THE PLUM IN KANSAS. Ill 



saw the tree here described, upon the editor's grounds, just before the 

 fruit was ripe, and it appeared to be free from curculio injury. 



The Abundance plum (August 4) at the Rural grounds is a sight to behold. 

 The branches are wreaths of fruit, and they, as well as the tree itself, are held up 

 by props and ropes. Some of the plums are beginning to color; all are of good 

 size, and, though the old marks of the curculio sting are engraved upon most of 

 them, no injury seems as yet to have resulted. For twenty years, off and on, the 

 Rural Neiv Yorker has tried so-called curculio-proof plums. We have never 

 used insecticides nor jarred the trees to destroy them, and we have never before 

 had a crop of plums. Plums are not raised in the vicinity, simply because the 

 people are not willing to put themselves to the trouble of jarring the trees, and they 

 know from experience that they cannot raise plums without doing so. Now, 

 here we have the AV)undance loaded down with beautiful fruit, while not a pre- 

 caution has been taken to destroy the curculio. Blessed be the Abundance! It 

 is well named. 



So far as I have been able to learn, none of the varieties are seri- 

 ously attacked by black-knot, although the disease occurs on them. 

 This circumstance, however, should not be dwelt upon too strongly, 

 for it is possible that the exemption is largely accidental. Yet I have 

 seen perfectly healthy trees on the Hudson river where all the com- 

 mon plums in the neighborhood were seriously injured. The varieties 

 appear to be nearly exempt from leaf-blight, also. 



The Japanese plums are commonly budded upon the peach, and so 

 far very few complaints have reached me from failure of the union ; 

 but I shall be surprised if as strong and permanent results come from 

 the use of this stock as from the use of their own seedlings or Domes- 

 tica stocks. 



REVIEW. 



1. Twenty-four years ago a plum was introduced into California 

 from Japan which proved to belong to a species heretofore unknown 

 in America. It was first fruited by the late John Kelsey, of Berkeley, 

 Cal., and for him it was named. It began to attract wide attention 

 about ten years ago. 



2. This plum belongs to the species P. trijlova, which is supposed 

 to be native to China, but which is unknown in a wild state. Subse- 

 quent importations have been made from JajDan, and at the present 

 time about thirty varieties are more or less known and disseminated. 



3. These Japanese plums are distinguished from the common Do- 

 mestica plums by their generally more-pointed or heart-shaped fruit, 

 which has a deep groove or suture upon one side, by a longer-keeping 

 flesh, and generally a less-winged pit. In other botanical features 

 they differ, in commonly bearing three or more winter buds at a joint, 

 instead of one, in the light-colored rough bark, flowers usually in twos 

 or threes, leaves long-obovate or elliptic and finely serrate. They 

 are closely allied in botanical characters to some types of native plums. 



