LUTHER BURBANK 



the California plant developer may be cited as 

 showing that nearness to market is by no means 

 an absolute essential. For of course it is well 

 known that the California fruits are now chiefly 

 grown for shipment to the Atlantic seaboard. So 

 nearness to a railroad is even more important, as 

 hauling fruit for any great distance before it is 

 packed for eastern shipment is a great detriment 

 to its shipping and keeping qualities. 



Except in a few cases, like that of the prune, 

 it is always necessary for the California plant 

 developer to consider the shipping quality of his 

 fruit. A fruit to be shipped a long distance must 

 be of firm flesh, a good color, and a reasonably 

 tough skin. And especially it should be uniform 

 in size and of such shape as to admit of econom- 

 ical packing. Moreover, it should ripen at a season 

 when the same kind of fruit is not abundant in 

 the distant market. 



So it may happen that a fruit otherwise valu- 

 able may lack this essential marketing quality, 

 and hence must be avoided. This is the reason 

 why my Abundance plum is not so popular in Cal- 

 ifornia as it is in the Eastern States, as it will not 

 stand a long shipment so well as other varieties. 

 To the eastern fruit grower this is not important, 

 as he lives near the market. But from the Califor- 

 nia standpoint, such plums as the Wickson, the 



[60] 



