5o 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER. 
January  23 
to  record  the  pollen  parent)  and  applied  to  emascu¬ 
lated  flowers  of  the  Peach.  Two  tomatoes  resulted — 
both  ill-formed,  small  and  quite  green  when  frost  in 
early  October  obliged  us  to  pluck  them. 
We  were  aware  that  the  seeds  of  certain  immature 
fruits  would  germinate  sooner  than  those  from  mature 
fruits,  as  well  from  experiments  made  in  Europe  years 
ago  as  those  made  more  recently  at  the  New  York  Ex¬ 
periment  Station  under  Dr.  E.  L.  Sturtevant.  But 
these  two  Peach  Tomatoes  were  so  small,  crooked  and 
green  that  it  was  hardly  hoped  that  the  seeds  were 
more  than  half  formed.  Planted  in  pots  early  in 
March  of  last  year  beside  a  dozen  or  more  other  kinds, 
as  mentioned  below,  they  were  not  only  the  first  to 
sprout  by  a  week  or  more,  but  they  made  stronger 
plants,  and  this  strength  and  vigor  were  maintained 
during  the  entire  season,  the  vines  being  noticeably 
longer  and  bushier  than  those  of  any  other.  Not  only 
this,  but  they  were  marvels  of  productiveness  from 
quite  early  in  the  season  till  stinging  frosts  killed  both 
vines  and  fruit. 
As  will  be  seen  elsewhere,  The  R.  N.-Y.  has  endeav¬ 
ored  to  trace  the  origin  of  the  Peach  Tomato.  A  variety 
so  beautifully  different  from  any  other  in  its  peach¬ 
like  skin,  its  soft,  sweetish  pulp,  might  be  supposed  to 
have  a  history  or,  at  any  rate,  a  potency  which  would 
show  itself  in  crossbreeds  with  it.  Not  so.  Of  the 
two  dozen  plants  selected  and  grown  in  the  experi- 
Fig.  29. 
Fig.  32. 
REVERSIONS  OF 
Last  Season’s  Trials  of  Tomatoes. 
It  has  been  The  R.  N.-Y.’s  way  to  try  from  season 
to  season  all  the  so-called  new  tomatoes  announced  by 
seedsmen,  or,  when  possible,  before  they  were  offered 
for  sale,  reports  of  which  have  been  rendered  before 
seed-planting  time  of  the  next  year.  We  have  now  to 
speak  of  the  following  :  Mitchell’s,  Delair,  Ponderosa, 
(400,)  Joel  Horner’s  No.  1,  Stone,  Potomac,  La  Crosse 
and  Fig. 
Mitchell’s  New  Tomato  (J.  J.  H.  Gregory.) — Mr. 
Mitchell,  the  originator  of  the  Canada  Victor,  claims 
for  this  new  tomato  (1)  that  it  is  unsurpassed  in  qual¬ 
ity  ;  (2)  that  it  is  the  earliest  perfectly  smooth  kind  : 
(3)  that  it  does  not  crack  or  rot ;  (4)  that  it  is  unsur¬ 
passed  in  productiveness  ;  (5)  that  it  is  uniform  in  size, 
holding  it  to  the  end  of  the  season. 
September  9. — Early  to  ripen,  large  and  variable  in 
shape.  Usually  round,  flattened  unevenly  about  the 
stem,  which  is  set  in  a  deep  cavity.  Color  yellowish 
red.  Cells  many,  walls  thick.  Seeds  medium  in  size 
and  number.  Vines  thrifty  and  productive.  Fruit 
does  not  always  ripen  about  the  stem.  September  15  : 
Ripe  and  ripening  in  large  quantities.  Size  small  to 
large.  Generally  shapely,  but  varying  from  round  to 
flattened  and  broad.  Often  fluted  about  the  stem. 
Delaik,  September  9. — Early  to  ripen,  variable  in 
shape.  Heavily  sutured  or  lobed  about  the  stem. 
Trophy  color.  Ripens  imperfectly  about  the  stem. 
Dwarf,  Tomato  de  Laye,  and  the  usual  habit,  with 
leaves  showing  some  of  the  crinklyness  of  de  Laye. 
Fruit  smooth,  slightly  oblate,  regular,  yellowish-red, 
with  an  approach  to  pink.  Seeds  medium  to  few  in 
number.  Flesh  firm.  From  medium  to  late  in  ripen¬ 
ing.  Later  the  color  is  noted  as  “  Acme  color — not 
quite  so  pink.”  Basin  shallow,  that  is  the  stem  is  not 
deeply  set — a  desirable  characteristic.  Cells  four,  five 
and  six.  Seeds  many.  September  15:  Rather  late. 
Fruit  medium  size,  smooth,  oblate,  ripening  well  about 
the  stem;  solid,  firm,  crystalline  flesh.  Color  some¬ 
times  yellowish-red.  Uniformly  medium  size,  never 
large,  rarely  small,  average  three  inches  in  diameter. 
September  21:  Ripening  in  large  quantities.  Smooth 
solid.  The  La  Crosse  reminds  one  of  a  superior  strain 
of  Dwarf  Champion. 
Ignotum  up  to  the  past  season  improved  by  selection 
every  year.  Last  season  it  was  a  comparative  failure. 
The  vines  were  less  vigorous,  the  fruit  not  so  large  or 
regular.  We  raised  but  six  plants,  however,  and  these 
may  have  suffered  from  a  local  cause. 
Ponderosa  (400),  Peter  Henderson  &  Co.,  New  York. 
— This  has  been  talked  of  more  than  any  other  new 
variety  ever  offered,  for  the  reason  (1)  that  in  some  re¬ 
spects  it  excels  all  other  kinds,  and  (2)  that  §250  were 
offered  for  a  permanent  name.  A  more  expressive 
name  than  Ponderosa,  which  is  at  the  same  time  pleas¬ 
ing  and  easily  spoken,  would  have  been  hard  to  hit 
Fig.  33.  Fig.  34. 
GOFF’S  “STATION”  TOMATO.”  Half  Section.  See  First  Page. 
ment  plot,  not  one  tomato  possessed  the  downy  skin  or 
soft  consistency  of  the  mother.  All  were  somewhat 
under  size.  Some  were  lobed  and  irregular ;  a  few 
were  remotely  quadrangular,  but  most  of  them  were 
smooth  and  round,  or  slightly  flattened,  as  shown  in 
the  engraving  Figs.  35  to  38,  or  by  Figs.  39  to  42  in  half 
section.  Fig.  3(5  (40  half  section)  resembled  the  Peach 
in  its  solid,  tender  pulp  and  obscurity  of  cell  walls. 
Fig.  38  (Fig.  42  half  section)  shows  an  unusual  devel¬ 
opment  of  central  placenta.  Fig.  37  was  half  cavity, 
as  shown  by  the  black  portions  in  Fig.  41  half  section, 
while  Fig.  35  (Fig.  39  half  section)  is  notable  for  its 
large  seeds.  These,  too,  were  again  crossed  during  the 
summer,  with  Ponderosa,  Potomac,  Stone,  Long 
Keeper,  Ignotum  and  Fig  Tomatoes.  Nos.  1,  2,  3,  4,  5 
(Figs.  43  to  48)  show  in  outline  other  forms  of  the  Peach 
cross.  Fig.  48  was  selected  as  showing  the  largest 
size  and  most  irregular  form  of  these  crosses.  That  so 
many  dissimilar  fruits,  which  really  include  nearly 
every  known  tomato  shape,  should  all  have  come  from 
seeds  of  the  smooth,  even  Peach,  shows  the  great 
variability  to  which  the  tomato  is  liable,  and  makes  it 
easier  to  believe  that  all  tomatoes  trace  back  to  a  com¬ 
mon  ancestor,  the  Cherry  Tomato.  We  cannot  learn 
that  any  of  the  varieties  of  tomatoes  now  in  the  mar¬ 
ket  are  the  result  of  crossing.  Mr.  A.  W.  Livingston, 
who  may  be  credited  with  having  improved  the  tomato 
as  much  as  any  other  individual,  informed  us,  some 
years  ago,  that  all  his  varieties — Acme,  Paragon, 
Beauty,  Perfection  and  Favorite— were  merely  selections 
from  the  varieties  he  had  raised  from  season  to  season. 
Cells  many,  seeds  medium  as  to  size.  Needs  further 
selection.  September  15 :  Has  the  advantage  of  be¬ 
ginning  to  ripen  early  in  large  quantities  and  continue- 
ing  until  frost. 
Livingston’s  Stone  (J.  C.  Vaughn). — September 
9:  Medium  to  late  in  maturing.  Cells  variable.  Some¬ 
times  as  fleshy  as  Ponderosa  (400)  with  small  cells  and 
few  and  small  seeds.  Sometimes  the  cells  are  large 
and  many-seeded.  Fruit  large  to  very  large,  generally 
smooth,  round,  partly  flattened — shapely.  Productive. 
A  solid,  handsome  tomato.  September  15:  Almost  per¬ 
fect  as  to  shape.  It  is,  however,  rather  late  for  this 
section  as  judged  by  the  present  season.  See  Fig.  49 
entire;  Fig.  51  half  section 
Potomac  from  Joseph  Harris,  Rochester,  N.  Y.,  Sep¬ 
tember  9:  Though  late,  a  large  per  cent  ripens  at 
about  the  same  time.  The  color  is  that  of  the  Acme 
class.  Medium  in  size,  uniformly  round-oblate.  One 
of  the  best  where  earliness  is  not  an  important  factor. 
Healthy  vines,  fruit  free  of  rot.  As  regards  solidity 
of  flesh  and  fewmess  of  seeds  a  further  selection  might 
well  be  made.  Some  are  far  more  solid  than  others. 
The  color  also  varies  from  a  dark  to  a  light  red  as  to 
the  flesh  itself.  September  15:  Now  ripening  its  main 
crop  and  a  heavy  crop  it  is.  Medium  size,  oblate, 
smooth,  yellowish-red  to  Acme-red.  Some  have  a 
large  proportion  of  cell  walls  with  few  and  small 
seeds;  others  have  thinner  placentae  and  larger  seeds. 
Fig.  50  shows  the  Potomac  entire;  Fig.  52  in  half  section. 
La  Crosse  from  John  A  Salzer,  La  Crosse,  Wis.,  Sep¬ 
tember  9:  This  appears  to  be  midway  between  the 
upon.  Its  merits  are,  great  size  shown  not  only  in 
those  first  ripening,  but  during  the  entire  season.  The 
vines  as  grown  here  were  so  productive  that  the  quan¬ 
tity  of  fruit  seemed  out  of  all  proportion  to  the  size  and 
foliage  of  the  plants.  The  quality  of  those  which  ripen 
perfectly  is  excellent,  the  pulp  being  firm  but  tender, 
with  few  and  small  seeds.  The  faults  of  Ponderosa 
are  that  it  is  rather  late  and  that  it  does  not,  usually, 
ripen  about  the  stem.  In  fact,  many  were  green  in  the 
upper  (stem)  half  while  ripe  in  the  other  half.  The  ripe 
portion  often  begins  to  decay  while  yet  the  rest  is  green. 
The  tomatoes  were,  for  the  most  part,  flutedly  irregular, 
while  a  few  were  smooth  and  perfect.  It  may  be  said, 
however,  that  this  is  the  shapeliest  of  the  large  varieties. 
It  may  be  of  interest  to  our  readers  to  know  that 
45,000  packets  were  sold  by  the  Hendersons  during  the 
year,  and  that  25  per  cent  of  the  purchasers  sent  in 
names.  We  are  told  further  that  12  bushels  of  this 
variety  are  required  to  make  one  pound  of  seed. 
California  Fig  Tomato,  from  John  A.  Salzer,  La 
Crosse,  Wis. — Mr.  Salzer’s  catalogue  claims  that  in 
California  this  tomato  is  used  for  making  figs  “  which 
are  said  to  equal  the  best  California  figs  when  cured 
and  dried  in  a  manner  peculiar  to  the  natives  them¬ 
selves.”  He  describes  it  in  shape  as  “  perfectly  round.” 
This  is  a  mistake  as  our  engraving  (from  nature) 
shows — Fig.  53.  The  tomatoes  are  uniformly  pear- 
shaped,  of  a  bright  golden  color — the  plants  exceed- 
productive.  To  those  who  are  not  familiar  with 
the  fig-making  secret  of  the  natives  of  California,  this 
variety  is  valuable  only  for  pickles  or  preserves. 
