PEACH VARIETIES 265 



round in form and delicious in quality. The 

 tree has many qualities to commend it as it 

 grows large and is vigorous and hardy. If it 

 produced more fruit it would to-day have no 

 rivals in the orchard or in the market. 



Fruit-growers of a generation ago were 

 more familiar with the Early and Late Craw- 

 ford peaches than we are to-day. At that time 

 these were the two chief varieties of yellow 

 peaches. Both originated in the orchards of 

 William Crawford, Middletown, New Jersey, 

 early in the nineteenth century and were the 

 standard sorts for either home or market until 

 they were superseded by the Elberta type a 

 quarter of a century ago. I am often asked 

 why we do not grow more Crawford peaches 

 and less of the recently introduced and poorer 

 quality fruit. The same answer applies that 

 covers the question as to why we do not grow 

 more of the old Yellow Belief lower and Van- 

 devere apples. They are not reliable pro- 

 ducers and they are slow in coming into bear- 

 ing. But for these two faults the Crawfords 

 and the popular old apples would still be on 

 the market in large numbers. Fruit-growing, 

 however, is a business proposition, and the 

 orchardist can not be expected to grow those 

 sorts from which he can not make a profit. 

 Both the Early and Late Crawford are, in 

 most localities, unprofitable sorts. In a few 



