MISCELLANEOUS HARDY FRUITS. 



257 



tacked to an injurious extent by either of these, 

 but the crop is sometimes destroyed by the 

 nut-weevil (Balaninus nucvm), which pierces the 

 tender shell of the young nut, and deposits a 

 single egg in the interior. The maggot hatched 

 from this feeds upon the kernel until it has at- 

 tained its full size, when it eats its way out 

 either before or after the nut has fallen to the 

 ground, and buries itself in the earth, where it 

 becomes a pupa. In the following summer it 

 reappears as a moth, again to carry on its work 

 of destruction. All that can be done to pre- 

 vent the repetition of the mischief is to shake 

 the trees in August, and having collected the 

 fallen nuts, to burn those which are perforated. 

 The most esteemed varieties are: — 



Cob. — Husk short, hispid. Nut large, short ovate, 

 slightly compressed; shell very thick and hard, generally 

 well filled by the kernel, which is of good quality. Tree 

 of strong upright habit, and a good bearer. 



Cosford. — Husk nearly the length of the nut, deeply 

 divided, slightly hispid at the base, expanding but not 

 becoming reflexed when the nut is ripe. Nut large, ob- 

 long; shell light-brown, very thin; kernel filling the shell, 

 white, sweet, and very good. Tree a good bearer, ripening 

 its fruits rather early. 



Doivnton Large Square (Atlas) (fig. 1042, c). — Husk 

 smooth. Nut large, short, four-sided, rounded at the 

 corners ; shell thick ; kernel very good. 



Duke of Edinburgh (Princess Royal). — Husk frequently 

 longer than the nut; downy, coarsely fringed. Nut large, 

 shell thick; kernel of fine flavour. Tree a good bearer. 



Frizzled Filbert. — Husk about twice the length of the 

 nut, deeply divided, spreading open at the mouth, frizzled, 

 hispid. Nut in clusters of three or more, small, oblong, 

 flattened; shell rather thick, well filled by the kernel. It 

 ripens rather late. 



Merveille de Bolwiller. — Husks shorter than the nut, 

 frizzled. Nut large, shell thick; kernel large and of good 

 flavour. Tree vigorous and remarkably productive. 



Pearsons Prolific (Dwarf Prolific, Nottingham Prolific). 

 — Husk short and hairy. Nut medium-sized, shell thick; 

 kernel large and sweet. Tree of sturdy, productive habit 

 of growth, quite young bushes bearing freely. 



Red Filbert. — Husk long, tubular, hispid. Nut medium- 

 sized, ovate; shell thick; kernel covered with a crimson 

 pellicle; flavour good. Tree a good bearer. 



Webb's Prize Cob Filbert (fig. 1042, a). — An improve- 

 ment on the well-known Lambert's Filbert. Husk nearly 

 smooth, longer than the nut. Nut large, over an inch in 

 length, produced in large bunches; shell thick, brown; 

 kernel full, covered with reddish skin, richly flavoured, 

 keeping admirably. Tree extra vigorous, very productive. 



White Filbert.— Husk long, tubular, contracted round 

 the apex of the nut, hispid. Nut medium-sized, ovate; 

 shell thick; kernel covered with a white pellicle; flavour 

 good. Tree a good bearer. 



Other good sorts are: — Brunswick Cob, Close-headed 

 Prolific, Cosford Club, Daviana, Emperor, Kentish Cob, 

 Louis Berger, Prize Exhibition Cob, Purple - leaved, 

 Reigate Cob, Trebizond and Spanish Prize (fig. 1042, b). 

 Vol. II. 



Walnut (Juglcms regia, fig. 1043). A lofty 

 monoecious tree, a native of Persia and Asia 

 Minor, whence it appears to have been carried 

 into Greece at least three hundred years before 

 the Christian era ; then into Italy, France, 

 Spain, and other parts of Europe. The date of 

 its introduction into Britain is unknown; and 

 though the tree is not recorded to have been 



Fig. 1043.— Walnut (Juglans regia) 



cultivated till about the year 1562, yet the 

 circumstance of a Walnut- shell having been 

 found, together with a large quantity of Roman 

 remains, 35 feet below the surface, in excavating 

 the foundations for the Royal Exchange in 

 London, renders it by no means improbable 

 that the AValnut was brought into this country 

 by the Romans. The fruit whilst young and 

 tender is largely used for pickling, and when 

 ripe it forms a favourite article of the dessert. 

 An excellent oil, much used in the arts, is ob- 

 tained from the kernel; and the wood, being 

 light, durable, and susceptible of a high polish, 

 is largely used by the cabinet-maker; it is also 

 considered preferable to any other for making 

 gun-stocks. 



The Walnut succeeds best in deep sandy 

 loams; calcareous soils, and stiiT loams resting 

 on a gravelly bottom, are also well suited for 

 its growth. It requires plenty of room, as well 

 as a free exposure to air and light ; and in con- 

 sequence of its not succeeding well in clumps 

 or groups, the trees are generally planted in a 



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