WHITE GRAPE 



CHAMPION 



pact, tips poorly filled, with berries small to medium, 

 cling well, round-oblate, yellowish-white ; skin thin, 

 smooth, tender ; flesh white, rather dry, fine-grained, mild 

 subacid, almost sweet ; quality excellent ; seeds small, 

 rather numerous. 



WHITE GRAPE. White Antwerp. White 

 Grape is distinguished by having the largest 

 cluster and berry of all white-fruited currants. 

 The quality of the fruit is not so good as that 

 of White Dutch, being sourer and not so rich. 

 Because of its handsome fruits and fill-basket 

 qualities, it is the best commercial variety of 

 the white currants. Its history is unknown, 

 except that it came from Europe and has long 

 been grown in America. There are several 

 synonyms, the nomenclature being in a bad 

 state of confusion. 



Plants of medium size and vigor, spreading, some- 

 times sprawling, productive ; canes and branches rather 

 slender. Leaves of medium size, thick, soft, pubescent 

 on lower surface, yellowish-green. Flowers midseason, 

 R. rubrum type. Fruit midseason ; clusters long, tips 

 filled poorly, loose, berries 8-16 ; berries large, round- 

 ovate, clear translucent white, not creamy as is White 

 Dutch ; flesh firm, juicy, subacid ; quality good ; seeds 

 large, numerous. 



WHITE IMPERIAL. The fruits of White 

 Imperial are rated as best in quality of all 

 currants. The rich, almost sweet flavor, 

 makes it a choice dessert fruit. The plant- 

 characters are not so good as those of several 

 other white varieties, and the currants are not 

 so attractive in appearance. The history of 

 the variety is not known, except that it was 

 sold and strongly recommended by the late 

 S. D. Willard, Geneva, New York, beginning 

 about 1890. 



Plants rather small, spreading, medium in vigor and 

 productiveness. Leaves and flowers of the R. rubrum 

 type ; flowers midseason. Fruit midseason ; clusters 

 medium to long, well filled to the tips ; fruit-stems 

 long, making easy work in picking ; berries medium 

 to large, creamy white, roundish ; flesh firm, juicy, 

 sweet, rich ; quality excellent ; seeds medium in size 

 and number. 



WILDER. Fig. 267. Presi- 

 dent Wilder. Wilder is a red 

 currant of the Versailles type, 

 being a seedling of that sort, 

 which it greatly surpasses in 

 vigor, productiveness, and 

 size and appearance of fruit. 

 In the great currant regions 

 of New York, Wilder is now 

 the favorite variety, and in 

 the race for commercial su- 

 premacy continues to increase 

 the lead it now holds The 

 fruits are exceptionally hand- 

 some, higher in quality, and 

 hang longer after ripening 

 than those of any other com- 

 mercial sort. A fault is that 

 the fruits are not always uni- 

 form in size. Wilder orig- 

 inated with E. G. Teas, Irvington, Indiana, 

 about 1878. 



Plants large, upright-spreading, vigorous, healthy, 

 productive. Leaves large, nearly flat, milky-green, 

 thick. Flowers early, R. vulgare type. Fruit late; 



clusters long, compact, tips filled rather poorly ; fruit- 

 stems long; 8-10 berries; which are large, variable in 

 size, round-oblate, dark red ; flesh red, firm, juicy, mild 

 subacid ; quality good ; seeds large, numerous. 



VARIETIES OF BLACK CURRANTS 



BALDWIN. This black currant is listed 

 in European catalogs and is offered occasion- 

 ally by American nurserymen. European 

 writers say that it is the earliest black currant 

 to leaf, and that the fruit is not so strong in 

 flavor as that of other black currants. Beach 

 of Geneva, New York, described the variety 

 in 1895 as follows: 



"Bush moderately vigorous, and productive. Fruit 

 varies from small to large, averaging medium size. 

 Flavor milder than that of Common Black. It is sev- 

 eral days later than Common Black in ripening." 



BLACK GRAPE. Ogden's Black Grape. 

 This is an old English currant introduced in 

 America about 1885. In England, it is strongly 

 recommended for a market sort because of its 

 vigorous, productive bushes and its large, sweet 

 berries. In America, it was reported in 1895 

 on the grounds of the New York Agricultural 

 Experiment Station as vigorous but unpro- 

 ductive, and as producing fruits which varied 

 from large to small, with strongly flavored 

 acid pulp. 



BOSKOOP GIANT. Fig. 

 268. In England, where this 

 fruit is much more highly 

 esteemed than in America, 

 Boskoop Giant is rated as 

 quite the best all-round black 

 currant. The characters which 

 recommend it are very large, 

 sweet, richly-flavored berries, 

 and vigorous, productive 

 bushes. The plants flower 

 late, but the fruit ripens early. 

 The crop can be gathered at 

 one picking, and the berries 

 hang long on the bushes after 

 ripening. The variety was 

 imported into England from 

 Holland in 1896, by George 

 Bunyard & Co., Ltd., Maid- 

 stone, and was soon after 

 brought to America by several 

 nurserymen. 



Plants large, vigorous, upright, 

 productive ; canes numerous, rather 

 slender. Leaves large, dull green, with numerous, aro- 

 matic glands on the under surface ; margin coarsely 

 serrate ; petiole short. Flowers late. Fruit midseason ; 

 clusters large, loose, not well filled ; stem long, 

 glandular ; berries 8-14, large, cling well, round, black ; 

 skin glandular, thin, opaque ; flesh greenish, tinged red 

 at skin, fine-grained ; juicy, rich and sweet, aromatic ; 

 quality excellent ; seeds small, numerous. 



CHAMPION. This black currant has long 

 been grown in New York, where it is liked 

 for its vigorous, productive bushes and large, 

 mild-flavored currants. It seems to have been 

 brought to the United States from England 

 about 1880, but how long it was cultivated in 

 the Old World does not annpor 



268. 

 Boskoop 



Giant. 



