POMOLOGY 



1404 



of native species. In tlie first group are included tlie 

 prevailing types of apples, pears, quinces, cherries, do- 

 niestica plums, olives, cuiraiits, some of the gooseber- 

 ries. In the second group are citrous fruits, peaches, 

 apricots, Japanese plums, kaki, aud others, many of 

 them having come to us by 

 way of Europe. In the third 

 class-the Russian fruits- 

 are types of orchard fruits 

 of such recent introduction 

 amongst us that we have 

 not yet ceased disputing 

 about their merits and de- 

 merits ; therefore a spec 

 review of the subject is 

 made below. The fourth 

 class— the native fruits — in- 

 cludes the grapes of the east- 

 ern states, blackberries, 

 raspberries, many gooseberries, strawberries (of Chilean 

 origin), many plums, cranberries, and a few apples. 

 Histories of these fruits may be found in the writer's 

 "Sketch of the Evolution of our Native Fruits." 



L. H. B. 



Russian Frvits. — The Russian apples and theirclose 

 relatives, the Siberian crabs and their hybrids, consti- 

 tute the hardiest types of pomaceous fruits in cultiva- 

 tion. It was the demand for hardy varieties for the 



POMOLOGY 



uted throughout Ohio, Wisconsin and Minnesota. It 

 would appear that during the last half century — which 

 jiractically covers the pomological history of the West — 

 the periodicity of "hard" or "test" winters has been 

 more or less regular. When the normal or "mild" 



Showing, 



:an pioneers, tnese 



(Borovitskj ) and 



miported by tin 



1900 The pyniorm shap 



llistntirnl — There aie four vaiieties of Russian ap 

 pies that may be looked on as Am 

 are Alexander, Tetofbky, Dueh 

 Red Astrachan. These varieties 



Massachusetts Horticultural Society from the London 

 (England) Horticultural Society about 183.5. They 

 were brought to England from Russia in the early part 

 of the last century by the executive of 

 the latter society. Dr. Hogg is author- 

 ity for the statement that Alexander 

 was cultivated for 50 years in England 

 prior to 1808. Robert Manning, super- 

 intendent of the test garden of the 

 Massachusetts Horticultural Society 

 at Salem, described these varieties 

 from home-grown American specimens 

 in 1839. Their productiveness and the 

 handsome appearance of the fruit at- 

 tracted attention. Through the efforts 

 of Dr. Warder and other western po- 

 Tuologists they were rapidly distrib- 



ad oblate forms. 



winter obtains, the apples of the New England states or 

 their descendants do not, as a rule, suffer injury except 

 in the colder parts of Minnesota. These mild winters 

 have followed each other with delusive regularity for 

 periods of ten, fifteen or eighteen years. Under these 

 conditions fruit-growers have been prone to efface from 

 their memories the effects of the last "test winter" and 

 have planted freely of the American type. With this 

 type have been usually mingled Alexander, Oldenburg 

 and Red Astrachan. It has been invariably noted that 

 after the visitation of an exceptionally cold winter 

 varieties of the Oldenburg or Alexander types were 

 usually unharmed, while Greening, Janet, and Baldwin 

 were killed. "Test winters"-the name has more or 

 less local adaptation In the West— visited the north- 

 western states in 1855-G, 1872-3, 1885-6, and lastly in 

 1898-9. Thus it is that Oldenburg (Duchess) has be- 

 come a standard of hardiness among apples in the 

 colder parts of the United States and Canada. Impor- 

 tations of cions were made by nurserymen and fruit- 

 growers between 1H67 aud 1875, but the main introduc- 

 tion was made bv the If. S. Department of Agriculture 

 in 1870 at tlie ui -.-.nt i, .|U( st of the State Agiicultural 

 Society ot Mniiic^ ii wliith began the agit ition as 

 early as I'-i 7 II is importation consisted of young 

 trees secund tlmiuli the cooperation of Dr Edward 

 Regel, director of the Imperial Botanic Gardens at St. 

 Petersbuig. The tiees were planted on the grounds 

 of the Agucultuial Depaitment at Washington. The 

 collection consisted of about 300 \arieties. They were 

 t iKen charge of by the late William Saunders, superin- 

 tendent of gardens and grounds. All available cions 

 «ere cut and distubuted annually for five years. They 

 "itrr'icted consirlerable attention in the colder apple- 



I 1 I 1 I ii I \ i HI il College 



I I . il.b, of Ab- 



I I Budd, of 



1 i ' i 111 and spent 



tl ni II I 1 111 II \ II 111 111 1 1 ml 1 iige impor- 



I ,11 11^ ..I ,| I 1 1 liiiii- |. .1- ,11 i .Il iiips followed. 



\Mi, , II, Il il Willi, lit <lisi 1 iiiun Ui, ill ,11,1 in most in- 

 st mcps h v\ e lieen enoueously regaukd in this country 

 as authentic Russians. 



Apple', Chmiiefeiistics and yome»elatuie.-lt is 

 now very difficult to say which are Russian apples and 

 which German, Polish or Swedish. If we were to select 

 the Astrachan variety as a type of the Russian apple, 

 which in all probability would be a correct basis, only 



1901. Illustrating special 

 Showing, respectively. Ij 



