The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1897-07-13
POMOLOGICAL ART.
TRYING TO PRODUCE sEEDLsss AND
THoRNLEss FRUIT.

suits Have Shown That They Are on tn,
Right Basis-slight Success with Apples
One Of the most important objects DO
nologists are striving for is to produce
thornless and seedless fruits, and from
the results already obtained it is moi
unlikely that the end will soon be real.
lied. Seeds are not relished by the CON
sumers Of fruits, and if they could be
removed we would enjoy our grapes
without experiencing a dread Of appen-
dioitis and kindred eomplaints
Thorns are not In good standing
among fruit growers, because they are
constantly punoturing the best fruits
and, what is equally important, the
skin Of the pickers The thorns and
prickles Of plants and trees were un-
doubtedly intended by nature to protect
them from animals, but that is no rea-
son why they should be continued for
generation after generation on the cul-
tivated varieties. The gardener has no
need for them, and, for that matter, the
trees and shrubs have none either.
Our domesticated pears and apples
were all derived from the thorny, wild
varieties, and pomologists have succeed
ed in Kidding them Of these spitss aud
prickles by careful culture and seleo-
tion. Oranges and lemons have not
been cultivated in this country as suo-
cessfully as pears and apples, and many
OF them are very thorny. The wild and
sour orange trees of Florida are bris.
tling with thorns, as is also the high
priced king orange, one of the best Of
the maDdarins The wild lemon trees of
Florida are SO thorny that growers ques-
tion the advisabiiity of grating the fine
La France lemons on them.
In Florida, however, the thorns Of
the orange and lemon trees have been
greatly reduced by selecting buds from
branches with the fewest thorns, and
by continuing this process year after
year the sharp spikes disappear. In Cal
ifornia nearly all Of the orange trees are
thornless-not naturally, but Us the re-
suit of cultivation and selection.
The thorns on blackberries, raspber-
ries and rosebushes give the greatest
bother to hortioulturists in the north,
and there is determined effort to get
rid of them. The thorns give endless
trouble to the pickers, and their remov-
al might save many puncture to deli
cate hands. There is an,improved varie-
ty Of raspberry placed ohThe market TO-
day which is entirely tholS less, but the
trouble is that quality and quantity of
fruit have been sacrificed to the gain
made in destroying the thorna
There is little doubt that perfect
thornless blackberries and raspberries
will soon be obtained, for there is O
widespread movement among gardeners
and seedsmen to accomplish this. The
man who is fortunate enough to produce
variety that gives perfect fruit with
out the thorns will receive a pretty stiff
price FOR his plants.
Seeds are also unnecessary plant prod
ucts in these advanced days of horticul-
ture, when gardeners propagate half
their stock By cuttings, gratis and slips.
Nature need no longer trouble herself
about the fear of losing any of her types.
The modern hortioulturist is sure to
preserve every one Of any value without
gathering seed.
The California navel orange repre-
'ents tho best type Of fruit grown with.
but seeds. Nature produced this orange
IS freak at first, and man has taken
advantage of it to propagate fruit of a
nigh order. Half the oranges of Cali
'ornia are grated with the navel, and
{ is the most important fruit of the
Pacific coast. Nature tried to produce
wins in the navel orange, and one sur
lived only as protuberance in the
blossom end, while the other expanded
nto q we'll shaped fruit without seeds.
These oranges are occasionally found
With small seeds; but, as rule, they
re perfectly seedless. I
Several varities of seedless apples and
'ears have already been produced, but
he quality Of the fruit is generally poor
nd nearly worthless. They are called q
'bloomless" pears and apples and are !
more as curiosities than as the
tiumphs Of pomological art. Neverthe- $
oss, they ore the beginning of new era
I apple growing, and they represent the
rimary stock of seedless fruits which
lay produce in time the finest favored :
pples and pears
The grape industry would be benefit r
more than any other by the produc- :
on OF new varieties without seeds, and !
)ward this end scores of fruit growers :
re working, especially in California. !,
he idea is to produce not only table =
rapes, but grapes that will make fine !,
lisins. Seedless raisins would prove
ich a boon TO the whole civilized world
TAT any other variety would be quickly
In out of the market.
There is seedlesg grape of Corinth,
hloh commonly passes as O ourrant.
ld the Sultana raisins Of southeastern
urope are slao seedless, But these
ults are 50 small that they can never '
lswer the purpose What the trade v
ants is a large, seedless grape, with
'rfect color and flavor. and to get that
10 necessary to experiment for years.
New York Journal. v
The Austrian Dynasty. =
The present emperor of Austr;a 20