2:^2 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
September  3,  1898. 
STONELESS  GRAPES. 
Growees  of  the  “  queen  of  fruits  ”  »re  well  acquainted  with 
fitoneless  Grapes,  also  with  the  circumstance  that  in  every  bunch 
of  this  fruit,  no  matter  what  variety,  there  are  always  three 
conditions  of  berries.  (1)  Absolutely  sterile — antherless  and 
ovuleless,  which  never  attain  to  any  material  size,  and  in  some 
cases  are  cast,  as  in  Muscat  of  Alexandria,  before  the  flowering 
fltage  is  reached,  wholly  or  in  part.  (2)  Small — imperfectly  formed 
berries,  being  defective  in  ovules  and  stamens.  (3)  Large — 
perfectly  constructed  in  every  essential  particular,  for  the  repro-  i 
duction  and  continuance  of  the 
parental  form.  What  the  berries 
are  when  developed  in  the  bunch 
they  were  previously  in  the  bud, 
which  has  pushed  and  produced 
th^  shoot.  This  may  be  of  the 
current  year,  as  fruit  sometimes 
forms  on  the  laterals — an  indehnite 
term  applied  to  any  and  every 
growth  from  a  rod  or  cane,  and 
meaning  anything  or  nothing,  but 
commonly  of  the  preceding  season’s 
formation.  The  bunch  is  there¬ 
fore  what  it  was  formed  in  the 
bud,  perfect  or  imperfect  in  berry 
up  to  flowering,  and  once  formed 
-cannot  be  changed  or  transformed 
by  any  art  of  man. 
The  bunch  itself  is  simply  a 
tendril  on  which  leaves  have  been 
affixed  and  transformed  into  tbe 
•complete  parts  of  the  berries,  and 
each  is  perfect  or  imperfect  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  measure  of  formation 
in  embryo  in  the  bud.  Indeed, 
the  shoot  itself  corresponds  to  its 
formation  in  the  bud,  and  the  de- 
velopment  of  it  is  solely  dependent 
on  the  condition  of  the  Vine, 
the  nutrient  elements  stored  and 
present  in  the  soil  in  available 
form,  with  favourin?  circumstances 
for  development.  What  applies  to 
the  bunch  is  applicable  to  each 
berry.  The  ovule  is  the  central 
portion  of  a  shoot — the  growing 
and  continuation  part  of  the  Vine, 
and  the  other  parts  of  the  ovary, 
with  the  stamens,  are  simply  leaves 
transformed  and  differentiated. 
Over  this  the  cultivator  has  more 
or  less  control,  for  certain  condi¬ 
tions  of  soil  (its  staple  and  con¬ 
tained  constituents)  and  situation 
•(climatic  circumstances)  are  known 
to  favour  fruitfulness  and  others 
barrenness.  This  is  assuming  that 
the  variety  is  normally  fertile,  and 
not  inherently  sterile,  as  in  the 
case  of  Black  Corinth,  which  pro¬ 
duces  the  currants  of  commerce. 
Black  Monukka  and  Sultana,  the 
stoneleis  raisins  imported  into  this 
country.  These  varieties,  however, 
-are-  not  absolutely  stoneless,  for  46.-buxch  of  stoneless  alnwick  seedling  grapes. 
the  Vines,  though  generally  pro-  (.Natural  Size.) 
ducing  seedless  berries,  sometimes 
bear  full-sized  large  berries  with  seeds,  and  it  is  practically  a 
•question  of  nutrition  and  environment.  Where  a  number  of 
varieties  is  grown,  and  the  cultivation  is  suited  to  Grape  Vines 
generally,  these  sterile  forms  revert  to  the  seed-producing  state, 
being  restored  to  fertility  by  the  abandonment  of  in-and-in- 
breeding,  or  recourse  naturally  or  artificially  to  cross-fertilisation 
— the  “  perfect  cure  ”  for  barrenness,  and  the  greatest  aid  to 
development  of  individual  and  particular  forms. 
The  question  of  stoneless  Grapes  is,  therefore,  a  matter  of 
cultivation  and  of  fertilisation.  The  latter  is  known  to  be  greatly 
influenced  by  the  pollen,  it  being  practically  futile  to  strive  to 
-obtain  a  good  set  by  fertilisation  with  own  ;  not  that  the  pollen 
rgrains  are  imperfect,  for  they  push  pollen-tubes  freely  in  a  weak 
solution  of  sugar,  and  are  potent  for  effecting  fertilisation  when 
applied  to  the  stigma  of  another  vaiiety.  In  the  case  of  such 
varieties  as  Muscat  of  Alexandria  there  is  no  difficulty  in  effecting 
fertilisation  in  some  places  by  means  of  its  own  pollen,  which  is 
certainly  due  to  the  condition  of  the  flowers  as  produced  by  culti¬ 
vation  ]  but  in  other  cases  it  is  very  difficult  to  secure  a  good  set 
of  fruit  without  recourse  to  fertilisation  with  pollen  from  a  free- 
setting  variety,  or  by  recourse  to  cross-fertilisation. 
This  prepotency  of  foreign  pollen  over  native  was  first  pro¬ 
pounded  by  Darwin  in  the  “Origin  of  Species,”  and  has  been 
turned  to  good  account  by  cultivators  and  raisers  of  new  and 
improved  varieties.  There  are  exceptions  to  all  rules,  for  it  is 
manifest  that  no  pollen  whatever  can  have  any  effect  on  an 
imperfect  ovule.  This,  as  well  as  the  pollen  grain,  must  be 
perfectly  formed,  otherwise  both 
are  useless.  But  in  crossing  with 
a  view  to  raising  new  varieties 
sterility  may  be  induced  by  operat¬ 
ing  on  two  individuals  of  pro¬ 
nounced  proclivities  in  that  direc¬ 
tion,  as  in  the  case  of  Alnwick 
See<31ing,  a  variety  obtained  by 
crossing  Black  Morocco  with  Syrian, 
both  notoriously  bad  setters;  but 
the  result  of  such  cross,  even 
culturally,  was  important,  as  the 
fertilised  berries  of  Black  Morocco 
— the  female  parent  —  proved  of 
unusaal  size,  whilst  the  progeny 
as  seen  in  Alnwick  Seedling  was 
confirmed  in  sterility,  it  being  one 
of  the  worst  setting  of  Grapes, 
as  it  certainly  is  one  of  the  hand¬ 
somest  and  best  keeping  varieties 
when  the  berries  are  properly  fer¬ 
tilised  and  impregnated. 
Cases  of  comple'e  sterilisation 
are  few  where  a  number  of  varieties 
is  grown,  and  the  soil  and  environ¬ 
ment  are  particularly  favourable 
to  fruitfulness.  Indeed,  in  no 
instance  but  one  have  1  seen  a 
whole  bunch  of  absolutely  stone¬ 
less  berries.  Such  bunch,  fig.  46, 
was  some  time  ago  (August  8th) 
submitted  to  the  Editor  of  this 
Journal  with  a  request  for  state¬ 
ment  of  cause  of  its  condition. 
This  was  s)  remarkable,  every 
bunch  on  the  Vine  being  the  same, 
and  not  a  berry  in  the  whole  bunch 
containing  a  single  fertilised  ovule, 
that  it  was  deemed  desirable  to 
pourtray  the  specimen.  It  is  per¬ 
fect  in  form,  as  much  so  as  a 
well-set  bunch  thinned  by  an  expert 
hand,  and  is  shown  at  the  stage 
when  stoning  should  be  completed 
and  the  last  swelling  began  for 
ripening. 
Fig.  46.  —  Bunch  of  ttoneless 
Alnwick  Seedling  Grapes  (natural 
size). 
On  detaching  a  small  shoulder 
(fif.  47,  A),  it  was  noticed  that 
there  were  but  two  sizes  of  berries. 
(1)  Ovuleless  (a),  which  are  posi¬ 
tively  incapable  of  impregnation, 
and  seldom  swell  with  fertilisation, 
or  if  they  do,  never  become  larger 
than  “  currants.  ”  (2)  Swelled  (&), 
but  only  to  about  half  the  size  of  a  fertilised  berry  at  this  stage. 
A  vertical  section  of  the  berry  (B)  showed  it  to  be  stoneless, 
but  otherwise  perfect.  This  was  further  disclosed  when  enlarged 
three  diameters  (C)  ;  the  cuticle  or  skin  (c)  being  quite  clear;  the 
flesh  (d)  sound  ;  ovaries  (e)  in  proper  orcier  ;  and  the  ovules  (f) 
perfect,  except  that  where  the  embryo — the  future  plant — should 
be  (shown  by  the  inner  oval)  there  was  a  brown  stain,  and.  no  sub¬ 
stance.  Here  was  the  cause — non-fertilisation. 
Still  further  pursuing  investigation  by  severing  the  ovule  portion, 
and  subjecting  it  to  a  microscopic  power  of  sixty-five  diameters 
(or  as  ordinarily  accepted  130  diameters),  the  ovules  (Z)  ff)  were 
found  intact,  nothing  whatever  defective  on  their  part,  the  neck  (h) 
being  open  instead  of  closed,  as  occurs  when  a  pollen  tube  has  not 
passed  through  it,  even  the  ligaments  by  which  the  ovules  are 
attached  to  the  flesh  being  quite  clear,  and  theif  cells  (i)  normal  ; 
even  the  gelatinous  substance  which  envelopes  the  ovule  was 
