BUD VARIATION IN THE MARSH GRAPEFRUIT. 17 



BELL STRAIN. 



The trees of the Bell strain of the Marsh grapefruit, Hke those of 

 the Kough strain, are usually more vigorous and less productive than 

 those of the true Marsh strain. Sucker growth is very abundant 

 in trees of the Bell strain, giving them an erect habit of growth. The 

 foliage is dense and the leaves are large and sharply pointed. The 

 fruits resemble closely those of the Rough strain, except in shape. 

 They are somewhat pyriform and constricted toward the stem end, 

 giving them a beU-shaped appearance. 



In addition to the trees bearing fruits having these general charac- 

 teristics as a whole, "off -bloom" fruits, developed from flowers 

 blooming out of the regular season, frequently show a marked resem- 

 blance to those of the Bell strain. As a rule these fruits are of 

 inferior quality. They do not develop as much sugar or as good 

 flavor as those of the Marsh strain, no matter how long they are 

 allowed to remain on the trees, and they are very undesirable from 

 every standpoint. 



Trees bearing a large proportion of fruits of this Bell strain, or 

 those showing a tendency toward the production of fruits of this 

 character, should be eliminated by top-working, and should be care- 

 fully avoided in the selection of bud wood for propagation. 



ALTERNATE-BEARING STRAIN. 



The trees of the Alternate-Bearing strain may be divided into two 

 groups, those bearing fruits with a large number of seeds and those 

 whose fruits are commercially seedless. Several performance-record 

 trees, showing a marked tendency to alternate bearing previous to 

 the freeze of 1913, were so affected by the freeze that their production 

 was lowered and their normal habits of production interfered with 

 for the time being. These trees, at this time, four years after the 

 freeze, show a tendency to an increase in production with a return 

 of their alternate-bearing characteristic. 



The important group of trees in the Alternate-Bearing strain is 

 that which resembles closely the Marsh strain except in the charac- 

 teristic of regularity of production. In habit of growth and foliage 

 characteristics, these trees, so far as observed, can not be distinguished 

 from trees of the Marsh strain. The fruits, except as to number or 

 time of bearing, are so hke those of the Marsh strain as to be indis- 

 tinguishable from them on the basis of our present knowledge of 

 their characteristics. 



UNPRODUCTIVE STRAIN. 



A smaller proportion of trees of the Unproductive strain has been 



found in the performance-record plats of grapefruit than has been 



found in studies of a similar nature with the Washington Navel and 



Valencia varieties of orange, or of the Eureka and Lisbon varieties 



56085°— 18— Bull. 697 2 



