APPLES. 145 



saucer-like and undulating basin. Stamens, basal ; tube, very shallow, 

 conical. Stalk, very short, not extending beyond the base ; stout, and 

 inserted in a narrow cavity. Flesh, yellowish, firm, not very juicy, 

 agreeably flavoured. Cells, round ; axile, closed or slit. 



A second-rate dessert apple, which keeps well till January. It is a 

 Dorsetshire apple. 



MELON APPLE. Fruit, medium sized, two inches and three- 

 quarters wide, and two inches and a half high ; roundish, but narrowing 

 a little towards the crown, and somewhat bluntly angular on the sides. 

 Skin, smooth, lemon yellow tinged with green, veined with very delicate 

 pale brown russet, on the shaded side ; on the side next the sun it is 

 pale bright crimson, with broken streaks of darker crimson and patches 

 and veins of very thin smooth pale brown russet. Eye, small and half 

 open, placed in a narrow, sometimes slightly angular basin. Stamens, 

 marginal, median or basal ; tube, conical. Stalk, half an inch long, 

 very slender, straight, and woody, inserted in an even, funnel-shaped, and 

 rather deep cavity, which is lined with brown russet. Flesh, yellowish 

 white, very tender and crisp, juicy, sweet, and vinous, with a delicate 

 and very agreeable perfume. Cells, round ; axile, slit. 



A first-rate dessert apple ; in use in December. 



An American apple of great excellence. It was raised in the State of New 

 York at a place called East Bloomfield. 



MELROSE (White Mclrose). Fruit, large, three inches and a 

 quarter wide, and three inches high ; roundish ovate, inclining to 

 conical, and broad at the base ; it has an irregularity in its outline, 

 caused by prominent ribs, which extend from about the middle to the 

 basin of the eye, where they form large and unequal ridges ; and also by 

 several flattened parts on the sides, giving it the appearance as if 

 indented by a blow. Skin, smooth and shining, pale yellow tinged 

 with green on the shaded side ; but yellow tinged with orange, and 

 marked with crimson spots and dots, on the side exposed to the sun. 

 Eye, large and closed, with broad flat segments, and deeply set in a 

 plaited and prominently ribbed basin. Stamens, marginal ; tube, funnel- 

 shaped. Stalk, very short, not more than a quarter of an inch long, 

 inserted in a deep, irregular cavity, in which are a few streaks and 

 patches of rough russet. Flesh, yellowish white, firm, but tender and 

 juicy, with a sweet and pleasantly sub-acid flavour. Cells, elliptical ; 

 abaxile. 



A very valuable and fine-looking apple, of first-rate quality, suitable 

 either for culinary purposes or the dessert ; it is in use from October 

 to January. The tree is a strong, healthy, and vigorous grower, and 

 forms a large round head. It is also an abundant and free bearer. 



This is an old Scotch apple, the cultivation of which is confined exclusively to 

 the Border counties, where it was probably first introduced by the monks of Melrose 

 Abbey. Though it is one of the most popular apples of the Tweedside orchards, 

 it does not seem to have been ever known beyond its own district. It is without 

 doubt the largest, and one of the most useful of Scotch apples, and requires onlv 



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