410 SYSTEMATIC POMOLOGY 



weighing eight or nine pounds, moderately compact; shouldered. Berries 

 large, oblong, red when mature, covered with lilac bloom; flesh firm, crisp, 

 sweet ; quality good. Season late, 



632. Emperor is one of the standard shipping grapes of the 

 Pacific sl()])c, and one of the mainstays of the ini;erior valleys. 

 On the coast and in southern California, the vine is irregular 

 in bearing, and on the coast the fruits often fail to ripen. It is 

 chiefly grown in the San Joaquin Valley. It could hardly be 

 expected to ripen even in the most favored grape regions in the 

 East. The following brief description is compiled : 



Vine strong, healthy and productive. Leaves very large, with 5 shallow 

 lobes; teetli short and obtuse; light green in color, glabrous above, woolly 

 beneath. Bunches very large, loose, sometimes inclined to be straggling, 

 long-conical. Berries large, dull reddish-purple, oval; flesh firm and crisp; 

 skin thick; flavor and quality good. Ripens late. 



Group 7. Berries Purple-hlack 



633. Purple Cornichon. Black Cornichon. — By virtue of at- 

 tractive appearance and excellent shipping qualities of the fruit, 

 this variety takes high place among the commercial grapes of 

 California. Late ripening is another quality making it desirable, 

 while its curious long curved berries add novelty to its attrac- 

 tions. The fruit does not take high rank in quality. The 

 description is compiled. 



Vine very vigorous, healthy and productive; wood light brown striped 

 with darker brown, short-jointed. Leaves large, longer than wide, deeply 

 5-lobed; dark green above, lighter and very hairy below; coarsely toothed; 

 with short thick petiole. Bunches very large, loose or sometimes scraggly, 

 borne on long peduncles; berries large, long, more or less curved, dark 

 purple, spotted, thick-skinned, borne on long pedicels; flesh firm, crisp, 

 sweet but not rich in flavor; quality good but not high. Season late. 



634. Mission. — Of all grapes, Mission has probably played the 

 most important part in the \'ineyards of California. Its viticul- 

 tural value for table and wine-press w^as early appreciated by 

 Californian grape-growers, and its cultivation rapidly spread to 

 every county in the state adapted to grape-grow4ng. With vines 

 vigorous, healthy, and productive, bearing grapes of delicious 

 quality, Mission is a mainstay on the Pacific slope, surpassed by 



