24 Plums and Plum Culture 



mentioned, is called Dame Aubert in nearly all the 

 European literature. This is undoubtedly the same 

 variety which we know as Yellow Egg, or Magnum 

 Bonum. The only other varieties of this type which 

 I know are Golden Drop and Grand Duke. 



The group characters of these varieties may be 

 summarized as follows: Large growing trees, with 

 large foliage; fruit, very large oval, with more or less 

 of a neck; yellow or greenish yellow, or purplish ;flesh 

 yellow. 



The Primes. — Horticulturists are now and always 

 have been much at variance as to what should be 

 called a prune. In this country, particularly in the 

 Pacific states, a prune is any plum that can be dried 

 and sold as a prune. From the standpoint of classi- 

 fication, such a definition cannot be accepted. Such 

 an application of the term has never been made in 

 France or Germany, where these plums are largely 

 grown. The confusion which arises from the loose 

 use of the term prune is painfully evident, especially 

 to Pacific coast horticulturists; and it seems much 

 better when we speak of prunes to use that word to 

 designate a pomological group rather than a commer- 

 cial accident. From the standpoint of classification, 

 the only proper way to do is to select some type which 

 has certain visible and recognizable characteristics, 

 and to call those varieties prunes which bear a suffi- 

 cient resemblance to the selected type. The variety 

 which would be best understood and most readily 

 accepted as a type by American pomologists is doubt- 

 less Fellenberg, sometimes called Italian Prune. Other 

 varieties which might be commony accepted as prunes 

 are German Prune, and Prune d'Agen. 



The group characters which may be assigned to 

 the prunes, considering them as a distinct type, are as 

 follows: Trees and foliage, various; fruit, mostly 



