VARIETIES OF ENGLISH WALNUT 



523 



Common English Walnut; Los Angeles Nut, etc. This is the ordinary 

 English walnut of commerce. It was planted at an early day in Los Angeles 

 county, but is now largely replaced by the Improved Soft Shell. 



Santa Barbara Soft Shell; Sexton's Soft Shell. Originated by Joseph Sex- 

 ton, who gives this account of its origin and characteristics : 'The winter of 

 1867 I bought in San Francisco a large sack of English walnuts. I raised about 

 one thousand trees that season, and planted two hundred of them the following 

 spring, in orchard form, at Goleta. Sixty of them proved to be the soft-shell 

 variety. The soft shell is a little later in starting in the spring than the com- 

 mon nut, and blooms about ten days later. It commences to fruit at six years 

 old from the seed, and some have been known to fruit as young as the fourth 

 year. The hard shell commences to fruit about the ninth year, and bears full 

 crops alternate years. The soft shell is not as strong a grower as the other 

 walnut; it being so prolific, retards its growth. It is a superior nut; the kernel 

 is white. The shell is thin, rendering them easily broken by the hand, at the 

 same time strong enough to bear transportation to any part of the United 

 States." 



Ford's Improved Soft Shell. G. W. Ford, of Santa Ana, propagated an "Im- 

 proved Soft Shell," gained by selection from the variety of Joseph Sexton, 

 which has been largely planted. 



Santa Rosa. A seedling by Luther Burbank, which has been distributed 

 quite widely; but by variation in its seedling, its character is somewhat ill- 

 defined and the name is applied to several types, some of which are less desirable 

 than the one receiving the name. 



Proeparturiens. Introduced in California in 1871, by the late Felix Gillet, 

 of Nevada City, and afterward by other parties, and widely distributed. Its 

 chief characteristic, as its name indicates, is early bearing. It blooms from two 

 to four weeks later than the common Los Angeles seedling; it shows both 

 kinds of bloom simultaneously, and has the characteristics of ripening its wood 

 well, and is a good nut, but it has* been little planted recently because of its 

 disposition to run to small sizes. 



Mayette. This variety chiefly constitutes the imported Grenoble walnuts. 

 It is large, roundish, with a broad base, on which the nut will sit up; shell thin 

 and white; kernel full and rich; a good bearer and late bloomer; local Mayette 

 seedlings are being named; one is the "San Jose," by R. Wiltz, of San Jose a 

 fine nut, believed to be blight resistant. 



Concord. Seedling of Cluster : of the Mayette type, grown by Messrs. 

 Westgate and Hutchinson of Concord from seedling tree by Felix Gillet. Intro- 

 duced by Mr. Leonard Coates in 1908. Claimed to be blight resistant. 



Franquette. This French variety has risen to great favor and has been 

 largely planted upon the successful experience of Mrs. Emily M. Vrooman, of 

 Santa Rosa, and the extensive effort at its distribution by the Oregon Nursery 

 Co., of Salem, Ore. It is a large, elongate-oval nut with shell rather thick 

 and kernel of high quality. It is a late bloomer, and escapes blight to a certain 

 extent. 



Bijou Seedling*. Several of these are being grown. Willson's Wonder, 

 introduced by F. C. Willson, of Santa Clara, is a large, smooth, desirable nut, 

 and the tree is reported an early and prolific bearer. 



Other French Varieties. Other French varieties introduced by Mr. Gillet 

 and others include the following: The Cluster, which fruits, as its name indi- 

 cates, in long bunches, sometimes as many as fifteen in a bunch ; otherwise the 

 tree resembles the common English walnut. The Parisienne is a beautiful variety, 

 the nut large, broad, and shapely ; the tree blooms very late. All the foregoing 

 varieties and the Franquette, Serotina, Barthere Mesange, Gant and Chaberte, 

 were introduced by Mr. Gillet in 1871. 



Kaghazi. A variety called Kaghazi was grown and propagated for several 

 years by the late James Shinn, of Niles, who described it as follows : "Very 



