- , 



f ' LUTHER BURBANK 



trees of the largest size; and they are sweet in 

 flavor. 



The manner of development of these anoma- 

 lous dwarf chestnuts will be detailed in a later 

 chapter. Here I refer to them only by way of 

 introduction to suggest one of several modifica- 

 tions in the growing of nut bearing trees that have 

 been brought about within recent years and that, 

 jointly, are placing the industry of nut growing on 

 a new basis. 



If it is added that some varieties of the new 

 chestnuts bear when only six months old, when 

 grown from seed rivaling corn or wheat, and 

 seeming quite to forget the traditions of their own 

 tribe a further glimpse will be given of the 

 modification that scientific plant development has 

 wrought in the status of the nut bearing tree. 



No other tree, to be sure, quite rivals the chest- 

 nut in this regard; but some of the new walnuts 

 bear at eighteen months of age, which is quite 

 remarkable enough. And in general the time of 

 bearing of these nuts has been so hastened that the 

 growing of a walnut orchard to-day is an alto- 

 gether different matter from what it was a genera- 

 tion ago. 



Moreover, a way has been found to induce the 

 walnut tree to grow about ten times as fast as it 

 formerly did; and the wood of the tree is of the 



[8] 



