18 



BEN DAVIS 



BETHEL 



are subject to sun-scald and canker. Belmont 

 originated in the garden of a Mrs. Beam, 

 Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, about 1800, 

 but was introduced and named many years 

 after from Belmont County, Ohio. 



Tree of medium size, upright-spreading, vigorous. 

 Fruit medium or large, uniform in size and shape, round- 

 oblong to oblate-conic, broadly and indistinctly ribbed, 

 irregular ; stem short, slender ; cavity large, acuminate, 

 deep, broad, wavy, irregular, usually with thin brown 

 russet, sometimes lipped ; calyx small, closed ; basin 

 shallow to deep, abrupt, furrowed and wrinkled ; skin 

 thick, tough, smooth, waxen, clear bright yellow with 

 bright orange-red blush ; dots whitish with minute 

 russet point, oftan submerged, on the blushed portion 

 becoming red areolar ; prevailing color yellow ; calyx-tube 

 long, elongated-cone-shaped ; stamens marginal ; core 

 large, axile, sometimes closed ; core-lines clasping ; 

 carpels round-cordate, tufted ; seeds long, acute, tufted ; 

 flesh yellow, firm, fine, crisp, tender, juicy, mild, sub- 

 acid ; very good ; October to February. 



BEN DAVIS. Fig. 8. Baltimore Pippin. 

 Kentucky Pippin. New York Pippin. Red 

 Pippin. Victoria Pippin. Ben Davis has the 

 high place in the South and Middle West that 

 Baldwin holds in the North and East, and, even 

 in the latter regions, it ranks among the leading 

 half-dozen commercial apples. But for the fatal 

 fault of poor quality, Ben Davis would probably 

 surpass Baldwin as a commercial variety, since 

 it is least of all apples subject to local preju- 

 dices as to soils and climates, and about the 

 latest in season, and since it stands shipping and 

 handling better than any other standard apple. 

 Nurserymen like the variety because the 

 young trees make a rapid and presentable 

 growth where those of other varieties often fail. 



8. Ben Davis. (XV 2 ) 



The trees are vigorous, thrifty, hardy, healthy, 

 bear young, annually, and abundantly, blos- 

 som late, and are, all in all, ideal in every 

 respect except that they are short-lived and 

 produce small apples as they grow old. The 

 apples are large, uniform in size and shape, and 

 are handsomely mottled, striped and splashed 

 with bright red on a yellow background. 

 There are few more beautiful apples. Looks 

 belie the taste, however, as the fruits are poor 

 in quality, though in the late spring they are 

 acceptable for dessert, as they are at all times 

 for cooking. The origin of Ben Davis is not 

 known, but it has been cultivated in parts 

 of the South since about 1800. It seems not 

 to have been described until the 1857 edition 

 of Downing's great book. 



Tree medium in size, very vigorous, upright-spreading ; 

 branches strong, with numerous short laterals and spurs, 



drooping. Leaves large. Fruit medium to large, vary- 

 ing from conic to oblong, broad, rounded at the base, 

 often elliptical or irregular, sides sometimes unequal, 

 uniform in shape and in size ; stem long, slender ; 

 cavity acute, deep, symmetrical, often with rays of 

 thin greenish-russet; calyx closed, with short, acute 

 lobes ; basin abrupt, medium in width and depth, obtuse, 

 sometimes furrowed, usually oblique ; skin tough, waxy, 

 bright, smooth, glossy, yellow, mottled and washed with 

 bright red, striped and splashed with carmine ; dots 

 inconspicuous, scattering ; prevailing effect bright deep 

 red, striped ; calyx-tube short, cone-shaped, with a long 

 cylinder, frequently with a fleshy projection of pistil 

 point into its base ; stamens median ; core axile, closed 

 or partly open ; core-lines clasping ; carpels flat, obovate, 

 emarginate, mucronate ; seeds large, long, irregular, 

 wide, plump, acute, dark brown ; flesh yellow, firm, 

 coarse, aromatic, juicy, mild subacid ; good ; January 

 to June. 



BENONI. Fig. 9. Benoni falls short of 

 being a most excellent market and home apple 

 through the smallness of the fruits, and the 

 unproductiveness and biennial bearing habit 



9. Benoni. (XV 2 ) 



of the trees. When well grown it is a beautiful 

 and delicious dessert apple. The variety 

 originated at Dedham, Massachusetts, some- 

 time before 1832, when it was first described. 

 It is now chiefly grown in Illinois, Missouri, 

 and neighboring states. 



Tree large, vigorous, erect or round-topped, dense. 

 Fruit medium or small, round-conic, faintly ribbed 

 toward the apex, sides unequal ; stem short or very 

 short, slender ; cavity acute, narrow, deep, wavy, green- 

 ish-russet ; calyx small, partly open, pubescent ; basin 

 medium in width and depth, abrupt, wrinkled ; skin 

 smooth, orange-yellow, partly covered with red striped 

 with carmine ; dots scattering, minute, white ; stamens 

 basal ; core small, axile ; cells closed ; core-lines meeting ; 

 carpels round, elongated, emarginate ; seeds few, dark, 

 brown, medium in size, plump, obtuse ; flesh yellow, 

 firm, crisp, fine-grained, tender, juicy, pleasant subacid ; 

 good to very good ; August and early September. 



BETHEL. Fig. 10. Bethel falls at once 

 through its fruit and tree characters into the 

 well-known Blue Pearmain group of apples. 

 It is probably worth planting only in regions 

 where Baldwin is injured by cold. The apples 

 are bright dark red, uniform in size, fair in 

 quality, and keep well, but do not ship well. 

 The trees are vigorous, healthy, hardy, long- 

 lived, fruitful, bear young and annually, but 

 often lose the crop before picking time. The 

 stem of Bethel is characteristically curved to 

 one side. Culture of the variety is largely 

 confined to the New England states. Bethel 

 is often confused with Stone, but the two, as 

 the descriptions show, are quite distinct. The 

 variety originated at Bethel, Vermont, some 

 time previous to 1886. 



