THE TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION OF APPLES. 85 



verse fissures or slit; or these slits may be covered with a velvety growth, 

 in which case the carpels are said to be tufted. The concavity of the halves 

 of the carpels may be little, giving a small, thin cell, or it may be medium 

 or great. 



Seeds. — The number of the seeds may be stated as few, medium or many, 

 and it is alwaj^s desirable in careful work to give the exact number of seeds. 

 Their condition may be 'plump, viedium or shriveled, and their size small, 

 medium or large. Size of seeds should be considered independent of the 

 size of the fruit, and, as elsewhere stated, if the dimensions, preferably in 

 millimeters, are given, it will contribute to the definiteness of the work. 



The color of the seeds should be taken only from thoroughly ripe seeds, 

 and is usually some shade of brown, olive or gray. The cross section, taken 

 through the largest part of the seed, may be roundish, oval or flattened, 

 while the longitudinal section, taken flatwise of the seed, may be long or 

 short; also it may be obtuse, acute or acuminate. 



Axis. — Axis length is considered in its relation to the size of the apple, 

 and therefore is related to form and the depths of the cavity and basin. 

 It may be long, medium or short. The direction is usually straight, but 

 occasionally, and usually in the York Imperial, we find the axis inclined. 



Flesh. — The flesh color is commonly white tinged more or less with 

 yellowish or greenish, and it may be stained in certain parts with pink or 

 crimson . The texture of the flesh is a very important factor, and may be 

 described as fine, medium, or coarse; also as buttery, melting, breaking, crisp 

 or firm, the terms being arranged in order. A buttery texture is found 

 only in those apples that break up and dissolve most readily in the mouth, 

 while those with a very firm texture are usually not thoroughly ripened 

 and break up only with some difficulty. 



The juiciness of the fruit deserves special mention. It may be little, 

 medium or much. It may be well to state that juiciness has no relation to 

 the amount of water in the fruit. 



Flavor. — Flavor and quality should be sharply differentiated, the former 

 being due largely if not entirely to the relative proportions of sugars, acid 

 and flavoring oils contained in the apple. It may be acid, subacid, sweet, 

 according to the ratio of sugars and acid. The presence of an abundance 

 of flavoring oil lends the quality often described as aromatic, but as aro- 

 matic relates to odor we prefer to use the word spicy, together with appro- 

 priate modifying adverbs, where the presence of flavoring oils is evident. 



Aroma. — The aroma of an apple is often a means of identification, and 

 it may be described as none, faint or distinct. If present it may be further 

 described as pleasant, or special terms may be devised to suit the peculiar 

 need. 



Quality. — The term "quality" is used with a variety of meanings. In 

 this bulletin it is meant to express the summation of the desirabihty of 

 the apple for human consumption for table or kitchen use, as the case may 

 be. Furthermore, it is the expression of the personal opinion of the indi- 

 vidual describing it, and therefore it varies with different persons. There 



