<M 



178 



tremely liable to be shaken down by the wind; a very fine bak- 

 ing pear. Another account' states that many varieties occasion- 

 ally are devoid of seed, but Belle de Bruxelles or the Poire sans 

 Pepins is always so." An account is also given of a Chaumontel 

 pear which bears seedless crops. 



Second crop pears, are invariably seedless, says R. Manning, 

 I have always found them so whenever I have had opportunity 

 for examination. An instance is given- of second blooming bearing 



double flowers, and I have observed the same in the case of straw- 

 berries in*autumn bloom. On February 17, 1880, N. Plumadore, 

 of Raleigh, N. C, writes nie that some third crop pears were en- 

 tirely seedless, having nothing but a small stem-like thread 

 clear through the pear. The Poires sans pierre was mentioned 

 by Estienne'^ in 1570. The Bessemiawka, a Russian fruit of re- 

 cent introduction, is nearly or quite seedless^. 



I have counted the seeds in but a few pears. The figures fol- 

 low : 



Variety, Number of Av. Wt, of Av, VVt, of Av. No. AtK No, 



Specimens, Fruit, Ozs. Seeif. Grs, Phuiip Seed, Total Seed, 



Biiffum, 5 2.9 6.17 6.2 10 o 



Flemish Beauty, i 5.5 7.71 ' 4.0 6.0 



Nowell, I 3.7 3.3c) 4.0 9.0 



Sickle, 5 1,5 5.2 4.8 9.2 



Peppers. Capsicum, sp. (Solanace.'E). 



The most acrid peppers are crowded wdth seed. Sweet pep- 

 pers as a class contain but few seed. . Suchare also subject to de- 

 velop a berry or berries within the berry, these enclosed fruit 

 either containing a few seed or entirely seedless. In some varie- 



Monst 



mens are of not unusual occurrence. 



Persimmon. Diospyros Virginiana, L. (Ebenace/e). 



I have frequently been told of seedless persimmons. Mr, 

 Saunders, Superintendent of the garden at the Department of 

 Agriculture, informs me that he has frequently seen such. Mee- 



1 Card. Chron. Oct. 17, 1885, p. 491. 



2 Gard. Chron. 1866, p. 901. 



3 Estienne. L'Agric. Maison Rustiqiie, 1570, 133. 



4 Budd. in Iowa Ex. Sta. Bull. Nov. 1888, p. 72. 



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