162 The Principles of Fruit-growing 



RHODE ISLAND GREENING 



Good points: Bad points: 



1. Well known. 1. Sometimes scalds in storage. 



2. Productive. 2. Color. 



3. Good quality. 3. Scabs. 



4. Fine cooker. 4. Not so hardy as Baldwin. 



WEALTHY 



Good points: Bad points: 



1. Bears very early. 1. Drops badly. 



2. Hardy tree. 2. Ripens unevenly. 



3. Good quality. 



4. Uniform grade. 



5. Good color. 



GRAVENSTEIN 



Good points: Bad points: 



1. Fine quality, cooking and 1. Shy or biennial bearer. 



eating. 2. Winter-kills. 



2. Handsome appearance. 3. Collar rot, rank grower. 



3. Tree needs little pruning. 4. Fades in storage. 



4. Well known. 5. Sun-scald and canker. 



How did the varieties of fruits originate? 



Systematic breeding has not yet made very extensive 

 contributions to fruit-culture, although many interesting 

 experiments are now maturing. The importance of being 

 on the lookout for choice chance seedlings is as great as 

 ever. It may be well to consider how the existing varieties 

 of fruits have come into our practice. 



It seems to be next to impossible to enlighten the 

 public mind on this question, for whatever detailed 

 explanation one may give seems to leave the questioner 

 still unsatisfied and perhaps uninformed. The real cause 

 of this dissatisfaction is that persons assume that there 

 is something mysterious about the process of the origi- 



