148 SYSTEMATIC POMOLOGY 



from spriiijr frosts lluni in most oilier spooies, cvon of tlie 

 natives. 



212. The woolly-leaved Americana plum. — Primus americana 

 hinata, Suilw., is a wi'sttTii and soul li western form of P. ameri- 

 cana, tlie sub-species being distinguished from the species by 

 tlie amount and eharaeter of the pubescence on the leaves and 

 shoots. The leaves, petioles and shoots of this plum are soft- 

 pubeseent, almost tomeutose, the tomentum being pale in 

 color and usually very dense; the ealyx-lobes are pubescent on 

 both sides and the pedicels are appressed and densely pubes- 

 cent. Two varieties of this sub-species, Wolf and Van Buren, 

 are in general cultivation in regions in which Americana plums 

 are grown. 



Hurtulaua plums. 



A valuable plum, P. horiidana, is wild in the southern and 

 central Mississippi Valley. These Hortulanas, of which there 

 are about twenty named sorts, are adapted to a wide range of 

 climate and soil and serve a somewhat distinct purpose in pom- 

 ology, that of a very good jelly-making plum. 



213. Botanical characters of P. hortulana. — Study of the P. 

 hortuhnia in the descrii)tion which follows, made from wild and 

 cultivated plants, shows that it is one of the most distinct 

 of the native plums. 



7. Prunus hortulana, Bailey. Tree 30 feet in height; branches rough 

 and shaggy; spreading, twiggy, slender, thorny; lenticels few, large, raised. 

 Leaves 1% inches wide, 3 to 5 inches long, long-oval with a tapering acumi- 

 nate apex, thin; margins serrate, sometimes in a double series, glandular; 

 veins very pubescent, with characteristic orange color ; midrib very promi- 

 nent; petioles slender, 1 inch in length, tinged with red; glands 2-8, small, 

 globose. Flowers blooming later than any other cultivated plum, % inch 

 across; clusters borne from lateral buds on one-year-old wood only, char- 

 acterizing the species; 2-6 flowers from a bud; pedicels -^ inch long, slen- 

 der, glabrous. Fruit very late, globose, oval, 1 inch in diameter; red or yel- 

 low; dots numerous, small, conspicuous; suture shallow or a line; skin thick, 

 tough, astringent; flesh yellow, juicy, coarse, fibrous, firm, sweet, astringent 

 at the pit, aromatic ; stone clinging to the flesh, turgid, long-oval, small, pro- 

 longed at the ends, the surfaces rough and reticulated. 



214. Pomological characters of Hortulana plums. — The 



Hortulanas are particularly suited to the ^lississippi Valley 

 and southern states, and fruit \vell as far north and east as 



