SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL MEETING. 235 



proved quite tender in the bud. The latter has only this to recommend it 

 above its parent; it sets more buds, nearly double, and they stand more 

 freezing. 



Among the Barnards there were but few variations, three I think; Yellow 

 Honest John was one of them. With these exceptions all were true Barnard's 

 in appearance. And so with Hill's Chili. But few and slight variations were 

 noticeable. 



A lot of Hale's Early pits planted at the same time proved equally as satis- 

 factory. All were as good in quality as the Hale, some much better. The 

 greater proportion ripened with the Hale, some a week to two weeks later. 

 They (the fruit) varied more in general contour than any variety 1 had planted, 

 some being very much elongated like Hill's Chili and some very much com- 

 pressed. But I got no freestone, that I was looking for and am looking for 

 yet. 



My next venture was with Crawford's Late pits. These were planted five 

 years ago the past spring and fruited the first time the past season. About 

 one per cent, were clingstones and four trees bore oblong peaches like Hill's 

 Chili, with the same narrow, pointed pit aud solid, rich, yellow flesh. I think 

 these were fertilized with pollen from Hill's Chili, as the trees from which 

 the pits were taken were partially surrounded by an orchard of that variety. 

 One only was a white peach, which proved to be of superior quality. With 

 these exceptions, all (and there were between five and six hundred trees) were 

 true Crawford's Late so far as habit of tree and size and general appearance of 

 the fruit were concerned. 



Five years ago I first attempted artificial fertilization by using the pollen of 

 Hale on Crawford's Late blossoms. The result was a dozen trees, the most of 

 which bore the past summer. Two only showed their breeding and bore white 

 fleshed peaches, the one the shape of Crawford's Early with the same swollen 

 point; the other very nearly round, a little compressed. Both were as large as 

 Crawford's Late, ripened a week before Crawford's Early, and were very good 

 in quality, losing the extreme acidity of the parent on one side and the some- 

 times insipidity of the parent on the other. 



Of the Barnards, Hill's Chili, and Crawford's Late, no selection was made, 

 but all dug and planted as they came up in the nursery rows. 



I sometimes think it would have been better to have done the same with the 

 Crawford's Early seedlings. The chances of getting something new would 

 have been greater. One of the rejected seedlings was budded to Crawford's 

 Late which, after bearing several seasons, was broken off. The sprouts which 

 came up were left to stand and bore fruit, ripening six to eight days sooner 

 than Crawford's Early, and is otherwise, in every respect, the rival of that 

 famous variety. 



So far as these experiments go, I think I can safely say that pedigree does 

 favorably affect progress in securing better varieties. As who would think 

 for a moment that the same number of good peaches would have been produced, 

 had the pits been gathered from good, bad and indifferent varieties? 



Of grapes, I first planted seeds of Concord and Delaware. There were fifty 

 of the Concords, none of which proved of any value. The Delawares were so 

 puny I never removed them from the nursery rows. The next planted were 

 seed of Salem and Goethe. The Goethe plants proved to be weak and puny, 

 and so far have borne no fruit. The Salem were strong and robust almost to a 

 plant and commenced fruiting at from three to five years old. Quite a per 



