LUTHER BURBANK 



larly instructive. In place of the rich surrounding 

 meat which we see in peaches, apricots, and plums, 

 the almond has a leathery skin, which is inedible. 

 This generally clings to the stone persistently in 

 the wilder forms, but with the best cultivated 

 almonds the nut drops readily from the husk or 

 outside covering. 



Similar to the persistency with which the flesh 

 of the plum clings to the stone is the attachment 

 of the husk in the walnuts and the chestnut, in 

 each of which the husk separates with more 

 difficulty in the wild than in the best cultivated 

 varieties. 



From the standpoint of protection and repro- 

 duction of the almond, the clinging husk is an 

 advantage rather than an objection. The seed of 

 the almond will germinate after being thoroughly 

 dried. It needs no flesh to tide it over, as do the 

 pulpy stone fruits. But for men's use the clinging 

 husk is a disadvantage, and the clingstone habit 

 has been eliminated in all the best cultivated 

 varieties of the almond. 



In the plum a similar change has been devel- 

 oped by selection. The meat does not cling to the 

 stone, in many cultivated varieties. In the almond 

 the quality of the meat has been greatly improved, 

 while the husk or immediate covering has not been 

 improved in any respect, as no use is made of it. 



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