DESCRIBING POME FRUITS 55 



proper to say that the flavor is good or bad. 

 Good and bad relate to quality, which see. 



The quality may be very poor, poor, fair, 

 fair to good, good, very good, or extra. These 

 terms are all relative, and all express a per- 

 sonal judgment. Men may honestly disagree 

 as to quality. Some persons say that Kieffer 

 pear is good, while others rate Howell as 

 only fair to good. 



The season stands for that period when the 

 fruit is really ready for table. Of course, a 

 Roxbury Russet or a Willow Twig is mature 

 (ripe) when it is picked from the tree in Oc- 

 tober, but it is not in season until it is at its 

 best condition for use along in April or May 

 following. It is often very difficult, with a 

 sample of fruit' in hand, to determine what its 

 proper season is. Usually it is necessary to 

 have considerable experience with the variety 

 grown and ripened under varying condi- 

 tions, and kept in different kinds of storage 

 before one can decide just what its proper 

 classification is. Of course, with summer 

 fruits there is little or fio trouble of this sort. 



