DESCRIPTIONS OF VARIETIES 



69 



CHAMPION OF ENGLAND GROUP 



The Champion of England group begins with 

 Knight's Marrows, the first named varieties with wrinkled 

 seeds. Wrinkled peas were known before Knight's 

 time, being mentioned by Tragus and Dodoneaus in the 

 middle of the sixteenth century, and Knight used plants 

 producing such seeds in his crosses, but his statements 

 indicate that these were not of any named variety. 

 Some authorities believe the Rouncival peas were 

 wrinkled, but we have nowhere been able to find any 

 definite statement to that effect; and the various Roun- 

 cival names have been used as synonyms of different 

 old varieties plainly belonging to the smooth -seeded, 

 or American marrowfat type, or to other groups of round 

 peas, green or blue in color. Connection of Champion 

 of England with the Knight peas has not been definitely 

 established; but as these peas, or immediate descend- 

 ants of them, were the only wrinkled peas known when 

 Champion originated, the relationship may be assumed, 

 especially as early references place the variety in the 

 group of " Knight's Green " peas. 



As all of the Knight peas have passed out of culti- 

 vation, except, possibly, Knight Dwarf White Marrow 

 and Knight Tall White Marrow (or Jenny Lind), dis- 

 cussed in the " Cream-seeded Wrinkled " group, only 

 a summary of group characteristics of them will be given, 

 preceding Champion of England, which is described in 

 detail. 



Knight Marrows. Refs. 1-10; N. Y. Sta. Rpt. 

 3:247. 1885. The varieties of this group include tall 

 and dwarf (so called) forms of white, green, and blue 

 wrinkled peas, the names and synonyms showing about 

 all possible combinations of the descriptive terms used, 

 prefixed by the name of the originator, Thomas Andrew 

 Knight, Downton Castle, Wiltshire, Eng., one of the 

 most useful plant breeders and students of fruit and 

 vegetable problems of his time. With him started the 

 line of sweet, wrinkled peas which has made that vege- 

 table the leading spring and early summer garden crop 

 of England, and which has resulted in the grand varieties 

 of today. The exact date of origin of the separate 

 varieties is unknown, but probably previous to 1827. 

 All were described in 1834 or 1836, two years before 

 Knight died, and at least one, the Tall Green Marrow, 

 reached America in 1827. As indicated by the names, 

 the varieties were separated by their heights (5 to 7 feet 

 for tall types, 2 ' •_» feet or less to 3 } ■> feet or more for 

 dwarfs), and the color of the seeds. All were rather 

 early midseason varieties except the Dwarf Green Wrin- 

 kled Marrow, which was ten days to two weeks later 

 than the others. 



As grown here in 1884, Knight Tall Green Marrow was 3 to 

 5 feet tall; stem medium or large, with internodes rarely exceeding 

 lYl inches: and Knight Dwarf Green Marrow, 1 to 2 feet tall; stem 

 stocky, with internodes usually under 2 inches; both sometimes 

 branched at the base and often above; foliage between light and deep 

 green, slightly washed white, very glaucous in the dwarf type and 

 less so in the taller one: pods usually in pairs, 2 to 3 inches long, 

 blunt at the tips when well filled; peas 4 to 8 (rarely exceeding 5 



in the dwarf form i, large, whitish green in color, compressed in well- 

 filled pods, sweet and of good flavor; seeds quite large, olive green 

 tinted almost white. High productivity was a merit of all Knight's 

 peas; but the smallness of the pods would prevent classing them as 

 high yielders now. 



Champion of England. Refs. 11, 13; Jour. 

 Hort. 1:237. 1861; N. Y. Sta. Rpt. 3:246. 1884. 

 Champion of England was introduced, through various 

 seedsmen, by Fairbeard, in 1846, after having been grown 

 by him for at least five years. It is said that Champion 

 of England and Fairbeard Surprise came originally from 

 one pod, found in a crop of Knight Dwarf White Marrow. 

 One seed produced a wrinkled and the other a smooth- 

 seeded variety. Another reference states that the stock 

 of Champion was sold, on Sunday morning, for a pot of 

 beer. The variety was brought to the United States in 

 1849, and in 1901 was the pea most listed in American 

 seedsmen's catalogs; while in 1921, most surprisingly, 

 it was still fifth or sixth in the lists. As grown at this 

 Station in 1884, Champion of England, except for size 

 of pods, differed very little from Knight Tall Green 

 Marrow in characteristics, but was much earlier and was 

 considered much more prolific, and with peas unsur- 

 passed in flavor and sweetness. 



In our recent tests Champion of England and 

 Improved Champion of England were grown, both 

 from American seed. 



Height of original variety 4 to 5 feet, or in one season 4 to 

 4 J/2 feet; stem stout, with rather short internodes, branched rather 

 freely both at base and above; foliage abundant to almost dense, 

 rather darker than medium green, with leaflets in 4s, medium in 

 size and non-characteristic in shape, and much larger, deeply clasp- 

 ing stipules, somewhat whitened and slightly glaucous, rounded at 

 the tip and with shallow teeth about half way up the edge; tendrils 

 rather prominent, but slender; flowers medium in size, white, 

 from 14th node on short stem, 17th on tallest ones, single, differing 

 in this respect from the variety as grown 40 years before; pods 

 smooth, light-colored, on long, slender stalks; much longer than 

 those of Knight Marrows, from 3 '4 to 3 5 s inches, rarely 4 inches, 

 medium in width, not very plump, straight or very slightly curved, 

 fairly well filled, rounded to blunt at the ends, and without distinct 

 tips; peas 5 to 7, of medium size, smooth, round, oval, not crowded 

 in the pods, and light green in color, of excellent quality, sweet, 

 moderately thin-skinned, and tender; seeds large, broadly oval, 

 thick and occasionally indented, faintly bluish cream to light green 

 in color, and well wrinkled. 



The crops were good, beginning in late midseason, 

 71 days from May 11, or 68 from May 22, and ripening 

 slowly. In England, before the variety was introduced, 

 pods were ready to pick on June 2, the eadiest date for 

 any wrinkled pea up to that time. 



The Improved Champion of England, as compared 

 with the old type: 



Stems slenderer, less branched; foliage rather lighter colored 

 with smaller leaflets often in 6s, decidedly smaller stipules longer 

 and narrower, with sharp tips and sharper teeth; pods shorter, 

 plumper, blunt-ended, deeper green; peas averaging fewer, smaller, 

 often much compressed, and of better color; seeds decidedly smaller, 

 with more green color and better wrinkled. 



The Improved strain was not as early as the original 

 and did not yield as well, especially when the smaller 



