lOu 



362 YEARBOOK OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



translucent, juicy, and rather meaty; seeds few, very small, brown; 

 flavor refreshing subacid to sweet and aromatic; quality good to 

 very good. Season, late August and early September in Franklin 

 County, Ark., ten days or two. weeks later than Delaware. 



The vine is reported by the originator to be very vigorous and 



productive. 



The cluster illustrated on Plate XXIX was grown by Mr. Joseph 

 Bachman, at Altus, Franklin County, Ark. 



JOSEPHINE PERSIMMON. 



(SYNONYMS: American Honey; Honey.) 



[PLATE XXX.] 



Of the varieties of this valuable native fruit that have thus far 

 been brought to the attention of the Department of Agriculture, the 

 best in dessert quality is the one here described. It was received 

 first from T. V. Munson & Son, of Denison, Tex., who have catalogued a 

 it since 1896 as "American Honey," their dissemination consisting 

 chiefly of seedlings grown from a top-grafted tree standing upon their 

 grounds. Attention to. the apparent identity of American Honey 

 and Josephine, a variety gratuitously disseminated by the late Judge 

 Samuel Miller, of Bluff ton, Mo., having been called by Mr. Benjamin 

 Buckman, 6 of Farmingdale, 111., recent investigation has revealed 

 the following interesting facts : 



About 1882 or 1883 the late Judge Miller discovered a wild per- 

 simmon tree bearing fruit of superior quality on the farm of Mr. 

 Dennis Watson, about a mile east of Bluffton, Mo. c The tree was 

 then about 3 inches in diameter, and stood close to the bank of the 

 Missouri River, where it was in danger of being undermined by that 

 unruly stream. Though a large tree of this species to transplant, 

 in 1883 Judge Miller, with the help of his sons, dug it up and trans- 

 ported it in a small boat to his home garden at Bluffton. The trans- 

 planted tree never thrived in its new location, but the variety was 

 preserved by grafting, and was gratuitously disseminated by him 

 among his friends and correspondents in many parts of the country. 

 Later he named it Josephine, in honor of a daughter of Mr. Watson, 

 on whose farm the original tree was found. This name Mr. Miller 

 published in 1894. d Meanwhile, Prof. T. V. Munson had received from 

 Judge Miller, about 1883 or 1884,* three lots of native persimmon 

 scions, designated as follows: "Flat fruited," "round fruited," and 



a Letter of T. V. Munson, November, 1906. 



& Benjamin Buckman in Rural New Yorker, February 20, 1904, p. 130. 



c Letter of Samuel E. Miller, December, 1906. 



d Colman's Rural World, February 15, 1894, p. 51. 



Letters of T. V. Munson, November, 1906. 



