Varieties of Apples 435 



on account of its season. It is very valuable for home 

 orchards of the South. 



Red Astrakhan. 



Red Astrachan, one of the best known and most widely 

 disseminated varieties, originated in Sweden and was 

 known in England as early as 1816. It was introduced 

 in this country in 1835 by the Massachusetts Horticul- 

 tural Society. The variety is well known commercially 

 in Monmouth County, New Jersey, in Delaware and to a 

 limited extent throughout the northerri tier of states as far 

 west as the Missouri River. It is a beautiful early sum- 

 mer apple, of medium size, yellow, largely covered with 

 light and dark red stripes, very often a bluish bloom. It 

 is highly prized for culinary and dessert purposes. 



The tree is medium in size, a strong grower, moderately 

 long lived, an early bearer, and a reliable cropper. It is 

 necessary to make several pickings as the fruit ripens very 

 unevenly and there is likely to be considerable loss from 

 dropping. The Red Astrachan is not very uniform in size 

 and is a poor shipper. It is well suited for local trade 

 demand, but not at all for distant shipping. Red Astra- 

 chan is so common throughout the home orchards that local 

 markets are generally well supplied. Commercial plant- 

 ings are not generally recommended. 



Early Ripe. 



This is a well known early commercial variety particu- 

 larly adapted to New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania, 

 where it has attained considerable commercial importance. 

 It is one of the leading commercial apples of New Jersey. 

 The tree is large, vigorous, and a fairly good cropper, 



