110 



THE VEGETABLES OF NEW YORK 



Duchess. Refs. 23-25: Mich. Sta. Bui 70:15. 1891: Far- 

 quhar Cat. 1911. Duchess originated with Abbott, and was intro- 

 duced by him in 1887. It was a Duke of Albany x Veitch Perfection 

 cross. It was so similar to Duke of Albany that the name is often 

 considered merely a synonym of the early variety. Abbott con- 

 sidered it quite distinct, its dark green, paired pods, with beautiful 

 bloom, and its earliness, making it better than Duke of Albany; 

 and it received the only First Class Certificate given peas by the 

 Royal Horticultural Society in 1888. It was tested in America 

 in 1890 and 1903 and listed commercially in 1911 but seems not to 

 have displaced Telephone or Duke of Albany. 



American Champion Ref. 26 is seemingly Duke of Albany 

 introduced under the changed name in 1887 by Henderson, just as 

 Gradus became Henderson's Prosperity. 



As grown here in 1887 and 1888 it was considered the same as 

 Telephone, or Telegraph with wrinkled peas; and from our recent 

 trials its description checks almost point for point with that of Duke 

 of Albany, tho the Champion strain seemed to have a few branches, 

 rather smaller stipules, and slightly shorter pods. A general note 

 said. " Telephone type, but pods and peas greener." 



Midsummer (Refs. 27, 281 appears to be an American pea, 

 as Daniels' Midsummer Marrow, an English pea, is too dwarf and 

 too early to meet the descriptions of Henderson's Midsummer. 

 The latter was introduced in 1888, was tested at various stations, 

 including this one, and appears to have found some favor. 



The earlier descriptions of Midsummer make it heavy-stem- 

 med, dark foliaged, about 3 feet tall, with paired pods, paler than 

 foliage, slightly recurved, 2 or 3 inches long, blunt-ended; produc- 

 tive; late. These characters would exclude it from the Telephone 

 group. 



As grown here recently, Lohrmann's Midsummer differed, in 

 some respects, not only from Henderson's Midsummer but from 

 Lohrmann's own catalog description. 



Plants from one lot of seeds varied greatly, but were similar to 

 short Telephones, while those from a second lot were much taller 

 and more branched; foliage of both strains darker than that of 

 Telephone, and often with only two leaflets; pods of Telephone type, 

 but short, and each with a distinct, small recurved tip, which Tele- 

 phone pods lack, and more curved at the point than those of the old 

 Telephone. 



The better strain was certainly of the Telephone type; so 

 both Midsummers are included in the group. 



Duke of Edinburg (Ref. 33 I was tested at this Station in 

 1891. It appears to have been a rather short-podded, very prolific 

 Telephone. 



Colossus (Refs. 34; Northrup, King & Co. Car. 19131 origi- 

 nated with Eckford, the noted English sweet pea breeder, prior to 

 1891, but was not listed in America until 1913. Quite popular in 

 France. It was grown here during three recent seasons. 



A rather tall, slightly branched Telephone, flowering at about 

 the 17th node (12th in France i and producing beautiful 4 to 5-inch 

 pods, darker in color than Telephone, not always well filled, but 

 averaging more peas to the pod and yielding as well, sometimes 

 better, tho not as heavily as the best of the group. 



Empress of India (Ref. 37) was a contribution to the 

 Telephone group by Sutton about 1892, from a Sangster No. 1 x 

 Telephone cross. Grown in the United States experimentally at 

 South Dakota Station in 1903 and here in 1922-24 from British 

 Columbia seed. 



The Sangster influence apparently shortened the stem and 

 pods and lightened the foliage, pods and peas; flowers much lower 

 on the stem, 9th to 10th node; pods more cylindrical than those of 

 Telephone; peas fewer in number and smaller; crops better. 



Sutton Exhibition Marrowfat. Refs. 38; Farquhar Car. 

 1910. This Sutton pea, introduced about the same time as Empress 

 of India, is very similar to Telephone, hardly separable from it by 

 any descriptions given, but as grown here, more closely resembling 

 Duke of Albany in pods, these being even larger and with peas of 

 as good or better quality. Our seed came from British Columbia. 



It was several years in reaching America, 1910, and has never 

 been widely grown. It is distinct from Veitch Exhibition Marrow- 

 fat, Carter's Exhibition, and Salzer's Giant Exhibition. 



Epicure (Ref. 39 , a tall pea of the Telephone class, was put 

 out by Eckford in 1893 and received high commendation by the 

 Royal Horticultural Society-. References without descriptions in 



American periodicals after 1895 may have been to this pea, but more 

 probably to Early Epicure, a very dwarf, short-podded pea of the 

 Gem type. 



Eckford's Epicure grew 5 or 6 feet tall, having very large, 

 deep green, pointed pods, containing 9 to 12 peas of high quality, 

 ready in late midseason, retaining their deep green color in cooking; 

 seeds deep green, wrinkled. 



Goliath. Refs. 40-42; Simon Car. 1913, also letter from 

 Simon, March 9, 1927. Cooper-Taber found in 1884, in a sowing of 

 Telegraph, the original plant of Goliath, introduced in 1886. It 

 was listed in the United States in 1913, but never much grown. 

 It may belong here or with the dimpled-seeded group, one reference 

 classing it as " a round-seeded form of Telephone, distinct from 

 Telegraph;" and another saying " seeds wrinkled." 



Plants of the same height as Telephone, more robust and more 

 often branched: pods larger and more numerous; peas larger and 

 more wrinkled than those of Telegraph, rounder than those of 

 Telephone. The season was the same. 



The Simon letter says their Goliath was supposed to be an 

 improved strain of Alderman, with larger pods, but less prolific. 

 As grown here these characters were exactly reversed. The peas, 

 however, were very large, and the mixed cream and green seeds 

 quite well wrinkled. 



Magnum Bonum Marrowfat Refs. 43: Tait Car. 1922 

 was introduced by Sutton in 1893 as a useful, productive maincrop 

 pea, much like Exhibition Marrowfat. It is also a good exhibition 

 variety. 



Pods long, straight, broad, long-rounded, of finest form and 

 color, with dense bloom: peas 8 or 9. large, of excellent quality. Pod 

 shape places the variety in the Telephone group, rather than in the 

 Ne Plus Ultra or Stratagem groups with the other Magnum Bonums. 



It is undoubtedly this pea, rather than older Magnum Bonum 

 that Tait has reintroduced, as shown by the pods in our tests, 

 although the plants are rather tall 5 feet ) for Magnum Bonum 

 Marrowfat, which is said to be 3 to 4} o feet tall only. 



Peerless Marrowfat. Refs. 45, 46; Farquhar Car. 1909. 

 Peerless Marrowfat was introduced in 1895 by Sutton. It was very 

 slow in reaching America, and has never been much listed here. 

 Seeds of a Peerless were received at this Station from British 

 Columbia; but the pods produced were apparently too blunt to 

 correspond to descriptions of Peerless Marrowfat, and Peerless 

 Marrowfat was rather early midseason while Peerless required 10 

 weeks to first pods, even from late sowing. The varieties agreed 

 in other characters. 



Peerless Marrowfat is a good, maincrop variety, much shorter 

 in stem than Telephone, 2 1 2 to 3 feet ; pods almost as long, of similar 

 shape, generally paired; peas 8 to 10, large, dark green; seeds large, 

 blue green, wrinkled. 



Prizewinner iRefs. 47; Burpee Cat. 19101 was introduced in 

 1896 by Sutton and reached the United States in 1910. Almost as 

 dwarf as Gradus and Laxtonian, it is otherwise similar to members 

 of the Telephone group. 



Height, 3, 3 > 2, under some conditions, 4' 2 feet: stem, foliage, 

 and pods dark green: pods paired under good culture, long, broad, 

 straight, peas 8 or 9, large, deep green, finely flavored. Second 

 early and bears heavily. As grown here exceedingly like Boston 

 Unrivaled, 1 ' 2 feet shorter, and with slightly darker, better filled 

 pods. Neither gave good crops, but Boston Unrivaled slightly 

 better. Neither seems adapted to our climate. 



Hobbies Prizewinner, listed by Hobbies in 1912, appears to 

 be a taller selection of this variety, with very long, plump, curved 

 pods. 



Phonograph Ref. 48 1 is unknown except as listed as new by 

 Landreth in 1896, and described as like Telephone in general 

 characters but very productive, with very showy, straight, large, 

 distended, sometimes saddle-backed, pods containing 6 to 9 most 

 delicious peas. It is quite distinct from the Phonograph tested at 

 the South Dakota Station in 1903-4. 



Enormous Ref. 49 was offered about 1899 as " No. 4 " by 

 Mills, and was given its name as the result of a prize competition. 

 Little detailed description is given, but illustrations of the pods 

 place it in the Telephone group. 



As grown here, recently, however, except for a distinct broaden- 

 ing of the pods at the tip, it would be classed with Magnum Bonum. 



