ON SPECIFIC NEEDS 
in a state of nature and gives us a clue as to what 
qualities of fruit are advantageous to the apple 
itself, and what ones have been bred into the 
stock to meet the demands of the fruit developer. 
So the fact that the wild crab apple is dull in 
color suggests that the variously pigmented coat 
of the cultivated apple is an artificial product, not 
primarily beneficial to the plant itself, that man 
has developed through selection. 
It is not unlikely that the relatively thin skin 
of the cultivated apple, coincidentally developed, 
makes pigmentation desirable, to protect the tis- 
sues of the fruit from too much sunlight. The 
fact that many apples redden where exposed to 
the sun, and remain green where protected by 
the shadow of a branch or leaf, suggests that such 
is the case. 
Be that as it may, the point I wish to emphasize 
at the moment is that the pigmented coat of the 
apple has been produced mostly by unconscious 
artificial selection. There can be no doubt that 
the pear could be similarly given a brightly col- 
ored skin should anyone care to take the trouble 
to make the experiment in selective breeding. 
Indeed, a few varieties of partly red pears have 
been developed, and have proved a valuable nov- 
elty in the market. Other and better varieties, 
variously tinted, should follow. 
[25] 
