THE ORIGIN OF NEW FRUITS. 



303 



ous as the kinds of fruits themselves. In form- 

 ing selections, however, much depends on the 

 space to be planted, the season when the fruit 

 is most required by the owner, whether he is 

 curious in possessing a great variety, or content 

 with a few sorts that may suit his taste and cir- 

 cumstances. As a general rule, we would say, in 

 reference to apples and pears, Plant few of those 

 which ripen early and do not keep long ; of other 

 fruits, a just proportion of those that ripen early 

 and ripen late — in both cases with the view of 

 prolonging the season to its utmost limits. 

 Those who are short of room, yet anxious for 

 variety, may accomplish this by working three, 

 four, or more sorts on the same tree. One ad- 

 vantage attending the cultivation of a number 

 of sorts is, that some kinds in some seasons, from 

 a variety of causes, fail altogether, whereas others 

 escape, probably to fail in their turn the suc- 

 ceeding season. From these lists there will be 

 no difficulty in selecting sorts to meet all these 

 emergencies, their adaptation to circumstances, 

 quality, time of ripening, and duration, being all 

 given. 



§ 2. THE ORIGIN OP NEW FRUITS. 



Concerning the origin of new varieties of fruits, 

 little is satisfactorily known. One thing is cer- 

 tain, that under favourable circumstances this 

 process has been going on probably since the 

 creation of fruit trees themselves. That the 

 type of our cultivated apples, for example, is 

 really the crab apple in something like its pre- 

 sent state, seems confirmed by the circumstance, 

 that by sowing seeds of any, even of our most 

 highly-improved sorts, a certain disposition is 

 manifested by them to return to their natural 

 or wilding state. Mr Robert Thompson, one of 

 our highest pomological authorities, appears to 

 be of opinion that seedlings of some of our most 

 approved varieties are found only to partake in 

 some degree or other of the properties of their 

 direct parents, but that the greater part of such 

 seedlings more or less affect a wild and inferior 

 character, in no marked manner resembling their 

 parent, in form, colour, nature, time of arriv- 

 ing at maturity, &c. This opinion is borne out 

 by the observations made by some of the best 

 American pomologists, one of whom asserts, 

 that " a hundred seeds of the golden pippin will 

 produce large-leaved apple-trees, bearing fruit 

 of considerable size ; but the tastes and colours 

 of each will be different, and none will be the 

 same in kind with the pippin — some will be 

 sweet, some bitter, some sour, some maukish, 

 some aromatic, some yellow, others green, red, 

 or streaked." The same rule also seems to hold 

 good in all countries where the apple is culti- 

 vated. Seeing, therefore, that fruits produced 

 from trees not only originated from seeds taken 

 from the same parent tree, but also from seeds 

 taken from the same fruit, possess qualities 

 essentially different, the mystery attending the 

 origin of new varieties of fruits appears the more 

 extraordinary and unaccountable. With these 

 considerations in view, we need not be surprised 

 at the few varieties of superior fruits, which 

 make their appearance, like angels' visits, " few 



and far between," nor at the apparent apathy with 

 which experienced growers regard new varieties, 

 however highly recommended, until they have 

 " seen, felt, and tasted," and hence are enabled 

 to judge for themselves. Mr Thompson asserts, 

 and his opinion is borne out by most of our 

 leading vegetable physiologists, " that there is a 

 strong tendency in plants from seeds of culti- 

 vated fruit-trees of high character to revert im- 

 mediately to the state of wildings." The late 

 Mr T. A. Knight, who experimented much in 

 such matters, and with the best results, proved 

 the fact that the wild crab-apple, fertilised by the 

 pollen of a cultivated apple of merit, produces 

 better varieties from seed than can possibly be 

 obtained from seeds taken from the most ap- 

 proved fruits themselves. Seeds of cultivated 

 sorts, or, what are deemed preferable, seeds of 

 wildings originated from cultivated varieties, 

 have been chosen by the Flemish pomologists 

 to sow with a view to obtain improved kinds. 

 These seedling plants they nourish and get into 

 a fruit-bearing state as soon as possible, and 

 from the seeds of these they raise a second gene- 

 ration ; thus they go on sowing the seeds of 

 generation after generation, and begin to look 

 out for improved sorts from the second and 

 third generation upwards. This, however, is too 

 early to expect a complete fulfilment of their 

 wishes, although a very perceptible amelioration 

 ensues in each of these generations, and by con- 

 tinuing the process the highest degree of ex- 

 cellence is often at length obtained. For the 

 consolation of experimentalists, we may mention 

 that Dr Van Mons found that good varieties are 

 sometimes obtained from the third generation of 

 apples, in others it may be the fourth or fifth ; 

 and in the case of pears, upon which this excel- 

 lent observer experimented most, the sixth or 

 seventh. An interesting paper on this subject 

 was published some time ago in the " Annales 

 Soc. de Hort. de Paris," by M. Poiteau, headed, 

 " Considerations on the Processes employed by 

 Nurserymen for obtaining better Sorts of Fruits, 

 and on the means by which Nature appears to 

 accomplish the same effect." M. Poiteau com- 

 mences by observing that improved varieties of 

 our best fruits seldom originate with nursery- 

 men, but owe their origin more to the chance 

 productions found in woods, hedgerows, or in 

 obscure places where the finer sorts are scarcely 

 known. In this opinion he is strengthened by 

 what has occurred in our own country. Our 

 nurserymen and pomologists have acted on the 

 very natural principle that good varieties might 

 be expected from good sorts. In this they have, 

 strange as it may appear, been most signally dis- 

 appointed ; and Duhamel, and other leading 

 French pomologists, failed in the same way. 

 From these failures M. Poiteau concludes that 

 experimentalists are wrong in expecting to ob- 

 tain at once what can only be produced in time. 

 He seems to infer that seedling apples and pears, 

 for instance, require some years and some culti- 

 vation before they can arrive at their fullest 

 state of perfection ; thus so far agreeing with 

 the doctrine laid down by Dr Van Mons and 

 others. He may be correct enough in the theory 

 he has formed as to the facility with which the 



