42 



272 YEARBOOK OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



coDimercial orchards over a much wider area, where a white-fleshed 

 freestone, ripening earlier than Mountain Rose, is desired. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Form roundish, often distinctly conical; size medium to large; sur- 

 face smooth, well covered with soft, short, velvety down; color creamy 

 white, with a bright crimson blush on the side exposed to the sun; 

 cavity regular, of medium size, moderate depth, and abrupt slope; 

 suture shallow except near cavity; apex usually sharp and prominent; 

 skin rather thin and moderately tenacious; stone reddish, oval, long, 

 sharply pointed, quite smooth, and rather small; fltsh creamy white, 

 usually slightly stained with red both near skin and near stone, rather 

 firm though quite juicy; flavor slightly subacid, pleasant; quality 

 very good for so early a variety; season about with Tillotson, June 15 

 to July 1 in Houston County, Ga. Reported by Mr. J. H. Hale to 

 ripen about August 1 in Connecticut. 



Tree rather slender in growth, with leaves narrower than its sup- 

 posed parent, Belle; very productive, and considered equal to its 

 supposed parent in hardiness; glands reniform; flowers large. 



To the Hiley was awarded the Wilder medal of the American 

 Pomological Society at the Boston meeting in September, 1903, upon 

 the recommendation of the ad interim committee of awards, as a 

 promising new variety. 



WELCH PEACH. 

 [PLATE XXXV.] 



In many portions, of the country, where the climatic conditions 

 during the growing season favor the development of peaches, the 

 production of this delicious fruit is restricted by the occurrence of 

 occasional low temperatures in winter. This is especially true of 

 important districts in New England, New York, and the Lake region, 

 the climate of which is favorable to peach growing if good varieties 

 can be found that will endure occasional minimum temperatures of 

 10 to 15 F. in December, January, or February, when the trees 

 are dormant. The earlier commercial orchards of those regions were 

 planted with little reference to the fruit-bud hardiness of the varieties, 

 the most popular sorts being of the Crawford and Oldmixon types. 

 These succeeded well in favorable seasons, but usually failed when 

 minimum temperatures lower than 10 F. occurred. The general 

 failure of these varieties to produce regular crops aroused a very 

 general interest in the development of hardy types of the peach 

 throughout the North about thirty years ago. The occurrence of low 

 temperatures over wide areas during the winters of 1872-73 and 

 1874-75 brought to light the fact that one of the types most resistant 

 to winter cold was that which had been grown both in the form of 

 budded trees and seedlings for many years in different sections of 



