22 BULLETIN 813, U. S. DEPAKTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



in number, and variegated in color, as shown in Plate V. The white 

 and green sections of the leaves occur in areas of variable size and 

 shape, in some cases the leaves being almost wholly green, while in 

 others they are nearly or entirely white. The flowers are perfect and 

 apparently like those of the Eureka strain. 



The fruits are oblong in shape, of medium size, and rough or ridged 

 in texture. The rinds are thin. The rag is tender, and the juice is 

 abundant and somewhat lacking in acidity. The seeds are similar in 

 number to those of fruits of the Eureka strain. 



The fruits have a striped appearance, usually with alternate green 

 and white areas. Accompanying this appearance there is usually a 

 ridged condition which accentuates the striped appearance. The 

 ridges are usually green and the intermediate spaces white. Not 

 only are the leaves and fruits striped or variegated, but the bark of 

 the branches on the trees of this strain also has a similar appearance. 



The rough texture of the fruits, their variegated appearance, and the 

 thin rinds, which are liable to split, makes them of inferior commercial 

 value. Many citrus growers in Calif ornia have taken bud wood from 

 the variegated trees in the performance-record plats in order to grow 

 one or more trees for ornamental purposes. 



The chief value of this striking variation lies in its occiu-rence as 

 single-fruit, branch, and entire-tree variations of the Eureka variety, 

 thus demonstrating its origin from bud variations. 



SPORTING STRAIN. 



In one instance in the performance-record plats, and occasionally 

 throughout the 250-acre grove of Eureka lemons in which these plats 

 are located, trees have been found in vigorous vegetative condition 

 with many branch variations, as shown by both the vegetative and 

 fruit characteristics. In a Sporting tree in one of the performance- 

 record plats, different branches, all grown from a single bud, produce 

 typical fruits of all of the strains under observation and several minor 

 variations of the Eureka variety. Plate VI shows specimens repre- 

 senting several strains and variations borne on one tree grown from 

 a single bud. A similar condition of variability has been observed 

 frequently, so it seems apparent that there exists a strain of the 

 Eureka lemon which breaks up into many variations having very 

 diverse characteristics. Other trees are often found in which only 

 one or two branches are producing fruit of some strain or variation 

 different from the rest of the tree, as illustrated in Plate VII. 



The trees of the Sporting strain vary in productiveness and season 

 of production corresponding to the proportions of the various strains 

 produced by them. If the productive strains are dominant, the trees 

 are productive, while if the unproductive strains are most evident 

 the trees are unproductive. As a rule, the trees are comparatively 

 large and show a very vigorous vegetative condition, as illustrated 



