SEPTEMBER, 1900, TO DECEMBER, 1903. 29 



5754. Triticum durum. Wheat. 



From Matagalpa, Nicaragua. Presented by Hon. Isaac A. Manning, U. S. con- 

 sular agent. Received December 17, 1900. 



Nicaragua. Grown at an elevation of 2,200 feet. 



5755. Cucumis melo. Muskmelon. 



From Erfurt, Germany. Received December 13, 1900. 



Coral Reef. This is a cantaloupe of very striking appearance, the rind being 

 studded with warty excrescences. The melon is bright yellow, with reddish mark- 

 ings, small seed cavity, and greenish yellow flesh. If planted in frames in winter it 

 ripens fruit in early summer. 



5756. Hordeum distichum. Barley. 



From Pilsen, Austria. Received through Mr. D. G. Fairchild (No. 466, Novem- 

 ber 7, 1900), February 9, 1901. 



Mixed barley used for brewing the original Pilsen beer; said by the brewing mas- 

 ter of the great Pilsen " Urquelle" Brewery to compare favorably with Hanna barley. 



5757. Humulus lupulus. Hop. 



From Polepp, Bohemia. Received through Mr. D. G. Fairchild (No. 469, 

 November 14, 1900), December 18, 1900. 



Seed from the drier in Polepp of the Semsch Red variety. 



5758. Humulus lupulus. Hop. 



From Polepp, Bohemia. Received through Mr. D. G. Fairchild (No. 470), 

 December 18, 1900. 



Red Semsch. ' ' This variety originated in the immediate neighborhood of Polepp. It 

 was discovered in 1853 as a sport among the so-called ' Tschims ' hops, which were then 

 grown here in Polepp, by Wenzel Semsch, a hop grower then only 20 years of age. This 

 hop is earlier than the Saaz variety and more productive. It is remarkably uniform 

 in time of blooming and ripening, and has been sent all over Bohemia and Alsatia, 

 and thousands of cuttings go every year to Saaz, where they are planted. The largest 

 proportion of Saaz hops comes from these cuttings. The exact locality of the garden 

 from which these cuttings were taken I can not positively affirm further than that it 

 is in the renowned Polepp or Polepp-Platte region, which is famous through its pro- 

 duction of a quality of hop which often in good years approaches very closely to that 

 of the best Saaz variety. The important facts are that it is an August-ripening hop 

 of very uniform maturity and possessed of a very fine aroma and 'bitter' (so fine 

 in fact that it is everywhere reported as being used for mixing with Saaz hops as a 

 substitute) , and a productiveness which stands to the Saaz hop as 5 to 3 in proportion; 

 180 poles will yield 110 pounds of hops, while it requires about 300 poles of the Saaz 

 to yield as much. The soil upon which these hops are grown is a dark friable loam 

 with a subsoil of gravel, in strong contrast with the soil of Saaz or Spalt, which is 

 so-called perm or disintegrated red sandstone. The whole Polepp region, which is the 

 largest single stretch of hop country in Bohemia, has this dark, rich, alluvial soil. 

 Formerly the whole valley bottom was a peat bog. Fine sand is often used to lighten 

 the soil. It is strewn along the rows and worked in. For further particulars regard- 

 ing the origin of this Semsch hop, see No. 5759." (Fairchild. ) 



5759. Humulus lupulus. Hop. 



From Werbitz, Bohemia. Received through Mr. D. G. Fairchild (No. 471), 

 December 18, 1900. 



Semsch red. "Cuttings of the original specimen from the garden of the son of 

 Wenzel Semsch, to whose efforts the production and distribution of this remarkable 

 hop are due. ' ' ( Fairchild. ) 



