CHAPTER X 

 BURBANK'S WAY WITH TREES 



OF the many extraordinary things observed 

 when I first visited Mr. Burbank, perhaps 

 nothing impressed me more than the ex- 

 perience at Sebastopol, when the plant developer, 

 with eyes a-twinkle, invited me to " stoop down 

 and pick some chestnuts from the top of yonder 

 tree." 



The invitation was one that could be accepted in 

 a literal sense ; for we were standing in the midst 

 of what might be termed a chestnut forest in mini- 

 ature. About us were "trees" heavily laden with 

 chestnut burs inclosing nuts of the very largest 

 size ; and the tops of said trees were some of them 

 only knee-high, others being as high as the waist. 

 One had literally to stoop if one wished to touch 

 the tops of many of these anomalous nut-bearers. 



Yet the burs with which these miniature trees 

 were laden were obviously chestnut burs, the 

 leaves of the trees were those of the chestnut, 

 and the nuts themselves were found, on testing, 

 to be chestnuts not only of extraordinary size but 

 of the finest quality. 



To one who is accustomed to gather chestnuts 

 on occasion that have fallen from branches scores 



[206] 



