The Washington herald., 1910-01-16
GRAPES LACK SEEDS
Strange Fruit that Grows
Near Tabriz, Persia.
MAY BE RAISED IN AMERICA
Many Kinds of Edible Nuts and Or
chard Products Reach Perfection
Varieties of Grapes in the Vine
yards-WatermeIo Small.

Consul W. +. Doty. o. Tahr,s Persia
gives the following account ~ the fruits
Of Persia and their preservation in a
/ fresh state:
While Persia is generally famed for its
roses and other beautiful flowers and its
tastetully arranged gardens. its orchards,
with excellent varieties OF finely favored
fruits. nuts. melons. squashes, cucum-
bers. &c. deserve greater consideration.
It is the home of the peach, fact illus
trated in the term for this fruit IN many
languages. The apricots and nectarines
are also worthy OF mention.
Almonds and pistachIo nuts are exported
in large quantities. A very agreeable
method OF drying fruit is 10 include nuts
and sugar, removing the pit from a peach.
This is called ''meampoor." The dried
fruit industry Is a very important one
here
Preserve Grapes with Bugs-
To preserve grapes fresh for three or
more months. the punches are covered
with calico bags TO protect them from
frost. There are In Persia, all told,
nearly 100 varieties OF grapes, most of
which are OF an excellent taste and some
Of which are seedless. There is every
reason to believe that most Of them
would flourish in the United States If
care were taken to consider similarity
Of climate and soil.
There is a prospect that in the near
future an experiment Will be made in
introducing Persian seedless grapes into
the United States. There are no diseases
OF grapes in Persia so far as I have
been able to discover. Grapes are sus-
pended from ceilings in small fruit shops
IN the bazaars here until the middle OF
January
Apples and ounces are generally COW
cred with leaves in a cellar for their
preservation. although frequently they
are suspended on cords from the ceilings
of dry rooms. many being fastened one
below another on the cords.
WatermeIons and muskmelons are Of
good flavor. They are preserved by
hanging from the ceiling fastened by
their stems to a cord, or in a net Of
rather large mesh. or by laying them
IN inches Of the walls Of dry rooms
where there IS good ventilation
The climatic conditions in this section
are most favorable. as the seasons merge
very gradually into one another and
the air is very dry-the plain Of Iran
averaging IN altitude about 1900 feet.
Tabriz is 800 or 500 feet higher still.
The melons Of Ispahan are far-famed
for size and flavor. Those az Mashad
are also very fine. In the southwestern
section of the United States, in Arizona,
New Mexico. and California, in high altl-
tudes, It IS more than likely that melons
could be preserved for three or four
months in the Persian way.
WatermeIOns Are Small.
There are some very small varieties
Of watermelOns here, about three inches
in diameter, which are quite well fla
vored They sell for the equivalent Of
half a cent in American currency.
have been told of large ones at Mashad,
called "Camel-load," that weigh posi-
bly, thirty pounds. The soil in that quarter
is very sandy and the air Is quite dry.
1t is questionable. however, that the
Persian watermelon would be regarded
as of a finer taste than that Of the
southeastern quarter OF the United
States
On the other hand. the muskmelons IN
Persia are vast improvement on the
American variety. An attractive display
Of fruit can be seen In the bazaars in most
Of the villages, as well as in the large
cities during the greater part of the year.
1t affords a very cheap and most whole
some food source for the poorer classes.
After one has tasted Persian grapes. It is
hard to relinquish them for the American
Concord or most other varieties Of
America and Europe. II would appear
TO be most inviting proposition TO in
uoduce the best sorts into America