64 SYSTEMATIC POMOLOGY 



may be better mentioned in connection with 

 flavor than elsewhere. It will be well to re- 

 peat here what has already been said in 

 Chapter IV.: that flavor should not be a mat- 

 ter of personal judgment. Everybody ought 

 to agree as to whether a certain fruit is sweet 

 or sour. Such adjectives as " poor " or " good " 

 ought never to be applied to flavor. They 

 belong to quality, and represent the personal 

 judgment of the one who writes the descrip- 

 tion. 



The quality may be poor, medium, good, 

 very good, or extra. It will be seen from the 

 nature of these adjectives that they stand for 

 personal opinions of quality, and not for any 

 absolute standards. Persons often differ in 

 their judgments of quality. Some persons 

 honestly prefer a Late Crawford peach to a 

 Waddel, but other persons, like the writer, 

 think the Waddel is much the better peach. 

 This should always be borne in mind : Under 

 the head of quality the describer is always 

 rendering his own personal judgment purely 

 and simply, while under the head of flavor 

 personal opinion must be entirely excluded. 



The season at which a fruit ripens is of 

 great practical importance, and should be put 



