86 



THE VEGETABLES OF NEW YORK 



POLE VARIETIES 

 Black Lima. This variety was introduced by 

 Burpee in 1892, at which time he distributed several 

 thousand trial packages to the trade for observation. 

 Although it was evidently vigorous, hardy, productive, 

 and quite resistant to rot, its seed color reacted as a 

 detriment to its popularity. Black Lima was undoubt- 

 edly only a strain of Florida Butter ; probably a selection 

 in which a greater percentage of the dry seeds were black 

 or very dark colored. Jarvis considered it synonymous 

 with Florida Butter, but inasmuch as the variety was 

 never grown at this Station, his statement can neither 

 be verified nor disproved. 



Carpenteria. Syns. Carpenteria Large Green 

 Seeded, Green Prolific, Green Seeded, New Carpenteria. 

 This variety originated from the seed stock of two 

 Burpee Improved Bush Lima plants. The plants were 

 discovered by Henry Fish of Carpenteria, California, in 

 1906, and apparently sold to several seed houses that 

 introduced the variety about 1910. It has been sug- 

 gested that since Burpee Improved originated as a 

 sport in a field of Challenger Pole Limas — incidentally 

 by the same man but in a different field — it would seem 

 that Carpenteria might be a reversion to the primary pole 

 types and not to Challenger which is a thick-seeded potato 

 variety. At the time Burr wrote his Field and Garden 

 Vegetables of America, in 1863, there were five distinct 

 types of limas — all poles. Among these was one known 

 as Green Lima, then called a sub-variety of the Common 

 Lima, differing chiefly from that variety in having pea 

 green colored seeds. Today, even as then, stocks of 

 lima beans are badly mixed, thereby necessitating careful 

 selection and skillful cultural methods in order to keep 

 a strain pure to any degree of permanency. Carpenteria 

 is one of the first pole varieties to maintain the green 

 pigment consistently. It is suggested, then, that the 

 variety must have been linked in some manner to the 

 original green-seeded variety of Burr's period. Although 

 the variety today is not classified as popular as is King 

 of the Garden, Leviathan, or Small White, it does rank 

 as medium in importance. This is due largely to its seed 

 color, moderately heavy production, and vigorous growth. 

 At Geneva it required 102 days to reach maturity, the 

 same as Sunnybrook, 2 days earlier than Dreer's Im- 

 proved, and 5 days later than Small White. 



Plant tall, vigorous, climbing; moderately heavy yielder, but 

 rather short seasoned in Geneva. Foliage moderately abundant, 

 medium green, vines whitened, few small white areas between vein, 

 dull finish, smooth, moderately thick, but quite leathery. Leaflets 

 large, 4-5 x 2 J4-2J j inches. Petioles medium long. Flowers white. 



Pods medium to light green in color. Size long, broad, and 

 quite slender (,4-5 x 1-1 J ■_> x :i g- ' ■_, inchesi, containing 3-5 seeds 

 per pod. Shape flat, long oval in cross-section, straight, straight 

 backed, fairly regular, moderately crowded, smooth, filled to the 

 tip but not to the edge and squared at the end. Spur short, 

 thick and straight. Suture, placental is flat and carpellary, acute. 



Seeds large, 2.0xl.35x.5 cm. 125-30 per oz.); long broad 

 reniform, occasionally semicircular, elliptical thru cross-section, 

 flat; ends uniformly rounded. Hilum medium, flat and slightly 

 incurved. Color pale greenish white to dull white, marked with 

 rather prominent, darker shaded, converging lines radiating from 



the hilum to the dorsal margin. Surface moderately smooth. 

 Quality excellent. 



Challenger. Refs. 8, 9, 10, IS, 22, 24, 29, 41, 43, 

 57, 58, 63, 77, 85, 91, 97, 98. Syns. Dreer, Dreer's 

 Improved, Elliot's Improved Pole Lima, Forbes Potato 

 Pole, Improved Challenger, Noll's Ideal Potato Pole 

 Lima, Potato Pole Lima, Shotwell's Pole Lima, Shot- 

 well's Improved Thick, Walters Prolific Pole Lima, 

 Walters Prolific Potato Leaf, Walter's Prolific Thick. 

 A variety which was called Dreer Pole Lima is said to 

 have originated with Mr. Kimber of Kimberton, Pa., 

 about 1857, and was introduced by Henry A. Dreer in 

 1875. About the same time V. J. Hadden of East Orange, 

 N. J., had been growing a variety known as Challenger 

 for many years. John M. Kumerle of Newark, N. J., 

 whose attention had been attracted to it, secured some 

 of the seed and later sold it to J. M. Thorburn, who 

 introduced it in 1882 under the name it now bears. At 

 that time it was said to be an improvement over the 

 Dreer and some seedsmen undoubtedly offered it as such. 

 Today, most seedsmen and authorities consider the two 

 varieties identical — certainly the seed of Challenger has 

 been often substituted for Dreer. It is fairly safe to say 

 that the best strains of Challenger are more productive 

 of longer pods than the Dreer, but otherwise they may 

 be considered the same. Challenger is one of the old 

 well-known and still popular varieties of the potato- 

 seeded type. It is apparently better adapted to the 

 East and North than to other sections of the country. 

 It is considered excellent for both home and market 

 gardens, and next to the small-seeded varieties, like 

 Sieva and Henderson, is one of the most sure croppers 

 and productive varieties in its class. In season Chal- 

 lenger came to maturity in 102 days at Geneva, 5 days 

 later than Small White, and the same as King of the 

 Garden. It is interesting to note that the Dreer strain 

 produced edible beans two days later. Challenger differs 

 from the Large White chiefly in that the leaflets are 

 more narrow, longer pointed, and duller green in color; 

 pods shorter, thicker, and much straighter, dry seeds 

 are smaller, decidedly more plump and nearly sub- 

 circular in outline. The pods and leaves are similar to 

 Dreer's Bush, although somewhat larger and much later 

 in season. 



Plant climbing 6-8 feet with a 2 foot spread at the base. 

 Vigorous, very productive, quite late in season. Fairly stout 

 stems, many branches both medial and basal in position. Foliage 

 abundant, medium dull grayish green in color; veins lightly colored; 

 surface smooth, practically without pubescence and medium thick. 

 Leaflets large, rather long pointed but broad at the base 4 ' £ 5 x 

 2 :i 4 '-2 7 s inches). Petioles medium long. Flowers white, peduncle 

 moderately long, semi-rigid. 



Pods medium green in color. Size moderately long, very 

 broad and quite plump, (.3-4 xl'j x ',-' ■> inches), containing 3-4 

 seeds per pod. Shape flat, long broad oval thru cross-section, 

 straight, straight backed, slightly constricted, moderately crowded, 

 smooth, filled to the tip but not to the edge and square at the 

 ends. Spur very indistinct, extremely short, stout and straight. 

 Suture, placental is flattened to slightly rounded and carpellary, 

 acute. 



Seeds medium large, 1.7 x 1.3 x .75 cm. (30-35 per oz.); nearly 

 semicircular, ventral surface inclined to be somewhat protuberant, 

 elliptical thru cross-section, quite plump; ends uniformly rounded 



