20 



THE VEGETABLES OF NEW YORK 



Aristocrat. Refs. 140, 238, 335, 345, 403, 460. Syn. 

 Extra Early Aristocrat. 



Aristocrat is a variation of Red Cob Cory from which 

 it was selected. For many years the variety was con- 

 trolled by the originator who supplied vegetables to the 

 " aristocrats " and summer folk of Newport, Rhode 

 Island. He was careful not to allow seed to get into the 

 hands of his competitors. Thus, in having a monopoly 

 on what was reputed to be the finest sweet corn that came 

 to the market, he found no difficulty in disposing of all he 

 raised. 



After a few years the variety " escaped from bond- 

 age " and thereafter became more widely grown. Henry 

 C. Anthony, a grower at Newport, grew seed for Henry 

 A. Dreer of Philadelphia who offered seed to his cus- 

 tomers in 1903, after he had attempted to develop the 

 variety with a white cob. This was never quite accom- 

 plished, for Aristocrat is known today as a very desirable 

 midseason pink cob variety. Early descriptions called 

 attention to the " grains extremely sweet and sugary; 

 being decidedly broad, to allow of easy scoring with a 

 knife preparatory to buttering when eating from the 

 cob." 



Eighty-eight days were required for this variety 

 to produce edible ears. This was 3 days later than Red 

 Cory, one week later than Nuetta, about the same season 

 as Howling Mob and 10 days earlier than Stowell's 

 Evergreen. Considerable variation exists at the present 

 time in plant and ear characters, but in general the 

 plants are slightly taller and more stout than those of 

 Red Cory, while the ears are plumper and possess greater 

 variation in kernel color at the dry stage. 



Plant medium tall, 5 J £-5j^ feet; stalks moderately slender and 

 slightly zigzag; nodes 8-10, slightly exposed, moderately prominent. 

 Tillers moderately many, usually much shorter than central stalk. 

 Leaves medium long and medium breadth, 30-32 x 4—4}i inches; 

 sheath equal to and occasionally shorter than internode. Tassel 

 moderately long and slender, 18-20 inches, occasionally streaked 

 with red at the base; terminal spike erect, lateral spikelets moderately 

 drooping, moderately many, medium long and rather crowded; 

 bracts green, heavily striped with dark red; anthers variable in 

 color; 62-64 days to anthesis. 



Ears borne at the 4th and 5th nodes, one and occasionally 

 two ears per stalk. Husks moderately many, rather short and 

 tightly wrapped. Husked ear medium long and medium plump, 

 7-8 x 1 J o — 1? 4 inches, partly cylindrical, moderately tapering; base 

 expanded and somewhat open; tip long conical and slightly exposed; 

 rows 8-10, moderately regular, occasionally paired, not crowded 

 around the cob; furrows deep and wide on 8-row ears. 



Kernels at milk stage creamy white, 8-row ears possess much 

 wider kernels than 10-row ones, shallow; at dry stage variable in 

 color from russet brown (burnt sienna) with part of the crown much 

 lighter (honey yellow), to all i honey yellow); broader than long, 

 .98 x 1.12 x .44 cm. (110 seeds per oz.); broad oval in shape; crown 

 distinctly rounded; surface very sparsely and shallowly wrinkled; 

 set very tightly on red cob. 



Aroostock Early. Ref. 145. 



Named for Aroostock County, Maine, by James A. 

 Dunning of R. B. Dunning & Co., Bangor. This variety 

 is popular in that state because of its earliness. The early 

 history of the variety is unknown. Mr. Dunning had 

 secured seed from a grower who had carefully selected 

 and thoroughly acclimated it to that section with its short 



growing season. It belongs in the group of early 

 varieties with short slender ears and rather short stalk. 

 Edible maturity was obtained at Geneva in 70 days, 

 5 days earlier than Alpha, in season with Early Market 

 and 3 days later than Pickaninny. The plants are 

 much the same as those of Alpha and Early Dow, 

 possibly somewhat taller than the former. The ears 

 often have 10 rows instead of uniformly 8, as in Alpha, 

 but otherwise are much alike. Because of its earliness 

 it is used in the mere northern areas, particularly in 

 Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, where the 

 number of acceptable varieties is limited. 



Plant moderately short, 4}£-4% feet; stalks slender, usually 

 straight, some slightly zigzag; nodes 7-8, usually covered, not 

 prominent. Brace roots not present. Tillers few, much shorter 

 than central stalk. Leaves short and narrow, 24-26 x 2?4~3 inches; 

 sheath usually equal to but occasionally shorter than internode. 

 Tassel medium long and slender, 15-18 inches, occasionally streaked 

 with red at the base; terminal spike erect, lateral spikelets nearly 

 erect, moderately few, medium long; bracts green, moderately 

 striped with red; anthers variable in color; 50-52 days to anthesis. 



Ears borne at 3rd and 4th nodes, one ear per stalk, with 

 nubbin present; husks medium in number, rather thick, easily 

 removed. Husked ear moderately short and moderately slender, 

 6-7 x lj^-l?^ inches; moderately tapering; base expanded; tip 

 conical and exposed; rows 8-10, paired in 8-rowed ears, not so 

 evident in 10-rowed ones, straight, not crowded around cob; fur- 

 rows often pronounced, deep and wide. 



Kernels at milk stage white, medium size, broad and shallow; 

 at dry stage dull white, distinctly broader than long, and medium 

 thick, .92 x 1.32 x .47 cm. (96 seeds per oz.); short broad oval in 

 shape; crown rounded; surface shallowly and rather sparsely 

 wrinkled; set tightly on cob. 



Asylum. Refs. 13, 14, 22, 73, 74, 89, 91, 238, 255, 397, 

 404, 405, 431, 435, 503, 507, 508, 515, 535, 536, 

 537, 538. Syns. Asylum Sugar, Old Asylum, 

 Rhode Island Asylum. 



Asylum as a variety name goes back to that 

 group of sweet corns introduced during the early 

 sixties. According to the American Agriculturist of 

 1864 it was first sent out by the Dexter Asylum at 

 Providence, Rhode Island. The exact date cannot 

 be fixed but since Burr in his " Field and Garden Vege- 

 tables of America," published in 1863, did not mention 

 the variety, it probably was little known previous to 

 that time. In the book on gardening written by Peter 

 Henderson in 1867, four varieties of sweet corn were 

 mentioned: Early Darling, Dwarf Prolific Sugar, Stowell's 

 Evergreen and Asylum, the last said to possess every 

 desirable quality except earliness. 



The early history of many of these varieties can 

 never be known. Salisbury in 1848 describes a large 

 Rhode Island Sweet with 8-rowed ears. Between this 

 period and 1863 Twelve-rowed Sweet, Old Colony and 

 Stowell's Evergreen appeared. Undoubtedly there were 

 other stocks grown privately that had not yet been 

 brought to popular notice. Asylum and later similar 

 varieties must have arisen either as selections from one 

 of these named sorts, from an Indian source, or as the 

 result of a cross of a known sweet corn with some field 

 variety. 



Credit for the introduction of this variety must go 

 to J. M. Thorburn 8b Co., for in 1864 Orange Judd, 



