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TRANSACTIONS OF THE ILLINOIS 



sti-ong a grower as the Willow, it had a severe struggle to reach the light. 

 The summer of iS68 it bore several apples, which brought it to my 

 notice again. These apples fell off before gathering time. The tree in 

 which the graft was put was surrounded with Willow twig trees. While 

 gathering the apples from the eight Willow twigs nearest and suiTounding 

 the one with the Russet graft in, we found on them russeted apples, and 

 also on the tree with the graft in it. The apples borne by the graft are 

 of the extreme russet order, dull orange in color. The Russet apples 

 borne on the Willow twig branches were completely russeted, without 

 any of the dull red color of the Willow, same color of the Russet proper, 

 but with the exact size and form of proper Willow twigs. We found no 

 russeted apples on any others of two hundred Willow twig growing 

 immediately around the one with Russet graft^ except the nine spoken of 

 above. The apples, that fall of 1868, were barreled with the rest, and no 

 attention given to them. 



The fall of 1S69 the Russet graft bore a very heavy burthen of apples. 

 They were all on the ground at gathering time. We found more russeted 

 apples on the adjacent Willow twig trees than we did the fall before, 

 though there vv^ere none on the trees north and west; but to the south 

 and east, they were numerous, and reached in that direction three trees 

 farther than they did the season before! I now resolved to see how 

 far the Willow twig apples were changed in character by the influence of 

 the Russet; so I gathered about a peck of the russeted apples that grew 

 on Willow twig branches, and put them in a barrel with proper Willow 

 twigs. The Russet apples proper, from the graft, were fully ripe Novem- 

 ber 1st; the Willow twig, as is well known, is fully ripe May ist, usually. 

 On opening the barrel in which I put the russeted Willow twigs, about 

 the middle of January, I found them very ripe, while the Willow twigs 

 proper were as firm as when gathered ! Tlie character of the flesh and 

 the flavor of the russeted apples was, as near as I could judge, half way 

 between the Willow and the Russet. 



Last season, 1870, the Russet did not fruit; but, Mr. President, if it 

 does another year, and the results are as I have stated they were hereto- 

 fore, I will make it my duty to exhibit the fruit to this Society. We 

 have in this instance positive proof o{ the fact, that apples will in some 

 instances be changed in character by the influence of another kind grow- 

 ing near them. My wny of explaining the phenomenon is this: This 

 particular russet has an abundance of pollen in its flowers possessed of 

 strong individuality; this particular pollen fertilized the pistils of the 

 Willow twig flowers, and the result was as I have stated. The above 

 facts can all be substantiated by numerous witnesses. The fact that 

 apples do sometimes, though very rarely, "mix" is of no practical 

 importance, but, as a scientific fact, it is of great importance, for the 

 reason that it has been repeatedly disputed by our learned horticulturists. 

 It is a rare thing to see what we usually call the fruit grown from her- 

 maphrodite flowers changed in character, even if fertilized by pollen 

 from another hermaphrodite flower of very different character die same 

 season. It is also rare, though less so, to see it in polygamous flowering 



