A CURIOUS APPLE.

Shannon News, 2 June 1927, Page 3

A CURIOUS APPLE.

RECURRENCE OF FREAK.

AN INTERESTING EVENT

lhe discovery in Poverty Bay last season of a curious freak, or “sport,” in an apple tree of the Delicious variety aroused must interest. The pecurliar characteristic of the apple produced by the freak was the solid red colour of the fruit, which contrasted strongly with the streaked colouring of the ordinary variety of the Delicious. This season the "“sport” has recurred, not only in the tree in which it was first noticed, but also in two trees in other orchards in Poverty Bay (says the Herald). A feature of the freak is that it does not affect the whole tree on which it occurs, blit is confined to one branch of an otherwise normal tree, which produces on its other branches fruit entirely conforming to standard. Discussing the curiosity, Mr. M‘lndoe, Government orchard inspector, remarked that the fruit of the freak branches he’d possibilities of development info a new variety. Apart from the very fine colouring, which would be very useful in districts where the colour standards were poor, as a means to raise the export standards, the “sports’ ‘ opened up the possibility of initiating a new type of apple. The breakaway from the true characteristics of the Delicious was confined to the colour, so far as he had been able to determine, but he hoped that further divergencies would develop, in the direction of obviating the few faults that the Delicious had as a table apple. Among these faults were the roughness that marked most of the fruit about the-calyx, leading to waste in the preparation of the apple for dessert purposes; another was the tendency to maintain open the canal between the calyx and the core, 'which opening allowed the entry of fungus spores and consequently damage to The fruit. If the “sports” offer the means of developing a Delicious apple with a closed “eye,” as the canal was generally termed, the discovery may prove of great value. The freak is susceptible to propaga tion by budding and grafting, and will reproduce the characteristics on new stock, Mr. M‘fndoe stated. This circumstance suggests that some interesting experiments might be embarked upon.