FOUR BURBANK PRUNES 57 



persevering effort and patient waiting in the 

 Sugar prune. 



In this, at last, I found a prune possessing the 

 best qualities of all the prunes combined in one; 

 and several of these qualities were intensified. 



The Sugar prune had no rival until the advent 

 of the still newer prune, the Standard, which I 

 introduced in 1910. 



When the selection of seedlings was made 

 from which the Sugar prune originated, about 

 one-half were at once discarded. Only those 

 were saved which had the customary indications 

 of good fruiting large leaves, prominent buds, 

 and strong, heavy wood with short joints. 



Grafts from the young seedlings were placed 

 upon Japanese plum stocks. This was done be- 

 cause there was no other stock at hand at that 

 time. It proved to be a costly experiment, be- 

 cause more than half of these new, promising 

 seedlings died before bearing fruit. Some of 

 the grafts did not start at all ; some made a short 

 growth and died the first season; some grew a 

 few seasons and died. Fortunately, however, 

 some thrived as well as on their own roots. 



The grafts that bore the first fruits of the 

 prune which was later named "Sugar," made a 

 fair but not a good union with the Japan plum. 

 Although the first fruits of this variety were 



