LUTHER BURBANK 



tions of the family and one that seemed to offer 

 pleasing possibilities. 



The experiment has continued along the lines 

 of further crossing and selection. A few seasons 

 ago I had from twenty-five to thirty thousand 

 elder plants in bearing. From these the best, to 

 the number of about seventy-five, were selected. 

 And the trees of the generation now under obser- 

 vation bear really delicious berries, without a 

 trace of bitterness. Some are quite sweet, others 

 acid. 



The best of them are an astonishing improve- 

 ment over any elderberries I had ever seen be- 

 fore. They make pies of excellent quality. 



The berries are grown in abundant clusters 

 and they are individually of the size of small cur- 

 rants. When dried they turn a light golden color, 

 like the whitest of the white raisins. In flavor 

 they can hardly be distinguished from the best 

 raisins, though so notably different in size. 



The progress already attained makes it cer- 

 tain that we shall soon be able to educate this 

 elder to a condition that will make it highly ac- 

 ceptable as a productive fruit, especially for arid 

 regions. The elder grows readily from cuttings 

 and will thrive in dry climates. 



I have under way also a series of hybridizing 

 experiments in which the different elders, notably 



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