The Hybrid Plums Described 213 



August 24, some days in advance of the Louisiana. The tree 

 has the habit and fruit.of the Louisiana, but that plum is more 

 distinctly heart-shaped. In common with others of these 

 hybrids, Georgia drops when it is still green in color, although 

 it is edible at that time, and a pinkish color appears if it is 

 allowed to lie on the ground. The tree is a spreading, twiggy 

 grower, with slender, glossy, half-zigzag branchlets and foliage 

 suggestive of some of the native plums." 



Golden (Gold, of Stark Brothers). — Robinson x Botan, 

 Robinson seed; i. e., Prunus angustifolia x P. triflora. Fruit 

 round or oblate, medium to large ; cavity medium deep, 

 rounded; stem short; no suture; color bright golden yellow, 

 overlaid when fully ripe with a fine pink blush, very pretty; 

 dots many, yellow, very dim ; bloom thin, white ; skin thin 

 but strong ; flesh rather soft and watery, yellow ; stone 

 medium or small, oval, but little flattened, strongly keeled, 

 cling; flavor sprightly; quality good. Season July 15 to 

 August 1. Tree dwarfish, rather Chicasaw-like in general 

 appearance, leaves small or very small, narrow, oval, tapering 

 above, tapering or unequally rounded at base, the upper sur- 

 face glabrous, slightly tomentous underneath, especially along 

 the veins, margins irregularly dull, crenulate, glandular, 

 petiole short, rather stout, with 2-3 small glands. 



The Chicasaw parentage preponderates in this variety, as 

 in many others of its class. The characters which are not 

 plainly Chicasaw are mostly anomalous, there being very little 

 apparent evidence of Japan parentage. An interesting variety 

 and worth a trial. The fruit is handsome and ships well, but 

 is inclined to ripen unevenly and to drop before ripe. The 

 tree is a good grower, and seems to be comparatively hardy. 

 It has stood the winters here in Vermont in almost perfect 

 condition, though several of the Wildgoose and Wayland 

 varieties suffered considerably. 



This variety has. sometimes been confused with Juicy, but 

 the two are altogether distinct, as may be seen from a com- 

 parison of the figures and descriptions here given. 



Mr. Burbank has sent me several very promising seed- 

 lings of Golden. 



Gonzales. — Fruit large, about the size and shape of Bur- 

 bank, nearly spherical, sometimes a little irregular, and occa- 

 sionally slightly pointed; bright, wine red, indistinctly striped 

 and splashed with deeper crimson, with many small, yellowish 

 dots ; bloom white ; skin moderately thick and firm, not harsh 

 nor astringent ; flesh rather firm and meaty, light red, 

 sweet and pleasant; stone medium size, oval, flattened, cling; 

 quality first-rate. Leaves narrow, oval, tapering almost 

 equally at both ends, margin finely crenulate and minutely 

 glandular, surface glabrous above, a few small, fine hairs on 



