken from the original tree and grafted, bloom the second year. A curious fact is that the grafted trees fruit abundantly, and the branches are so brittle they break off; in those raised from suckers the branches never break. The grafted trees in spring are full of bloom, sparing of shoots, and very few leaves; the suckers are more vigorous in growth, have no bloom, but an abundance of foliage, even when six years old.” This variety is a seedling of Early Tours raised by Thomas Rivers of Sawbridgeworth, England, about 1834. It was first disseminated under the names Early Prolific and Rivers’ Early No. 2 but, in 1866, Hogg with the permission of the originator, renamed it Early Rivers under which name it is now generally known.

Tree medium in size and vigor, round-topped, productive;
branchlets thick, short, pubescent throughout the season;
leaves roundish-oval or obovate, one and three-quarters inches
wide, nearly three inches long, leathery; margin crenate or
serrate, with few, small, dark glands; petiole pubescent, with
from one to three small glands usually on the stalk; blooming
season intermediate, short; flowers appearing after the leaves,
seven-eighths inch across; borne on lateral buds and spurs,
singly or in twos; petals roundish.

Fruit early, season short; one and one-quarter inches by one
and one-eighth inches in size, roundish-oval or ovate, dark
purplish-black, overspread with thick bloom; flesh dull yellow,
firm, sweet, mild, pleasant; of good quality; stone semi-free,
three-quarters inch by one-half inch in size, rather flat,
oval, with rough and pitted surfaces.

EARLY ROYAL

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= _Lond. Hort. Soc. Cat._ 153. 1831. =2.= _Mag. Hort._
=6=:93. 1840. =3.= Downing _Fr. Trees Am._ 313. 1845. =4.=
Thomas _Am. Fruit Cult._ 341, fig. 260. 1849. =5.= _Am. Pom.
Soc. Cat._ 86. 1862. =6.= Mathieu _Nom. Pom._ 452. 1889. =7.=
Thompson _Gard. Ass’t_ =4=:159. 1901.

_Early Royal_ 3, 4, 6. _Marian_ 6. _Mirian_ 3, 4. _Mivian_ 2.
_Miviam_ 6. _Miriam_ 7. Royal Hâtive 1, 2, 5, 7. Royale Hâtive
3, 4. _Royale Hâtive_ 6. Violette Königspflaume 6.

While the fruits of Early Royal are not remarkably attractive in color, shape or size, the quality is high and its flesh is so firm that the variety should ship well. This sort is worthy of more extensive trial than it has yet had in America. Early Royal is a French variety introduced by M. Noisette of Paris, about 1830. Thompson made the first complete description of the variety in 1839 from the fruits of a tree in the gardens of the London Horticultural Society. Although recommended in the catalog of the American Pomological Society in 1862 it has not been extensively planted in this country.

Tree large, vigorous, spreading, rather open, productive;
branches and trunk roughish; branchlets thickly pubescent;
leaf-scars enlarged; leaves folded upward, oval or obovate, one
and three-quarters inches wide, three and three-eighths inches
long; margin serrate, with small, dark glands; petiole thickly
pubescent, with one or two smallish glands; blooming season
intermediate in time and length; flowers appearing with the
leaves, one inch across, white, tinged yellow at the apex of
the petals; borne on lateral buds and spurs, singly or in pairs.

Fruit mid-season, ripening period long; about one and
three-eighths inches in diameter, roundish-ovate, dark
reddish-purple, marked by irregular russet streaks, covered
with thick bloom; dots conspicuous; stem thick, pubescent;
flesh greenish-yellow, rather dry, firm, very sweet, mild,
pleasant flavor; very good; stone nearly free, three-quarters
inch by five-eighths inch in size, roundish-oval, blunt at the
apex and base, with but slightly roughened surfaces; ventral
suture prominent and with short wing; dorsal suture with a
wide, shallow groove.

EARLY TOURS

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= Duhamel _Trait. Arb. Fr._ =2=:67, 69. 1768. =2.= Kraft
_Pom. Aust._ =2=:31, Tab. 177 fig. 2. 1796. =3.= _Lond. Hort.
Soc. Cat._ 151. 1831. =4.= Prince _Pom. Man._ =2=:64. 1832.
=5.= Kenrick _Am. Orch._ 265. 1832. =6.= Poiteau _Pom. Franc._
=1=:1846. =7.= Floy-Lindley _Guide Orch. Gard._ 282, 283. 1846.
=8.= Hogg _Fruit Man._ 376. 1866. =9.= Downing _Fr. Trees
Am._ 937. 1869. =10.= Mas _Le Verger_ =6=:143. 1866-73. =11.=
Mathieu _Nom. Pom._ 443. 1889. =12.= _Guide Prat._ 156, 361.
1895.

_Blue Perdrigon_ of some 3, 9, 11, 12. Die frühe Pflaume von
Tours 2. _De Monsieur_ 12 incor. _Damas de Tours_ 8, 9, 11.
_Early de Tours_ 5. _Early Tours_ 7, 9, 11. _Early Violet_ 3,
7, 9, 11, 12. Gros Damas de Tours 1. _Hâtive de Tours_ 12.
_Madeleine_ 11, ?12. _Monsieur_ 11 incor. _Noire Hâtive_ 3, 8,
9, 11, 12. _Perdrigon Violet_ of some 3, 9, 11, 12. Précoce
de Tours 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12. _Précoce de Tours_
2, 4. _Prune de la Madeleine_ 4, 9, 11. _Prune noire Hâtive_
4. _Prune de Gaillon_ 8, 9, 11. _Prune de Monsieur_ 11 incor.
_Saint Jean_ ?11, 12. _Violette de Tours_ 8, 11. _Violette
Hâtive_ 9, 11. _Violet de Tours_ 9, 11, 12. _Violette Hâtive_
7. _Violet_ 7.

Duhamel described this variety, Gros Damas de Tours and Gros Noire Hative in the same publication, his descriptions of the three varieties being nearly identical. Following Duhamel many horticultural authorities continued to separate the varieties, but Downing, Floy-Lindley and Mathieu give Damas de Tours as a synonym of Early Tours, and Thompson, Hogg, Downing, Mathieu and the _Guide Pratique_ give Noire Hative as a synonym, while Prince holds Prune Noire Hative to be synonymous.

With this great similarity in the names and descriptions, it seems doubtful if these are separate varieties, but not having the fruit of the three to compare, it has been thought best in _The Plums of New York_ to follow the nomenclature of the oldest authorities. Several writers have also named the Blue Perdrigon and the Perdrigon Violet as identical with Early Tours but neither can be, as all descriptions indicate that both are at least a month later in ripening than the variety under discussion.

Early Tours is considered in continental Europe one of the best early plums for dessert. It is said when fully ripened to be a veritable sweetmeat. As the variety grows in the Station collection it can hardly be lauded as highly as in Europe. Yet it is at least worthy of a place in a home orchard as a delicious early plum.

Tree intermediate in size, upright-spreading, rather
open-topped, productive; branchlets thickish, pubescent;
leaves falling early, folded upward, obovate or oval, one
and seven-eighths inches wide, three and one-quarter inches
long; margin crenate; petiole pubescent, glandless or with
from one to three glands usually on the stalk; blooming season
intermediate in time and length; flowers appearing after the
leaves, one and one-eighth inches across; borne on lateral
spurs or from lateral buds.

Fruit very early; one and one-quarter inches by one and
one-eighth inches in size, slightly oval, dark purplish-black,
covered with thick bloom; skin thick, tough, sour; flesh
greenish-yellow, firm, sweet, pleasant flavored; good to very
good; stone semi-free, three-quarters inch by one-half-inch in
size, irregular oval.

EARLY YELLOW

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= Parkinson _Par. Ter._ 575, 576. 1629. =2.= Rea _Flora_
206, 207. 1676. =3.= Ray _Hist. Plant._ =2=:1688. =4.=
Quintinye _Com. Gard._ 70. 1699. =5.= Langley _Pomona_ 90, Pl.
20 fig. 1. 1729. =6.= Duhamel _Trait. Arb. Fr._ =2=:66. 1768.
=7.= Forsyth _Treat. Fr. Trees_ 19. 1803. =8.= Floy-Lindley
_Guide Orch. Gard._ 297, 382. 1846. =9.= Downing _Fr. Trees
Am._ 925. 1869. =10.= _Country Gent._ =41=:518. 1876. =11.=
Mathieu _Nom. Pom._ 424. 1889. =12.= _Guide Prat._ 152, 354.
1895.

Amber Primordian 1, 2. _Amber Primordian_ 3, 8, 9, 11, 12.
_Avant Prune blanche_ 9, 11, 12. _Bilboa_ 9, 11. Catalonia
1, 2, 3, 12. Castellan 4. _Catalonian_ 8, 9, 10, 11, 12.
_Cerisette Blanche_ 9, 11, 12. _Castelane_ 11, 12. _Catalane_
11, 12. _Catalonische Pflaume_ 11, 12. _Catalonischer Spilling_
12. Catalonischer Spilling 11. _Catalonische Kricke_ 11. _De
Catalogne_ 6, 11. De Catalogne 12. _D’Avoine_ 9, 12. _Die gelbe
frühzeitige Pflaume_ 12. _Early Yellow_ 9, 10, 11, 12. _Early
John_ 9, 11. _Early White Plum_ 11, 12. _Gelbe Spindel Pflaume_
11. _Gelber Kleiner Spilling_ 11. _Gelbe Frühzeitige_ 11.
_Gelbe frühe Pflaume_ 11, 12. _Jaune précoce_ 11, 12. _Jaune
de Catalogne_ 9, 11, 12. Jaune Hâtive 6, 8. _Jaune Hâtive_ 11,
12. Jaunhâtive 7. _Jean Hâtive_ 9. Jean-hâtive 5. _Jean White_
11, 12. _Kleine gelbe Früh Pflaume_ 11, 12. _London Plumb_ 5.
_London Plum_ 9, 11, 12. Monsieur Jaune 11 incor., 12. _Prune
de Catalogne_ 8, 9, 11. _Prune de St. Barnabe_ 8, 9. _Prune
d’Avoine_ 11. _Pickett’s July_ 9, 11, 12. _Prune Monsieur
Jaune_ 9. _Prune d’Altesse blanche_ 9,? 11. Primordian 10, 11,
12. _Prunus Catalana_ 11, 12. _Prunus Catelana_ 11. _Prunus
Catalonica_ 11, 12. _St. Barnabée_ 9. _Saint Barnabe_ 11, 12.
_Siebenbürger Pflaume?_ 11, 12.

The Early Yellow goes back as far as the history of plum-growing in northwestern Europe is recorded. Because of its synonyms it is thought to have originated in Spain whence it was gradually taken northward, crossed the boundary and spread through the fertile valleys of France. Early in the Seventeenth Century it was firmly established in England and was described by Tradescant and Parkinson. From that time till the present it has kept a place in European and American horticulture, in spite of the introduction of hundreds of improved varieties. It is described as follows:

Tree hardy, moderately vigorous and productive; branches
long, slender, upright until bent down with fruit; branchlets
pubescent. Fruit very early, small, obovate; stem short,
slender; color pale yellow, with thin bloom; flesh yellow,
tender, sweet, moderately juicy, pleasant; good; freestone.

EMPIRE

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= _N. Y. Sta. An. Rpt._ =9=:347. 1890. =2.= _Cornell Sta.
Bul._ =131=:184. 1897. =3.= _Ohio Sta. Bul._ =162=:241 fig.,
254, 255. 1905. =4.= Rice Bros. _Cat._ 15. 1908.

Empire State 4. _Rood_ 1, 2.

It is possible that Empire deserves more attention from fruit-growers than it has had. It is attractive in appearance, pleasant in flavor and gives promise of shipping well. Wherever the variety proves productive, as it is to a fair degree on the grounds of the Station, this plum might well be grown. Empire was grown by Ezra Rood, Cortland, New York, about 1875, from seed purchased at the State Fair. In 1890, E. Smith & Sons of Geneva found this plum in Mr. Rood’s yard and procured cions of it, afterwards introducing the variety under the name Rood. The year that they made the discovery, John Hammond, also of Geneva, found the same variety at another place in Cortland and secured cions from which he subsequently disseminated the plum under the name Empire, by which it is now generally known.

Tree intermediate in size and vigor, spreading, open-topped,
productive; branches covered with short, thick, fruit-spurs;
branchlets short and stubby, pubescent throughout the season;
leaf-scars prominent; leaves folded upward, oval or obovate,
one and one-half inches wide, three and one-quarter inches
long, thick, stiff; margin crenate, eglandular or with small
dark glands; petiole thick, reddish, with a few large, globose
or reniform glands; blooming season intermediate in time and
length; flowers appearing after the leaves, over one inch
across, yellowish-white; borne singly or in twos.

Fruit mid-season, ripening period very long; about one and
five-eighths inches in diameter, round, dark reddish-purple,
covered with medium thick bloom; dots numerous, conspicuous;
stem thick, surrounded by a fleshy ring at the cavity; skin
sour; flesh golden-yellow, dry, firm but tender, sweet, mild,
pleasant in flavor; of good quality; stone nearly free,
seven-eighths inch by three-quarters inch in size, oval,
turgid, with roughened surfaces; ventral suture broad, with
short but distinct wing; dorsal suture wide, deep.

ENGLEBERT

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= _Horticulturist_ =10=:71. 1855. =2.= Downing _Fr. Trees
Am._ 392. 1857. 3. _Cultivator_ =6=:312 fig. 1858. =4.= Hogg
_Fruit Man._ 376. 1866. =5.= Thomas _Am. Fruit Cult._ 344.
1867. =6.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Cat._ 24. 1871. =7.= Mas _Le Verger_
=6=:61. 1866-73. =8.= Barry _Fr. Garden_ 415. 1883. =9.= _Cat.
Cong. Pom. France_ 357. 1887. =10.= Wickson _Cal. Fruits_ 354.
1891. =11.= _Guide Prat._ 154, 361. 1895. =12.= _Cornell Sta.
Bul._ =131=:190. 1897. =13.= _N. Mex. Sta. Bul._ =27=:125.
1898. =14.= _Mich. Sta. Bul._ =169=:242, 244. 1899. =15.=
Waugh _Plum Cult._ 101, 103 fig. 1901. =16.= _Va. Sta. Bul._
=134=:42. 1902.

_Englebert_ 9. Prince Englebert 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11,
12. Prince Engelbert 10, 13. _Prince Englebert_ 15, 16. _Prinz
Engelbert_ 11.

In common parlance Englebert is a prune, its origin, shape, color and firm golden-yellow flesh all marking it as such, but in prune-making regions it is usually marketed in the green state, if grown at all, and is little used in curing. It cannot be said to be much more popular as a plum than it is as a prune, chiefly because it is not of high quality, but also because it is none too attractive in color, size or shape, cutting a rather poor figure in comparison with a great number of other Domestica plums. The variety fails in tree as well as in fruit. The trees are variable in size, suffer from cold in exposed situations and while rather productive bear their crops in clusters hard to pick and well placed to insure infection from brown-rot when that disease is epidemic. For some reason the fruit of this variety shrivels at this Station not only after being picked, but while still on the tree. In New York, Englebert has been thoroughly tested, has been found wanting and is not now recommended.

This variety was obtained from a seed of the “Date Prune,” by M. Scheidweiler, Professor of Botany at Ghent, Belgium.[211] The date of origin has not been given, but it was probably produced about the middle of the last century since it was described as a new fruit in the _Horticulturist_ for 1855. Englebert was added to the American Pomological Society catalog fruit list in 1871 under the name Prince Englebert, but in 1897, according to the rules of the Society, the name was simplified to Englebert.

Tree variable in size, vasiform, dense-topped, hardy except
in exposed locations, productive; branches ash-gray, smooth
except for the numerous, long-oval, raised lenticels;
branchlets thick, rather short, with internodes above medium
in length, green changing to dark brownish-drab, dull, heavily
pubescent throughout the season, with few, inconspicuous, small
lenticels; leaf-buds small, short, obtuse, appressed.

Leaves folded upward, oval or obovate, one and seven-eighths
inches wide, three and one-quarter inches long; upper
surface covered with very fine hairs, with a shallow groove
on the midrib; lower surface pale green, finely pubescent;
apex roundish-pointed, base obtuse, margin finely crenate,
eglandular or with small dark glands; petiole three-quarters
inch long, pubescent, faintly tinged red, glandless or with one
or two small, globose, greenish-yellow glands at the base of
the leaf.

Blooming season early to medium, of average length; flowers
appearing after the leaves, about one inch across, white except
for a yellowish tinge near the apex of the petals; borne in
clusters on lateral buds and spurs, usually in pairs; pedicels
one-half inch long, below medium in thickness, pubescent,
greenish; calyx-tube green, campanulate, pubescent; calyx-lobes
obtuse, sparingly pubescent on both surfaces, glandular-serrate
and with marginal hairs; petals broadly oval or roundish,
crenate, abruptly tipped with short, broad claws; stamens often
inclined to revert to petals; anthers yellowish; filaments
five-sixteenths inch long; pistil glabrous, longer than the
stamens.

Fruit mid-season, ripening period short; one and five-eighths
inches by one and three-eighths inches in size; oval, swollen
on the suture side, halves equal; cavity shallow, narrow,
abrupt; suture a line; apex bluntly pointed or roundish;
color dark purplish-black, overspread with thick bloom; dots
numerous, russet; stem three-quarters inch long, pubescent,
adhering well to the fruit; skin thin, sourish, separating
readily; flesh golden-yellow, juicy, coarse, rather firm,
sweet, pleasant-flavored, sprightly; good; stone one and
one-eighth inches by five-eighths inch in size, oval or broadly
ovate, strongly flattened, with roughened and deeply pitted
surfaces, blunt at the base and apex; ventral suture narrow,
strongly grooved, not prominent; dorsal suture acute, with a
shallow, often indistinct groove.

ENGRE

_Prunus triflora_

=1.= Normand _Cat._ 1891. =2.= Kerr _Cat._ 1894-1900. =3.=
Cornell _Sta. Bul._ =175=:131. 1899. =4.= _Tex. Sta. Bul._
=32=:488. 1899.

This variety is one of the earliest of the Triflora plums and although the flavor is not as agreeable as that of the best sorts of its species, as Burbank or Abundance, it is much better than that of Earliest of All, with which it competes in season. Almost nothing is known regarding the history and origin of Engre. It was first mentioned in 1890 in the catalog of J. L. Normand, Marksville, Louisiana, and in all probability is one of his numerous importations from Japan. The origin of the name is not known.

Tree of medium size, vasiform, dense-topped, productive;
branches slightly thorny, with numerous fruit-spurs; branchlets
very short and stubby, glabrous; leaf-buds plump; leaves
reddish when young, oblanceolate, one and three-eighths inches
wide, three inches long; margin doubly crenate, with small
brownish glands; petiole tinged red, glandless or with one
or two small, reniform glands on the stalk; blooming season
early; flowers appearing with the leaves, five-eighths inch
across; borne on lateral buds and spurs, in twos or in threes;
calyx-lobes red at the margin; anthers pinkish.

Fruit very early; about one and one-quarter inches in diameter,
roundish; cavity deep; color dark pinkish-red, covered with
thin bloom; dots numerous, conspicuous; skin astringent; flesh
yellowish, tender and melting, sweet near the surface, but sour
next the pit, low in flavor; poor; stone clinging, five-eighths
inch by one-half inch in size, roundish-oval, turgid; ventral
suture broad, blunt.

ESPEREN

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= _Mag. Hort._ =15=:298. 1849. =2.= Downing _Fr. Trees Am._
380. 1857. =3.= _Flor. & Pom._ 4, Pl. 1863. =4.= Downing _Fr.
Trees Am._ 916. 1869. =5.= _Pom. France_ =7=: No. 1. 1871. =6.=
Mas _Le Verger_ =6=:65. 1866-73. =7.= Lauche _Deut. Pom._ 12.
1882.

_Cloth of Gold Esperen_ 4. _Cloth of Gold_ 2, 7. Drap d’Or
of Esperin 1, 2. _Drap d’Or d’Esperen_ 3, 6, 7. _Drap d’Or
Esperen_ 4. Drap d’Or d’Esperen 5. _Drap d’Or of Esperen_ 6.
Esperen’s Goldpflaume 7. _Golden Esperen_ 5, 7. Golden Esperen
4. Golden Esperen Plum 3.

Were there not so many handsome, well-flavored plums of the Reine Claude group, Esperen might well be recommended to the amateur at least, for it is first class in appearance and quality. But the fruits are small and the tree-characters are not such that the variety can compete with the standard Reine Claude plums. Esperen was produced from seed in 1830 by Major Esperen of Malines, Belgium; it was first fruited in 1844, and was introduced in 1847 by Louis Van Houtte of Ghent, Belgium. It obtained the designation Drap d’Or from its close resemblance to that variety.

Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, productive; trunk
stocky, rough; branches rough, with numerous, large, raised
lenticels; branchlets brash; leaves flattened, two and one-half
inches wide, five inches long, obovate or oval; margin serrate;
petiole thick, tinged red, pubescent, with from two to five
large, globose glands.

Fruit mid-season; about one and one-half inches in diameter,
roundish-oval; cavity shallow, narrow, often lipped; color
yellow streaked and mottled with green, overspread with thin
bloom; skin thin, tender, rather sour; flesh yellow, tender,
sweet, aromatic; of good quality; stone free, one inch by
five-eighths inch in size, oval, with pitted surfaces; ventral
suture blunt; dorsal suture wide, deep.

EXCELSIOR

_Prunus triflora_ × _Prunus munsoniana_

=1.= _Glen St. Mary Cat._ 1891-2. =2.= _Am. Pom. Soc. Cat_. 26.
1897. =3.= _Vt. Sta. Bul._ =67=:11. 1898. =4.= _Ga. Sta. Bul._
=68=:9, 36. 1905.

Excelsior has not fruited on the Station grounds and is placed in the list of leading varieties because of the prominence given it in the above references. The variety was originated by G. L. Tabor, Glen Saint Mary, Florida, in 1887, from seed of Kelsey supposed to have been pollinated by Wild Goose, although some authorities believe De Caradeuc to have been the male parent. It seems to be a promising variety and was mentioned in the last three catalogs of the American Pomological Society.

Tree vigorous, vasiform; branches slender; leaves of medium size, narrow; margin finely crenulate, glandular; petiole short, with from one to three small glands; flowers small, scattered; fruit early; of medium size, roundish, dark red with heavy bloom; skin tough; flesh firm, yellowish with red tinge towards the center; quality good; stone of medium size, compressed, clinging.

FIELD

_Prunus domestica_

=1.= _Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 288. 1889. =2.= _Am. Gard._
=14=:50, 395. 1893. =3.= _Rural N. Y_. =55=:622. 1896. =4.=
_Cornell Sta. Bul._ =131=:184. 1897. =5.= _Mich. Sta. Bul._
=169=:244. 1899. =9.= _Ibid._ =187=:77, 78. 1901. =7.=
Waugh _Plum Cult._ 101, 104 fig. 1901. =8.= _Ohio Sta. Bul._
=162=:239, 240 fig., 254, 255. 1905.

_Early Bradshaw_ 2.

This offspring of Bradshaw resembles its parent in tree, and in size, color and shape of fruit, though not so closely as to be readily mistaken for the older variety. Differences which distinguish the fruits of the two are: The Field is a trifle smaller, the fruit is more nearly round, lacking the prolonged neck of Bradshaw and is more plump at the base, the parent plum being markedly obovate; Field is earlier than Bradshaw, the latter difference accounting for the synonym, “Early Bradshaw.” The quality is not such as to commend either of these plums, but of the two Field is slightly the better. In tree-characters, Bradshaw excels in having a larger tree and in being more productive. The foliage of Field is very good, it ripens its wood well and begins to bear while young, but it is inclined to a biennial bearing habit which makes the average in quantity of fruit a little too low for a market plum which Field is, if worth planting at all. A good quality of this variety is that it withstands the brown-rot very well. It is doubtful if Field is worthy of a place in the fruit-growing regions of New York, unless, perhaps, where a plum of the Bradshaw type, but a little earlier, is wanted. Like Bradshaw, Field is comparatively little attacked by San José scale.

Field is a seedling of Bradshaw grown in Schoharie County, New York. It was first noted by S. D. Willard of Geneva, New York, in 1889, as “a variety worthy of cultivation.”

Tree of medium size and vigor, upright-spreading, dense-topped,
hardy, productive; branches ash-gray, smooth except for the
numerous, small, raised lenticels; branchlets slender, short,
with internodes of medium length, greenish-red changing to
brownish-drab, with a trace of red, dull, pubescent becoming
slightly less so at maturity, with numerous, inconspicuous,
small lenticels; leaf-buds below medium in size, short, obtuse,
appressed.

Leaves folded backward, obovate, two and one-sixteenth inches
wide, four and three-eighths inches long; upper surface dark
green, nearly glabrous, with shallowly grooved midrib; lower
surface sparingly pubescent; apex abruptly pointed, base acute,
margin serrate, with a few, smallish, black glands; petiole
seven-eighths inch long, thick, tinged with red, sparingly
pubescent.

Season of bloom intermediate, short; flowers appearing
after the leaves, one inch across, white, with a yellowish
tinge at the apex of the petals; scattered on lateral buds
and spurs, singly or in pairs; pedicels five-eighths inch
long, thick, with few, short, scattering hairs, greenish;
calyx-tube green, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes above
medium in width, obtuse, slightly pubescent on both surfaces,
glandular-serrate, somewhat reflexed; petals broadly oval,
entire, tapering below to short, broad claws; anthers
yellowish; filaments three-eighths inch long; pistil glabrous,
shorter than the stamens.

Fruit mid-season, period of ripening short; one and
seven-eighths inches by one and five-eighths inches in size,
oblong-oval, compressed, halves equal; cavity shallow,
narrow, abrupt; suture shallow, broad; apex roundish; color
dark purplish-red, overspread with very thick bloom; dots
numerous, small, russet, clustered about the apex; stem
three-quarters inch long, sparingly pubescent, adhering well to
the fruit; skin thin, slightly sour, separating readily; flesh
greenish-yellow, medium juicy, sweetish, mild; of fair quality;
stone clinging, one inch by five-eighths inch in size, ovate
with roughened and deeply pitted surfaces, blunt at the apex
and base; ventral suture broad, distinctly furrowed; dorsal
suture acute.

FOREST GARDEN

_Prunus hortulana mineri_

=1.= _Minn. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 81. 1882. =2.= _Am. Pom. Soc.
Cat._ 42. 1883. =3.= _Minn. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 412. 1889. =4.=
_Ia. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 55. 1890. =5.= _Cornell Sta. Bul._
=38=:37, 86. 1892. =6.= _Mich. Sta. Bul._ =118=:53. 1895. =7.=
_Wis. Sta. Bul._ =63=:24, 37. 1897. =8.= _Wis. Hort. Soc. Rpt._
136. 1899. =9.= Waugh _Plum Cult._ 148. 1901. =10.= _Can. Exp.
Farm Bul._ =43=:30. 1903. =11.= _Ohio Sta. Bul._ =162=:254,
255. 1905. =12.= _S. Dak. Sta. Bul._ =93=:17, 49 & 54 Pl. 1905.

Forest Garden is placed by most horticulturists in _Prunus americana_, but the trees growing on the Geneva Station grounds belong to the Miner group of _Prunus hortulana_ and the herbarium specimens of foliage and flowers sent from other stations make it probable if not certain that the trees here are true to name. This variety is little grown in the East, but it is widely distributed in the central West where both in tree and fruit-characters it seems adapted to the needs of the climate and soil. It is one of the latest of its group, maturing at a good time for shipping, for which it is further adapted by its tough skin and firm flesh. While Forest Garden is not preeminently a dessert plum, it has a spicy flavor that makes it pleasant eating and it is admirably adapted for culinary purposes, especially for preserving.

This variety is from a wild plum found in the woods bordering on the Cedar River, near Cedar Rapids, Iowa, by Thomas Hare, and introduced by H. C. Raymond, of the Forest Garden Nurseries, Council Bluffs, Iowa, about 1862. The American Pomological Society placed the variety on its fruit catalog list in 1883, dropped it in 1891, and replaced it in 1897.

Tree medium to large, often very vigorous, spreading, with
sprawling habit, inclined to be flat-topped, perfectly
hardy, variable in productiveness, bearing young, somewhat
susceptible to shot-hole fungus; trunk small in proportion to
the size of the tree, shaggy; branches rather rough, zigzag
and inclined to split, thorny, dark ash-brown, with numerous,
small lenticels; branchlets thick, long, willowy, with short
internodes, greenish changing to dark chestnut-red, glossy,
with thin pubescence when young, which disappears in autumn,
with conspicuous, numerous raised lenticels; leaf-buds small,
short, obtuse, plump, appressed.

Leaves falling early, folded upward, elongated-oval, or
obovate, peach-like, one and three-quarters inches wide,
four and one-quarter inches long, thin and leathery; upper
surface smooth, with a shallow, grooved midrib; lower
surface silvery-green, pubescent; apex taper-pointed, base
somewhat abrupt, margin doubly crenate, glandular; petiole
three-quarters inch long, sparingly pubescent, faintly tinged
with red, usually with two conspicuous, globose, brownish
glands below the base of the leaf.

Blooming season late and long; flowers appearing with the
leaves; seven-eighths inch across, white, with a strong,
disagreeable odor; borne in dense but scattering clusters
on lateral buds and spurs, in threes or in fours; pedicels
nine-sixteenths inch in length, slender, glabrous, greenish;
calyx-tube green, narrowly campanulate or obconic, glabrous;
calyx-lobes narrow, obtuse, slightly pubescent, margined with
few hairs and with dark-colored glands, slightly reflexed;
petals oval, erose, tapering to long claws of medium width;
anthers yellowish; filaments seven-sixteenths inch in length;
pistil glabrous, shorter than the stamens.

Fruit variable in season which is usually late and short;
about one and one-eighth inches in diameter, rather large,
roundish-ovate or nearly oval, slightly compressed, halves
equal; cavity shallow, wide, flaring; suture a line; apex
roundish or somewhat pointed; color light or dark red, with
thin bloom; dots numerous, russet, conspicuous; stem slender,
five-eighths inch long, glabrous, detaching from the fruit at
maturity; skin thick, tough, slightly astringent, adhering;
flesh dark golden-yellow, juicy, coarse, fibrous, melting,
sweetish next the skin but rather sour toward the center,
with a strong and peculiar flavor, aromatic; fair to good;
stone clinging, three-quarters inch by five-eighths inch in
size, oval, turgid, blunt and slightly flattened at the base,
ending in an abrupt but sharp point at the apex, nearly smooth;
ventral suture narrow, faintly ridged; dorsal suture acute.

FOREST ROSE

_Prunus hortulana mineri_

=1.= _Mich. Pom. Soc. Rpt._ 290. 1889. =2.= _Ia. Hort. Soc.
Rpt._ 55. 1890. =3.= _Cornell Sta. Bul._ =38=:55, 86. 1892.
=4.= _Mich. Sta. Bul._ =123=:19. 1895. =5.= _Ia. Sta. Bul._
=31=:346. 1895. =6.= _Colo. Sta. Bul._ =50=:36. 1898. =7.=
_Ohio Sta. Bul._ =113=:154. 1899. =8.= Waugh _Plum Cult._ 173.
1901. =9.= Budd-Hansen _Am. Hort. Man._ 296. 1903.

Forest Rose, like Forest Garden, belongs to _Prunus hortulana mineri_, the two being similar in many respects. Forest Rose, however, is not as attractive in color as the other variety, the difference not being well brought out in the color-plates, is smaller and does not keep nor ship quite as well. The variety under discussion is better in quality than Forest Garden and better adapted than the last named variety for the home orchard at least. While somewhat variable in productiveness, in most localities it bears annually and abundantly. The trees are rather more thorny than most of its species.

This variety is said by H. A. Terry of Crescent, Iowa, to be a seedling of Miner, grown by Scott & Company, a Missouri nursery firm, and introduced by William Stark, Louisiana, Missouri, in 1878. Terry offers no evidence to show that this plum is a seedling of Miner and there is a question as to whether more is really known of its parentage other than that it came from Missouri.

Tree medium to large, intermediate in vigor, upright-spreading,
open-topped, hardy, variable in productiveness somewhat
susceptible to attacks of shot-hole fungus; trunk very rough
and shaggy; branches rough, thorny, dark ash-gray, with
numerous lenticels; branchlets numerous, slender, variable in
length, with internodes of medium length, green changing to
dull reddish-brown, glossy, glabrous, with numerous, small,
raised lenticels; leaf-buds small, short, obtuse, appressed.

Leaves falling early, folded upward, elongated-oval or obovate,
one and one-half inches wide, four inches long, thin; upper
surface dull red in the fall, rugose, glabrous, with the
midrib and larger veins deeply grooved; lower surface light
green, somewhat pubescent along the midrib; apex acuminate,
base acute, margin crenate or serrate, with small, dark
glands; petiole slender, five-eighths inch in length, sparsely
pubescent along one side, tinged with red, glandless or with
from one to three small, globose or oval, greenish-brown glands
on the stalk.

Flowers seven-eighths inch across, white, with a disagreeable
odor; borne in dense clusters on lateral buds and spurs, in
pairs or in threes; pedicels five-eighths inch long, below
medium in thickness, glabrous, greenish: calyx-tube green,
narrowly campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes short and narrow,
acute, serrate, somewhat reflexed, glabrous on the outer
surface, but more or less pubescent on the inner surface and
along the margin, which is strewn with red glands; petals oval,
dentate, tapering below into narrow, lightly pubescent claws of
medium length; anthers light yellow; filaments one-half inch in
length; pistil glabrous, shorter than the stamens.

Fruit late, season short; one and one-eighth inches by one inch
in size, roundish-oval; cavity shallow, narrow, flaring; suture
a line; apex roundish; color dull crimson overspread with thin
bloom; dots very numerous, small, gray, conspicuous; stem
slender, three-quarters inch long, smooth, not adhering to the
fruit; skin thick, tough, astringent, inclined to crack under
unfavorable conditions, adhering; flesh dull apricot-yellow,
juicy, fibrous, tender and melting, sweet next to the skin but
tart toward the center, aromatic; fair to good; stone clinging,
five-eighths inch by one-half inch in size, oval, acute at the
apex, with pitted surfaces; ventral suture somewhat blunt.

FOTHERINGHAM

_Prunus domestica_

1. Rea _Flora_ 208. 1676. 2. Langley _Pomona_ 91. 1729. 3. Miller _Gard. Dict_. =3=:1754. 4. Forsyth _Treat. Fr. Trees_ 19. 1803. 5. Downing _Fr. Trees Am._ 299. 1845. Floy-Lindley _Guide Orch. Gard._ 286, 383. 1846. 7. Thompson _Gard. Ass’t_ 517. 1859. 8. Hogg _Fruit Man._ 701. 1884. 9. Waugh _Plum Cult._ 102. 1901.

Foderingham 1. Fotheringay 8. Foderingham Plum 2. _Grove House Purple_ 5, 7, 8. _Red Fotheringham_ 8. _Sheen_ 2, 5, 6, 7, 8.

Fotheringham is probably one of the oldest varieties of plums now cultivated. Although but little if at all grown in this country, it has maintained its place among standard English varieties for at least two and a half centuries. The exact time of its origin is not certain, but it was undoubtedly during the first half of the Seventeenth Century as Hogg records a reference made to it by Rea in 1665. It was first grown extensively at Sheen, in Surrey, England, about 1700 by Sir William Temple, who gave it the name Sheen. The variety is described as follows:

Tree hardy, vigorous, productive. Fruit matures just before
Reine Claude; of medium size, obovate; suture distinct; stem
one inch long; color reddish-purple with thin bloom; flesh
greenish-yellow, sweet, sprightly; good; freestone.

FREEMAN

_Prunus domestica_

As this variety grows in the Station orchard it is a remarkably fine plum. The fruits are attractive, of high quality and the tree-characters are for most part very good. It is certainly a desirable plum for any home plantation, and if it proves as productive elsewhere as about Geneva, it may well be worth growing in commercial orchards.

Freeman is a chance seedling found in the yard of a Mr. Freeman of Cortland, New York, about 1890 and shortly afterwards introduced by E. Smith & Sons of Geneva, New York, but is as yet hardly known by plum-growers.

Tree intermediate in size and vigor, upright-spreading,
productive; branchlets slender, pubescent; leaves oval, one
and one-half inches wide, two and three-quarters inches long;
margin serrate or almost crenate, eglandular or with small dark
glands; petiole reddish, glandless or with from one to four
globose glands; blooming season intermediate, short; flowers
appearing after the leaves, creamy-white, usually in scattering
clusters at the ends of lateral spurs; borne singly or in twos.

Fruit mid-season, ripening period short; about one and one-half
inches in diameter, roundish or roundish-oval; cavity very
shallow, small, often lipped; color golden-yellow, blushed
and mottled with red on the exposed cheek, covered with thin
bloom; flesh light golden-yellow, firm but tender, sweet,
pleasant flavor; very good to best; stone dark colored,
free, seven-eighths inch by five-eighths inch in size,
irregular-oval, somewhat flattened, abruptly contracted at the
base, with surfaces roughened; ventral suture prominent.

FREESTONE

_Prunus insititia_

1. _Am. Gard._ =14=:148. 1893. 2. Waugh _Plum Cult._ 129. 1901.

Freestone Damson 2.

Freestone is a Damson separated from other Damsons chiefly in being sweeter and more free of stone. It is so inferior to varieties of its species in several particulars as to have little value for commercial planting. The fruits are smaller and the pits larger in proportion to the amount of flesh than with several better known Damsons and the trees do not bear as large crops as plums of this species should; these faults of fruit and tree condemn the plum. To offset the defects in the tree, freedom from black-knot and immunity to leaf-blight may be mentioned as compensating somewhat. Still Freestone is hardly to be mentioned as worth planting in either home or commercial orchard. The origin of this Damson is unknown. Stark Brothers, Louisiana, Missouri, who introduced the variety about 1889, describe it as “a selected sort which is very hardy, free from insects, and productive.”

Tree of medium size and vigor, upright-spreading, vasiform,
hardy, not always productive; branches dark ash-gray, thorny;
leaves folded upward, oval, one and one-quarter inches wide,
two and one-quarter inches long; upper surface dark green,
rugose; lower surface silvery-green, pubescent; margin finely
serrate, eglandular or with small, brownish glands; petiole
five-eighths inch long, glandless or with one or two small
glands; blooming season late and of medium length; flowers
appearing after the leaves, seven-eighths inch across, the buds
creamy, changing to white when expanded; borne in clusters on
lateral buds and spurs, usually in pairs; anthers reddish;
filaments five-sixteenths inch long; pistil shorter than the
stamens.

Fruit late, season long; seven-eighths inch in diameter,
roundish-oval; cavity very shallow and narrow; flesh
yellowish-green, juicy, tender, sweet, mild; fair in quality;
stone free, tinged red, five-eighths inch by one-half inch in
size, oval, turgid, with roughened surfaces, acute at the base,
blunt at the apex; ventral suture broad, blunt; dorsal suture
with a broad, shallow groove.

FRENCH

_Prunus insititia_

=1.= _Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt._ 289. 1889. =2.= _Ibid._ 64. 1891.
=3.= _Cornell Sta. Bul._ =131=:184 fig. 40 I. 1897. =4.= _Mich.
Sta. Bul._ =169=:245. 1899. =5.= _Waugh Plum Cult._ 129. 1901.

_French Damson_ 4. French Damson 1, 2, 3.

Far better than the Freestone just discussed is the French Damson, which in some respects surpasses all other plums in its group. Thus it is the largest of the Damsons, so large, indeed, as to lead many to believe that it may be a hybrid with some Domestica plum, the size of the trees, blossoms and foliage also leading to such a supposition. This excellent Damson is largely grown for the market in western New York, good quality as well as size and appearance aiding in selling the product. The fruits have but one defect, the pit is large for the amount of flesh. Curiously enough in some seasons the stone clings and in others is perfectly free. It is in tree-characters that the French plum best shows its superiority over other Damsons. The trees are large, the largest of the Damsons in New York, hardy, bear abundantly and annually and carry their foliage so well that fruit and wood usually ripen perfectly even when the trees are not sprayed. The season is a little after that of the more commonly grown Shropshire, which in most years is an advantage. French, while becoming popular, is still too little known in New York, where its behavior warrants quite general planting.

S. D. Willard, a nurseryman of Geneva, New York, probably introduced French in this country; at least it was brought to notice mainly through his recommendation. The origin is unknown, but it is probably an introduction from France and may be an old variety renamed. The figure of Prune Petit Damas Violet given by Poiteau is so very similar as to suggest that French may be identical with that sort.

Tree large, vigorous, spreading, dense-topped, hardy,
productive; branches numerous, ash-gray, roughish, thorny,
with lenticels variable in size; branchlets inclined to
develop spurs at the base, rather slender, short, with short
internodes, greenish-red changing to dark brownish-drab, dull,
somewhat zigzag, thickly pubescent, with inconspicuous, small
lenticels; leaf-buds intermediate in size and length, pointed,
free.

Leaves folded upward, long-oval, one and one-quarter inches
wide, three inches long; upper surface dark green, covered
with fine hairs, with a grooved midrib; lower surface
pubescent; apex abruptly pointed, base abrupt, margin serrate
or nearly crenate, with a few, small, dark glands; petiole
eleven-sixteenths inch long, rather slender, pubescent, faintly
tinged with red, usually having two very small, globose,
greenish-brown glands on the stalk or base of the leaf.

Blooming season intermediate in time and length; flowers
appearing after the leaves, one and five-sixteenths inches
across, white; borne on lateral spurs, usually in pairs;
pedicels five-eighths inch long, slender, covered with short
pubescence, greenish; calyx-tube green, campanulate, glabrous;
calyx-lobes narrow, obtuse, glabrous on the outer surface,
thinly pubescent along the margin and at the base of the inner
surface, glandular-serrate, reflexed; petals oval, dentate
or fringed, tapering below to short, broad claws; anthers
distinctly reddish; filaments seven-sixteenths inch in length;
pistil glabrous, equal to the stamens in length.