EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETINS 233 



CHESTNUTS— EUROPEAN GROUP. 



The trees of this group are upright, spreading, strong growers with stout branches 

 and large, thick leathery leaves. The nuts which are of large size and usually of 

 quite good qualitv, are borne in very large, thick burs. 



Comfort.— Planted in 1894. The tree has grown well, but has fruited very sparingly 

 up to the present time. The nuts are as large as Paragon and of good quality. 



Numbo. — The poorest grower among the European chestnuts on trial. The nuts are 

 large and sweet. Eipens quite early. Does not give much promise of proving valuable. 



Paragon. — A good grower and an abundant bearer. A six-year-old tree this season 

 yielded eight quarts of large sound nuts of good quality. Comes into bearing early 

 and bears regularly. By far the best variety thus far tested either among the 

 European or Japan kinds. 



Spanish. — This variety was badly frozen during the winter of 1898-9, and died 

 after producing a smallcrop of nuts the following autumn. The fact that the tree is 

 tender renders the variety undesirable. 



CHESTNUTS— JAPANESE GROUP. 



The Japan chestnut is of much more recent introduction than the European having 

 been first imported about 1876, while trees and nuts of the European group were 

 brought to the United States one hundred years ago. The introduction of the Japan 

 cliestnut awakened considerable interest in chestnut culture and the varieties which 

 were imported direct, together with a much larger niimber which are the result of 

 careful selection from thousands of seedlings grown by a number of nurserymen, 

 have been widely disseminated. Nowhere in Michigan have plantings assumed the 

 projiortions of commercial orchards as in some of the eastern states, but considerable 

 interest has been manifested and in some instances, at least, should prospects appear 

 sufficiently encouraging, the small plantings with a view to securing a few nuts 

 for home use, would be supplemented by larger plantings for profit. The trees of this 

 group are slow growers of rather dwarfish habit with roundish bushy heads, slender 

 branches, and small, long, narrow leaves. The nuts are large, somewhat inferior to 

 the European in quality, and are borne in rather small thin burs. This group retains 

 its foliage considerably later than the European. 



Hale.— One of the tlirec varieties (Coe, Hale and McEarland) owned and propagated 

 by J. H. Hale. South Glastonbury, Conn. The three Avere selected by Luther Burbank 

 from a lot of ten thousand bearing seedlings raised by him from imported nuts. 

 The Hale bears very young. A tree planted in the spring of '99 this season produced 

 about a dozen perfect nuts. The nuts are large and attractive in appearance and 

 are borne in round thin burs. In quality they are sweet and quite good although 

 inclined to be a trifle dry and starchy. Pequires further trial. 



Japan Improved. — The trees were planted in 1890 and have grown very slowly. 

 The nuts are of inunense size, rather light color, and of good quality. The burs which 

 are round and thin u.sually contain either one or two nuts. This variety proves to 

 be ratlier unproductive here. 



Reliance — Received from William Parry, of Parry. N. J., in 1899. This season a 

 number of perfect specimens were borne. They are of medium size, quality fair. Has 

 grown very slowly but this may perhaps be attributed in part to its early bearing 

 tendency. 



FILBERTS. 



Filberts have fruited better here this sca.son than ever before. Ordinarily the 

 catkins have been more or less frozen and but little or no fruit has been produced. 

 They are valuable i)lants for ornamental purposes and can be expected to produce some 

 fruit under favorable condition>. 



Cosford. — A thin shelled variety of best qualtiy. Tlie variety is liardy and is more 

 certain to fruit than Kentish Cob. The nuts are above medium in size, elongated, 

 smooth, and attractive. The plants are a little less thrifty in growth than Kentish 

 Cob. 



Kentish Cob — The bush is a very strong grower with large thick leaves. Eight- 

 year-old plants produced about three quarts of nuts each this season. The nuts are 

 very large, at least a half larger than Cosford, elongated, of good quality. 



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