166 APRICOTS. 



ness. In the gardens and nurseries it is continually confound- 

 ed with other sorts, particularly with the Turkey and the Brus- 

 sels, two kinds superior in quality, especially the former, and 

 both of which ripen some days later : the former is distin- 

 guished by its finer, rounder, more highly coloured, firm and 

 rich fruit, with a sweet kernel ; the latter by the deep colour 

 of its skin, even on a wall, and its firm, juicy, subacid pulp. 

 The French do not appear to distinguish the Brussels from the 

 Roman, both of which are probably comprehended under their 

 Abricot commun ; and it must be confessed that they are very 

 similar. 



" The Blotched-leaved Turkey apricot of the nurseries, 

 which is the Abricot macule of the French, is a variety of the 

 Roman, differing only in having variegated leaves. 



" Bears abundantly on an east wall, where the fruit ripens 

 in the beginning of August : as a standard, it acquires more 

 colour and flavour. 



" Wood very smooth, rather short-jointed, reddish brown, 

 when young not much speckled, but becoming conspicuously 

 so when older ; buds prominent ; leaves large and broad, cor- 

 date, irregularly crenated, between flat and concave ; petioles 

 about an inch and a half long, brownish, with a few sessile, 

 globose glands; flowers of the ordinary size and appearance; 

 fruit middle-sized, dull straw-colour, with a little dotting on the 

 sunny side of orange or red, but in such small quantity that 

 the skin has always a pallid appearance ; in form slightly com- 

 pressed, inclining to oval, with a shallow suture, through which 

 the fruit can be readily, when ripe, separated into two halves 

 by a slight pressure on each side of the base ; flesh dull pale 

 straw-colour, soft, dry, mealy, with a little sweetness and aci- 

 dity, but on the whole very insipid and indifferent it is only 

 tolerable when rather unripe ; stone flat, oblong, rather obtuse 

 at each end, with a very even surface, separating wholly from 

 the flesh, except at the base it is generally divided from the 

 flesh by a little cavity when the fruit is fully ripe ; kernel very 

 bitter." 



Although it appears from the above description that this 



