FOURTH REPORT ON lAPANESE PLUMS. 



In January, 189-i, this Station issued a bulletin (Xo. 62) on the 

 Japanese j^lums. Subsequent issues were made in January, 1896, 

 and in October, 1897 (Bulletins 106, 139). For five years and 

 more the Japanese plums have been the subject of careful study at 

 Cornell, and an effort has been made to secure all the varieties. 

 During the past season the crop of tliese plums has been large and 

 excellent, and the following notes are made directly from the fruits. 

 We are still convinced that the Japanese plums are a very import- 

 ant addition to our orchard fruits. They will not drive other plums 

 from the field, but they have attributes which make them an excel- 

 lent supplement to the European and native sorts. The particular 

 merits of the Japanese plums are their great productiveness, adap- 

 tation to a wide range of territory, beauty, earliness of many of the 

 varieties, comparative freedom from diseases and insects^ and long- 

 keeping qualities of fruit. Most of the varieties tend to overbear, 

 and good fruits can be secured only by very heavy thinning. This 

 is especially true of the Burbank, the Abundance and the Red 

 June. There is great range in quality of the Japanese plums. The 

 poorest of them are inferior to any of the European varieties. The 

 best of them are nearly equal to the best of the European kinds, 

 and all of the leading sorts are better in quality than the Lombard 

 if they are properly thinned and ripened. 



A great merit of the Japanese plum is the fact that it is adapted 

 to an exceedingly wide range of territory, in this respect excelling 

 both the Domestica and native types. There are varieties which 

 thrive from Canada to the Southern States, and apparently from 

 ocean to ocean. There has been some complaint in the Middle 

 States and the South of loss of blossoms from late spring frosts, but 

 we have never experienced this difficulty. The buds start early ; 

 but in Xew York State, at least, the winter climate holds so late 



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