DESCRIPTIONS OF VARIETIES 



105 



2 to 2 3 j\ often paired, sometimes poorly filled, but. when good, 

 with 5 or 6 compressed peas of good quality: two weeks after earliest 

 peas. The " improvement " was evidently in the dwarfness and 

 earliness. as Edinburg Beauty was said to be the " earliest dwarf " 

 wrinkled pea. 



Racket Refs. 13. 14 originated with Horsford in 1879. 

 Racket and Horsford Market Garden came from peas in the same 

 pod, the parents being Alpha and American Wonder. 



Racket seems to have been entirely overshadowed by its twin 

 variety, as test records alone remain of it. In plant and foliage it 

 resembled Alpha and in pod Advancer; was no earlier than Advancer 

 and ripened slowly. It sometimes reached 5 feet in height, tho 

 usually 2 J _. to 3 feet. 



A 1. Ref. 15; Card. Chron. 12:73. 1892; Gregory Cat. 

 1904. A 1 came from a cross between American Wonder and 

 Paragon, and was introduced by Sutton in 1891. It won a gold 

 medal at the great Temple Show in 1896. It was first listed in 

 America in 1904; but has never won popular favor. 



As grown here in recent tests, from British Columbia seed, it 

 gave short, light green pods of Advancer shape, with only 4 or 5 

 whitish green peas. The plants were more like Alaska than Advan- 

 cer, having slender stems and scanty, light green foliage with leaflets 

 in 2s and 4s. It flowered low on the stem, about the 8th node, and 

 would have given very good yields had the pods been larger and 

 better filled. It was nearly a week earlier than Advancer. 



Exonian Refs. 16; Thorburn Car. 1893 was introduced by 

 R. Veitch about 1887 when it received a First Class Certificate 

 from the Royal Horticultural Society. A much later English 

 reference said Oxonian i?'i appeared to be a selection from Alpha or 

 Dr. Hogg, and other references note its similarity to Alpha. It 

 reached America in 1893, and was listed by several seedsmen. Our 

 last record of it in the United States dates 1915, but seed of it was 

 obtained from British Columbia in 1922. It was also known in 

 France, being described by both Denaiffe and Vilmorin. 



As grown here it was much earlier than Advancer, with scan- 

 tier foliage and smaller pods containing 4 or 5 small peas of fine qual- 

 ity. The pods were dark green at first, but lost color rapidly even 

 on the plants, tho the peas were much better in color. It was not 

 productive. 



Favorite. Refs. 17, 18; Nebr. Seed Co., letter Dec. 6, 1922. 

 Unless Favorite of the first references, which is said elsewhere to be 

 " a very dwarf type of Yorkshire Hero," is McLean Favorite, its 

 origin is unknown. Our first reference says that McLean Favorite 

 and Yorkshire Hero were both identical with the old Princess of 

 Wales. The figures for this Favorite, practically the only data 

 given, make it more dwarf than Princess of Wales. 



Favorite of the Nebraska Seed Co. is said by them to have 

 been a sport of Prince of Wales, and quite similar to it. It has been 

 discarded. 



Burpee Quality and Burpee Quantity. Ref. 19. Qual- 

 ity and Quantity originated with Arnold, and were introduced by 

 Burpee in 1888. They differed only in height, and yields, Quantity 

 being taller, and supposedly more productive. 



Quality, as grown here, was about 2} 2 feet tall, branched, with 

 dark green foliage, flowering low on the stem, about 5th node, and 

 bearing single and paired pods about one-fourth inch shorter than 

 those of Advancer, but very similar in shape, possibly a trifle broader 

 and containing 3 to 5 very large, light colored peas. It was slightly 

 earlier than Advancer, but not as good a cropper. 



Seed of Quantity was not found for our tests, and both varie- 

 ties seem to have practically disappeared. 



Childs Morning Star Ref. 21 is said to have been intro- 

 duced about 1894. 



As tested on the Rural Experiment Grounds in 1899 it was 

 ready for use midway between Surprise and Gradus, produced twice 

 as many pods as Gradus, which were 2 to 2 ] i inches long, round 

 and well filled with small wrinkled peas of good quality. It resisted 

 drouth well. It was probably more dwarf than Advancer. 



Startler Ref. 22) was listed in 1894, without history, by 

 Buckbee. It was a late pea, of Advancer habit of growth, with 

 better colored foliage and pods. The latter were often paired, 

 almost cylindrical, but usually showed more dorsal pointing of the 

 ends than Advancer. 



Major iRef. 20/ is said to be an English pea, introduced in 

 this country by Henderson, in 1891. Tho tested at various places it 



did not equal the early claims for it; and was soon dropped, even by 

 the introducer, for Heroine, Juno, Sharpe Queen and other earlier, 

 larger-podded, more productive peas. 



It was 2)^2 to 3 feet tall, with fine-leaved, dark green foliage, 

 single pods 3 to 4 inches long, broad, straight, blunt-ended with 

 large tips, and often poorly filled. When perfect they contained 

 5 or 6 very large, oblong peas of good quality. It was nearly a week 

 later than Stratagem, late midseason. 



C P. R. k Ref. 22a) is a Canadian pea, introduced before 



1901 by Bruce. 



It is described as the " best maincrop, blue wrinkled marrow," 

 2 feet tall, with sturdy, branching stem, large, slightly curved pods, 

 filled with fine, deep green, delicious peas. 



An Improved C. P. R. is noted in recent Bruce catalogs. 

 Gardeners' Favorite. Ref. 23. Griffith & Turner said in 



1902 that Gardeners' Favorite was " named and introduced by 

 them," but this probably occurred some time before the date given. 



The very scanty descriptive notes and the figure of a pod-laden 

 plant make the variety seem like a stocky, much branched Advancer 

 with pods more rounded at the end, a view confirmed by our tests 

 of it here during three recent seasons, except that the pods are 

 slightly narrower (more slender I than those of Advancer, rather 

 than wider as the figure would indicate, and contain smaller peas. 

 It is later than Advancer, fully as productive, with rather darker 

 foliage but no better colored pods or peas. 



Sutton Abundance. Ref. 24. In 1906. Sutton announced 

 as a novelty an Abundance pea. This, from the descriptions given 

 by Sutton and by the Royal Horticultural Society, in whose gar- 

 dens the pea was several times tested and from whom it received a 

 First Class Certificate, appears to be of Advancer type. The stock 

 was not well selected at first and two strains have developed, one 

 of which is twice as tall as the one originally described. 



One of the strains of Abundance grown here seems to be clearly 

 Sutton's pea of the taller-stemmed strain, altho the seedsman from 

 whom we obtained our stock listed Abundance, not otherwise 

 qualified, before Sutton Abundance was announced. Probably a 

 change of stock was made at some time by which one Abundance 

 was unintentionally substituted for the other. 



The plant differences between the two peas are slight, but the 

 pods of Sutton Abundance are seldom paired, are nearly an inch 

 longer and proportionately broader, less blunt at the ends and con- 

 tain larger peas. The seeds also are decidedly larger than those of 

 Advancer. Except for this apparently accidental introduction, 

 Sutton Abundance is probably not known in America. 



Vigorosa (Ref. 25', announced in 1906 by Buckbee, is a short- 

 stemmed Advancer. 



Height 2 feet; pods very plump, well filled, frequently paired 

 but borne more toward the top of the plant so that the crop is not 

 quite as good as that of Advancer or Abundance, and is slightly 

 later. The pods and peas are rather better colored than those of 

 Advancer and peas larger. 



Home Delight (Ref. 26) was listed by Hastings in 1907, as 

 having been grown for several years. His description would not 

 identify the variety, but as grown here it is apparently Advancer, 

 with possibly rather slenderer pods and smaller peas. 



Cracker Jacks Ref. 27) was listed by J. Bolgiano in 1907. 

 but had been grown previously. 



As tried here, much like Advancer, later, and not as productive. 

 The pods are decidedly longer, not as plump, and often show ten- 

 dency to a dorsal sloping to the point, from a distinct enlargement 

 of the pod near the end. The seeds are much larger than those of 

 Advancer. 



Pride of Cahuenga (Ref. 28) grew in the Cahuenga Valley, 

 California, before 1908, and attracted attention of a Mr. Wiltfong 

 by its great productiveness. After successive destruction of crops 

 by floods, seed was secured for distribution by Johnson & Musser. 



It is shorter than Yorkshire Hero, about IJ2 to 1 3 4 feet, more 

 branching, with very numerous, paired pods, 3 inches long, very 

 plump, almost round in section, sometimes almost saddle-backed, 

 with shallow indentations between the 7-9 large peas, square- 

 ended, with large tips. It was said to be " undoubtedly the best 

 pea ever put before the public;" and was found " most promising " 

 in three years' testing at the Yuma. Arizona, Experiment Farm of 

 the U. S. Department of Agriculture. 



Yankton Maincrop Ref. 291 was introduced in 1909 by 



Gumey. 



About the size of Advancer, said to be 2 feet tall by the intro- 

 ducers, but 2j^ to 2 3 i feet in our tests; stem moderately stout, 



