44 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



44679 to 44681— Continued. 



ment of Baja Vera Paz, Guatemala. The altitude of this town is 

 approximately 5,150 feet. The soil is a heavy clay loam, black, very 

 fertile, and retentive of moisture. The tree stands at the rear of a 

 small garden, close to a hedge of chichicaste (Loasa speciosa). It is 

 slender, apparently not more than 15 to 20 years old, about 40 feet 

 high, with a trunk 1 foot thick at the base. The crown is slender, but 

 well branched, with an abundance of fruiting wood. The young 

 growths are quite vigorous and shapely, indicating that the variety 

 will probably be a good grower. The bud wood from the parent tree 

 is satisfactory, the branchlets being of good length, round, smooth, 

 with the eyes well placed, strong, and not inclined to fall early. If the 

 young trees show a tendency to grow tall and slender, they can easily 

 be kept in hand by judicious pruning. 



" The climate of Purula is colder than that of Antigua, though the 

 altitude is about the same. It is not sufficiently cold, however, to 

 test the hardiness of avocados of the Guatemalan race. It must be 

 assumed that this variety is of average hardiness until it can be put 

 to a test in the United States. 



" The flowering season of the parent tree is in March and early 

 April. It blooms profusely and sets a heavy crop of fruit. The crop 

 produced in 1917 from the 1916 blooms was very heavy, and another 

 equally heavy crop was set from the 1917 blooms. The productiveness 

 of the variety gives promise of being well above the average. The 

 ripening season commences about the middle of March and extends 

 to the first of July. It can probably be considered midseason or 

 slightly later than midseason. 



" The fruits are of attractive round form, nearly a pound in weight, 

 with a slightly rough surface of purple color. The skin is much thicker 

 than the average, but not very brittle. The flesh is rich yellow in 

 color, absolutely free from discoloration of any sort, dry^ and oily, 

 cutting like soft cheese. The flavor is exceptionally rich and nutty. 

 The seed is rather small and is tight in the cavity. The size of the 

 fruit conforms admirably to hotel and restaurant requirements, where 

 it is desired to serve a half fruit as a portion, and the quality is so 

 unusually good that it would .seem that this variety is of exceptional 

 promise. 



"Following is a formal description of the fruit: From spherical to 

 roundish obovoid, sometimes slightly oblique ; size medium to above 

 medium, weight 13 to 16 ounces, length 35 to 4 inches, greatest breadth 

 Si to 3| inches ; base rounded or obscurely pointed, the stem rather 

 slender, 7 inches long, inserted obliquely, without depression ; apes 

 rounded or slightly flattened obliquely ; surface decidedly rough, 

 greenish purple to dull purple in color, with numerous large greenish 

 yellow dots ; skin very thick, varying from as much as three-sixteenths 

 of an inch near the stem, where it is thickest, to somewhat more than 

 one-sixteenth of an inch near the apex, coarsely granular in texture, 

 woody, but separating readily from the flesh at the right stage of ripe- 

 ness ; flesh rich cream yellow in color, without fiber discoloration, firm, 

 meaty, of rich and pleasant flavor; quality excellent; seed oblate- 

 spherical to spherical in form, medium sized, weighing IJ to 2 ounces, 

 tight in the cavity, with both seed coats, adhering closely to the smooth 

 cotyledons." (Popenoe,) 



