PROMISING NEW FRUITS. 309 



bling, meaty, juicy; flavor sweet, rich; quality good to very good. 

 Season rather late, following Bing. 



The fruit is borne in large clusters, a twig 3J inches long received 

 in 1907 having 23 well-developed fruits upon it. The tree is a strong 

 and vigorous grower, with large leaves. 



The specimens illustrated on Plate XXXI were grown by Mr. J. R. 

 Xunnamaker, Hood River, Oreg. 



MILLER PERSIMMON. 

 [PLATE XXXII.] 



While the Japanese persimmon or kaki (Diospyros kaki) has re- 

 ceived much more attention from American fruit growers than our 

 native species, the most widely distributed and abundant of these, 

 Diospyros virginiana, is gradually creeping into cultivation and will 

 doubtless eventually be recognized as an important economic species 

 throughout our southern States. Though lacking the large size and 

 brilliant color of the Oriental type, the superior hardiness of the tree 

 of the native species, coupled with its regularity of bearing and en- 

 durance of climatic vicissitudes, largely compensates for these short- 

 comings. The choice varieties that are gradually being brought to 

 light are also of richer flavor and finer quality than any of the 

 Japanese sorts yet introduced. 



One of the largest and most promising of these from the com- 

 mercial standpoint is the Miller, which was discovered by Col. J. C. 

 Evans in 1894, in Jackson County, Mo., in an abandoned field on 

 the farm of a man bearing that name. Colonel Evans secured scions 

 from this tree and now has an orchard of 200 trees of the variety 

 in bearing. He finds it a regular and abundant bearer and markets 

 the fruit in Kansas City and other city markets in 8-pound grape 

 baskets, which usually sell for 50 to 75 cents. At these prices he 

 considers it the most profitable fruit he grows. He contemplates 

 using paper boxes of a size that will hold about 1 dozen persimmons, 

 so that the fruit can be left on the tree until it begins to soften and 

 still stand shipment for considerable distances. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Form roundish oblate ; size large to very large for its class ; cavity 

 regular, small, shallow; calyx large, 4 or sometimes 5 parted; stem 

 short, moderately stout; apex a point protruding from a very slight 

 depression; surface moderately smooth; color reddish, translucent, 

 covered with profuse bluish white bloom; flesh yellowish, translu- 

 cent, with yellow veins and quite meaty ; seeds medium, plump, 

 broad, brown, rather numerous; flavor sweet and rich, though 



Letter of J. C. Evans, Harlem, Mo., October, 1907. 

 4862308 2 



