170 THE STRAWBERRY IN NORTH AMERICA 



from neglect. At present they are grown only as curiosi- 

 ties. A white variety of F. vesca was mentioned by Ruel- 

 lius in 1536. Wild white-fruited forms of F. vesca, F. 

 virginiana and F. chiloensis are common in North America, 

 especially of F. vesca. 



While color is largely a matter of taste, it should be said 

 that dark red varieties show bruises somewhat less than 

 light sorts. The color can be too intense ; blackish sorts, 

 like the old Black Defiance, would not sell well now. Some 

 dark red varieties, as the Brandywine, are dull in color 

 and fade quickly after picking. A bright, glossy, dark 

 red, one that is "live" and does not fade or wilt, is most 

 desirable. A glossy, mahogany red, as in the Warfield 

 and Brunette, rarely fails to command approval. A very 

 few markets prefer bright, light red berries, like the 

 Jucunda, for the same reason that Rhode Island Green- 

 ing apples sell better in New York than in St. Louis, the 

 market is used to them. 



There has been much indefiniteness in describing the 

 color of strawberries. Quite frequently the terms scarlet 

 and crimson have been used interchangeably. Accord- 

 ing to the Century Dictionary, scarlet is "a highly chro- 

 matic and brilliant red color inclining toward orange"; 

 while crimson is "a highly chromatic red color somewhat 

 inclining towards purple; deep red." It has been pro- 

 posed that the terms light red, medium red and dark red 

 be used, but these are hardly suitable, since the difference 

 between scarlet and crimson is in quality of color as well 

 as in intensity of color. The berry should ripen evenly 

 and be uniformly red all over. White tips are no longer 

 tolerated. This is a defect of Sharpless and is present to 

 a lesser degree in Glen Mary and several other contempo- 

 raneous varieties. 



