It is hard to judge as to the merits of this variety. From the behavior
of the trees on the grounds of this Station where we have had fruit of
it for eight years, we should say at once that Climax has no place in
the plum-growing regions of the East but others who have grown it speak
so well of it, the fruit in particular, that the unfavorable opinion
of the variety formed here may be unjust. Some of the expressions
regarding this fruit in the foregoing references may be dismissed at
once as the most wildly extravagant and absurd to be found in plum
literature. From its behavior on these grounds and in the plum-growing
regions of the East in general, it seems certain that Climax cannot
stand the vicissitudes of the climate, suffering both in winter and
summer. The trees, in size, vigor and habit of growth, are inferior to
those of most Triflora varieties, and those under observation in this
part of New York are not as productive as the standard Trifloras with
which Climax must be compared. The fruit is handsome in shape and color,
more so in color than the accompanying illustration shows, and is of
good quality. Unfortunately it is very susceptible to the brown-rot, so
much so that because of this defect alone Climax could hardly become a
profitable commercial plum in this region. It has been quite well tested
in various parts of New York and has proved so uniformly disappointing in
tree-characters, in particular, that it cannot be recommended as other
than a plum for the home collection where, because of its beauty and
quality, it is most desirable.
Climax is another of Luther Burbank’s plums, having been introduced in
1899. The originator states that it is a selected hybrid between the
Simon and Botan plums. The variety was first described as the Royal but
since this name had been previously given to a European plum it was
renamed Climax.
Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, somewhat straggling,
dense-topped, semi-hardy, medium productive; branches dark
ash-gray, short and stout, with numerous lenticels; branchlets
short, with very short internodes, brownish chestnut-red,
glossy, glabrous, with numerous conspicuous, small, raised
lenticels; leaf-buds small, short, obtuse, plump, free.
Leaves folded upward, oblanceolate, peach-like, one and
one-quarter inches wide, three and three-eighths inches long,
thin; upper surface light green, smooth, with a grooved midrib,
glabrous; lower surface light green, glabrous except on the
midrib and larger veins; apex taper-pointed, base cuneate,
margin finely serrate or crenate, with small, dark brown
glands; petiole nine-sixteenths inch long, sparsely pubescent,
tinged red, glandless or with from one to seven small, globose
or slightly compressed, reddish glands.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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