RALLS 



RED ASTRACHAN 



53 



radiating from the cavity, sometimes with a brownish- 

 red blush but never red ; dots conspicuous, white, often 

 areolar with russet center ; calyx-tube wide, conical ; 

 stamens median ; core large, axile j cells symmetrical, 

 closed or open, not uniformly developed ; core-lines 

 clasping ; carpels thin, broadly round, but slightly 

 emarginate if at all, often tufted ; seeds small, wide, 

 plump, acute, light brown, tufted ; flesh yellow, firm, 

 crisp and juicy, sweet with a peculiar flavor ; good ; 

 October to January. 



RALLS. Genet. Geneton. Genneting. Janet. 

 Rails Genet. Winter Genneting. Rails is a south- 

 ern apple, but its good characters have enabled 

 it to gain a foothold in parts of the North and 

 West as well. The apples are not large, nor 

 are they attractive in shape or color; but 

 they are excellent in quality, and this has 

 given the variety high place in the South, par- 

 ticularly in regions where the poorly flavored 

 Ben Davis and York Imperial are the chief 

 commercial apples. The young trees annually 

 bear large crops of apples of fair size, but the 

 old trees are biennial in bearing, and the 

 apples, though borne in great abundance, are 

 small. The variety is noted as one of the 

 latest to bloom, so that it often escapes un- 

 favorable weather at blooming time. The 

 origin of Rails is not known, but it first came 

 to the notice of fruit-growers about 1800 on 

 the farm of Caleb Rails, Amherst County, 

 Virginia. 



Tree of medium size, vigorous, upright-spreading, 

 inclined to droop, dense. Fruit medium in size, uniform 

 in size and shape, round-oblate or round-conic, sym- 

 metrical ; stem long and slender ; cavity obtuse, deep, 

 sometimes compressed or furrowed, often russeted ; calyx 

 small, open ; basin often oblique, wide, shallow, abrupt, 

 wrinkled ; skin smooth, yellow blushed and mottled with 

 red, indistinctly striped with carmine, overspread with 

 light bloom which with broken stripes of thin scarf-skin 

 gives the fruit a dull appearance ; dots numerous, small, 

 white or russet ; calyx-tube broad cone-shape ; stamens 

 marginal ; core axile or abaxile ; cells closed or partly 

 open ; core-lines meeting or clasping ; carpels flat, 

 broadly round, emarginate, tufted ; seeds narrow, plump, 

 acute, dark ; flesh white, firm, fine-grained, crisp, tender, 

 juicy, subacid, aromatic, pleasant ; very good ; No- 

 vember to April. 



RAMBO. Fall Rpmanite. Gray Romanite. 

 Large Rambo. Striped Rambo. Externally, 

 the fruit of Rambo is almost a counterpart of 

 that of the better-known Domine. The flavor 

 and the season of the two apples, however, is 

 quite distinct. Rambo is a mildly and richly 

 flavored late autumn apple, while Domine is 

 much more sprightly in flavor and is a long- 

 keeping winter apple. The trees of Rambo are 

 doubtfully hardy, with wood so brittle as often 

 to break under heavy loads. The variety has 

 never taken a prominent place among com- 

 mercial apples, and is surpassed for home use 

 by several of its orchard associates. Its origin 

 is unknown, but Coxe, in 1817, noted that it 

 was much grown in Delaware, Pennsylvania, 

 and New Jersey whence it spread westward 

 to parts of the Mississippi Valley, in many 

 localities of which it is still a favorite fruit. 



Tree of medium size, vigorous, upright-spreading, 

 open, the old bark peculiarly rough. Fruit medium in 

 size, uniform in size and shape, round-oblate or round- 

 oblong, symmetrical, usually regular but sometimes 

 faintly ribbed ; stem short, slender ; cavity regular, wide, 

 deep, acute, usually with outspreading russet ; calyx 

 small, usually closed ; lobes narrow, acute ; basin wide, 



deep, abrupt, often furrowed and wrinkled ; skin thin, 

 tough, smooth or roughened with russet dots, pale 

 yellow, mottled with red, striped with carmine and 

 overspread with gray bloom ; dots conspicuous, large, 

 white, gray or russet ; calyx-tube funnel-form, long with 

 wide limb ; stamens median ; core small, axile ; cells 

 closed ; core-lines clasping ; carpels round to broadly 

 obovate, emarginate, tufted ; seeds large, broad, flat, 

 obtuse, tufted, light and dark brown ; flesh yellow, firm, 

 fine, crisp, tender, juicy, mild subacid, aromatic ; 

 good to very good ; October to December or January. 



RAMSDELL SWEET. Hurlbut. Rams- 

 dell's Red. Red Pumpkin Sweet. Ramsdell 

 Sweet was once popular because of the hand- 

 some red color and good quality of the apples, 

 which, however, are not uniform in size or 

 shape. The trees are not fruitful enough to 

 give the variety value for commercial planta- 

 tions. Ramsdell Sweet was brought to notice 

 by Rev. H. S. Ramsdell, Thompson, Connecti- 

 cut, about 1838. Its culture is confined to the 

 East and North. 



Tree vigorous, upright, open. Fruit medium or large, 

 variable in size, uniform in shape, oblong-conic or 

 round-conic, often elliptical and faintly ribbed ; stem 

 short, slender, often red ; cavity acuminate, deep, broad, 

 symmetrical, often russeted ; calyx small, closed or 

 open ; lobes narrow, abrupt, faintly furrowed and 

 wrinkled ; skin thin, tough, smooth, yellow, overspread 

 with dark red, with obscure splashes and stripes of 

 carmine, overspread with bloom ; dots many, distinct, 

 conspicuous, large, pale yellow or gray, often sub- 

 merged^ prevailing effect red ; calyx-tube large, long, 

 cylindrical ; stamens median ; core small, axile or 

 abaxile ; cells symmetrical but not uniformly developed, 

 closed or open ; core-lines clasping ; carpels ovate ; seeds 

 small, narrow, plump, acute ; flesh yellow, firm, fine, 

 tender, juicy, sweet ; good to very good ; October to 

 February. 



RED ASTRACHAN. Fig. 45. Red As- 

 trachan is the standard red summer apple for 

 home orchards in the United States and Can- 

 ada, not because it is best in any of its char- 



45. Red Astrachan 



acters, but because it is considerably above 

 the average in all. The apples are beautiful 

 in color and shape when well grown, but are 

 often poorly colored and lacking in uniformity 

 of size and shape. They are fit for cooking 

 long before maturity, and, when fully ripe, are 

 fair for dessert, having a long season of useful- 

 ness. The trees come into bearing young and 

 bear regularly and abundantly, but are short- 

 lived and subject to most of the ills that 

 apple-trees are heir to. The apples cannot be 

 handled or stored, and, therefore, the variety 

 has small place as a market fruit. Red As- 



