Golden Gem. 



DESCRIPTION OF VARIETIES. 



HaskelVs Seedlings. 103 



Golden Berry. (Hybr.) A white seedling of the 

 Hartford Prolific and Gen. Marmora, originated by Dr. 

 Culbert, Newburg, N. Y. ; hardy and a free bearer. 

 Exhibited 1877. Not disseminated. 



Golden Gem. (Hybr.) A seedling of the Dela- 

 ware and lona, a superb table grape, of golden color, 

 produced by J. H. Ricketts ; first exhibited at the Am. 

 Pomological Society meeting in 1881, and first offered 

 for sale in the autumn of 1882. Vine moderately vig- 

 orous ; wood short-jointed ; leaf small to medium, 

 slightly serrated ; bunch small and sometimes shoul- 

 dered ; berry small and of a rich golden color ; flesh 

 tender, juicy and rich, with a fine rose flavor ; quality 

 "best. The fruit ripens very early, even before Hartford 

 Prolific, and continues a long time in use without 

 losing any of its good qualities. Wherever either of its 

 parents, the Delaware or the lona, can be successfully 

 grown, this superior novelty deserves special attention 

 and trial. 



Graham (?). An accidental seedling, introduced 

 hy Wm. Graham, of Philadelphia; bunch of medium 

 size, not compact; berry half an inch in diameter, 

 round, purple, thickly covered with a blue bloom, con- 

 tains little or no pulp, and abounds in juice of agrea- 

 fole flavor. A poor grower and bearer. Downing. 



Grein's Seedlings. A lot of Taylor Seedlings 

 raised by Nicholas Grein, near Hermann, Mo., 

 a,nd by him supposed to have been pro- 

 duced from seed of the European Riesling 

 -which he had sown : 



No. 1 MISSOURI RIESLING.* Vine hardy and 

 very healthy; a moderate grower, compara- 

 tively short-jointed ; with healthy, thick 

 leaves ; very productive. Bunch medium, 

 moderately compact, slightly shouldered ; 

 berry medium, round, greenish-white, but 

 light red when fully ripe ; very Render 

 pulp, juicy, sweet, of fine quality, making 

 an exquisite white wine ; and on this ac- 

 count it is now largely planted by the wine- 

 growers of Missouri and Illinois. Ripens 

 ten days after the Concord. Subject to rot 

 in wet seasons. 



~No. 2 GREIN'S GOLDEN. Somewhat similar 

 to the former, but a stronger grower; bunch 

 medium, not very compact, handsomely 

 shouldered ; berries larger than most other 

 Taylor seedlings, of a deep yellow golden 

 color, bronzy toward the sun; sweet, juicy, 

 with little pulp. Ripens with Concord. A 

 very promising grape for family use, table, 

 and market. 



No. 3 much resembles his Missouri Ries- 

 ling in bunch and berry ; said to contain 

 more sugar and to make a still better wine. 

 No. 4 also resembling the former, and said 

 to make a very fine wine of a deep golden 

 color and delightful flavor. 



* Pronounce: tteesling. 



No. 7, or Grein's extra early. Vine a vigor- 

 ous grower, moderately productive; bunch 

 and berry resembling Delaware in size and 

 shape but not in color, which herein is a 

 beautiful greenish-yellow, with a distinct 

 star-like speck on each berry. Ripening 

 about same time as Concord. 



Hartford Prolific. (Labr.} The standard 

 for earliness among grapes. Raised by Steel, 

 of Hartford, Conn., over thirty years ago. It 

 is well-known, and generally planted as a very 

 prolific early market variety ; ripens here early 

 in August, about ten days in advance of the 

 Concord ; but as soon as ripe it generally drops 

 its fruit, and is of poor quality. The vine is 

 very healthy and hardy, and produces im- 

 mense crops. Bunches large, shouldered, rather 

 compact ; berries round, full medium, black ; 

 flesh pulpy, juicy, with a perceptible foxy fla- 

 vor ; roots very abundant, branching and 

 fibrous, of average thickness and toughness, 

 and tolerably firm liber. Canes stout, with 

 strong crooks at the joints, laterals well devel- 

 oped, and having considerable down on the 

 young growth. Wood hard, with a small pith. 

 Wine has also been made from it, but it could 

 not be recommended by us for that purpose. 

 Only as a market grape is it considered valu- 

 able by some, on account of its earliness and 

 great productiveness, but even as such it is 

 inferior to several others. 



FRAMINGHAM and SENECA are almost iden- 

 tical with HARTFORD ; the PIONEER is also 

 similar to it, but considered as a better grape 

 in all respects. N. H. Lindley, of Bridgeport, 

 Conn., says, " we have discarded the Hartford 

 and grow the Pioneer in its place." Let all 

 grape-growers discard the Hartford, which 

 only destroys the appetite for grapes, and thus 

 injures the sale and price of all sorts ; while a 

 really good very early market grape would in- 

 crease the demand for all later varieties. 



HasKell's Seedlings. Of the very large number 

 of hybrids produced by the long-continued and expen- 

 sive labors of George Haskell, of Ipswich, Mass., he 

 has selected forty varieties, designated by numbers 

 only, which he offered for sale in 1877 ; but as he would 

 not sell less than thirty vines to any one grape-grower 

 or nurseryman at a price which, though low, consider- 

 ing their cost to the originator, yet exceeds the ability 

 of most grape-growers, and as they are all hybrids 

 between the foreign (Black' Hamburg, White Fron- 

 tignan and White Chasselas) and native (the Black- 

 fox, Amber-fox and Pigeon), and had not been tested 

 in other localities, very few ol them have been distrib- 

 uted. 



Our proposition to take five of these varieties, two 

 plants of each kind, for trial, and to pay for them at 

 the rate asked for the 30 vines, was declined, although 

 Haskell says himself in his very interesting "Account 



