486 NEW JEESEY AGKICULTIJKAL COLLEGE 



time of maturing there is no ditrerenee between "Burpee" and 

 "Dreer," while the "Henderson"' gave pickings at a much earlier date 

 and has a long period of fruiting. At that time a full description of 

 each variety was prepared and published later in the report for the 

 year. The "Burpee" and "Dreer" are closely related and belong to 

 a distinct variety of the species, with the botanical name in full as 

 folloAvs: Phaseolus lunatus var. macrocarpus Benth. — that is, the 

 large-fruited lima — while the "Henderson"" belongs to the species, 

 but not the variety, and botanically is simply Phaseolus lunatus L. 



In order to show something of the history of the three sorts and 

 how recently they have been developed, the following is given as- 

 gathered from a bulletin* by Professor Bailey. The "Burpee" origi- 

 nated with Mr. Asa Palmer, of Kennet Square, Pa., and was intro- 

 duced to the public by Mr. Burpee in 1890 as the "Burpee Bush 

 Lima.'"' In 1883 ilr. Palmer found one plant of his pole lima beans 

 had rerooted after being eaten by cut-worms. It remained dwarfed 

 and produced a few seeds, and from these seeds the variety was devel- 

 oped. The "Dreer" originated from the "Challenger" pole bean by se- 

 lection of dwarf forms which a Mr. J. W. Kumerle found growdng in. 

 his field of beans at Newark, New Jersey, and was introduced in 1889 

 by both Thorburn and Dreer. It is of the same blood as the "Burp^'e." 

 Of the "Henderson," Professor Bailey writes: "It was picked up 

 twenty (thirty now) or more years ago Ijy a negro who found it grow- 

 ing along a roadside in Virginia. It was afterwards grown in various 

 gardens, and about 1885 it fell into the hands of a seedsman in Rich- 

 mond. Henderson purchased the stock of it in 1887, grew it in 1888 

 and offered it to the general public in 1889." 



Thus all varieties Avere introduced Avithin Iavo years. 



In 1898 the experiments with lima beans were limited to the tAvo 

 sorts, "Burpee"' and "Henderson," and while the study of the diseases 

 and their treatment were leading points in the work, a comparison of 

 the tAvo varieties Avas not overlooked. It Avas found that the "Hender- 

 son" is much less subject to the various l)ean diseases than the "Bur- 

 pee." The former Avill bear a half more plants in a roAv, owing to their 

 smaller size, and then Aveigh but a trifle more than two-thirds as many 

 of the "Burpee." The yield of fruit is, hoAveA'er, under such condi- 

 tions much in favor of the "Henderson," and the latter furnishes 

 pickings much earlier than the "Burpee" and fully as late in the 

 season. 



*The Dwarf Lima Beans, Bulletin 87, N. Y. Cornell Experiment Station, 1895. 



