Varieties of Apples 425 



plantings have been made in the more southern sections of 

 Missouri. The tree is fairly vigorous, but is likely to 

 bear small fruit unless thinned. The fruit is of medium 

 quality and its chief asset is its good keeping quality. In 

 spite of much advertising, it has not proved very popular 

 and is not now recommended for commercial planting. It 

 does not warrant an important place in commercial 

 orchards, even in Missouri. 



Black Gilliflower. 



This variety is generally known to the trade and appears 

 in market quotation as Gilliflower or Gills. It originated 

 in New England prior to 1800 and has long been a market 

 sort in a very limited way. There are very few orchard 

 blocks of Gilliflower in the country, but it is widely dissem- 

 inated in both home and commercial orchards, particularly 

 in New York and New England. The tree is hardy, vig- 

 orous and long lived. 



The fruit is of medium size and very uniform in size, 

 shape and color. It is a dessert apple which is very dis- 

 tinct in color, form and flavor. The color is green, usually 

 completely covered with red, which becomes very dark or 

 almost black. The flesh has a peculiar flavor and aroma, 

 but soon becomes dry and mealy. The fruit is often 

 borne on the ends of the twigs which makes harvesting 

 difficult. It usually brings a high price and particularly 

 in southern markets, on account of its peculiar aroma, 

 flavor, and attractive color. The Gilliflower is preferred 

 by some to all other varieties as a dessert apple, but its 

 popularity is very limited. It is not recommended for 

 commercial planting, except in a very limited way. It 

 is a good variety for the home orchard. 



