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Pear. A popular fruit and tree of the genus Pyrus, long cultivated
and much modified.
The cultivated pear, as known in North America, is derived from two
distinct sources, the European Pyrus communis and the Oriental Pyrus
scrotina. Pears of the European stock have been grown in North
America from the earliest settlement of the country. They thrive
particularly well in the New England states and New York, and west to
the Great Lakes, and again on the Pacific slope. In the great
interior basin, pear-culture always has been precarious, due
primarily to the great liability of the trees to blight. In the
southern states, the climate is too hot for the best development of
the tree and the best quality of the fruit. In the north prairie
states, the winter climate is so severe that the pear tree will not
grow. Forms of pears are shown in Figs. 2806 and 2807, as
representing the common species.
Some time before the middle of the preceding century the sand or
Chinese pear (Pyrus serotina, formerly and, as it now appears,
erroneously, identified as P. sinensis), Fig. 2808, was introduced
into the eastern states, although it attracted little attention. It
soon hybridized with the common pear, and a race of mongrel varieties
was the result. Of these hybrids, only two have gained great
commercial prominence. These are LeConte and Kieffer (Figs. 2809,
2810, 2811). The LeConte, which appeared about the middle of last
century and which is the first of the American hybrids, so far as we
know, was found to be well adapted to the southern states and its
general introduction there after the close of the Civil War was the
beginning of commercial pear-culture in the South. It was first
supposed to be blight-proof, but. in later years, orchards have been
nearly decimated by the blight, with the result that the LeConte is gradually lessening in importance and its place is being taken by the Kieffer, although the latter is by no means blight- free. The Kieffer pear originated with Peter Kieffer, of Roxborough, Philadelphia, an Alsatian gardener, who died in 1890. He grew the Chinese sand pear or Sha Lea and sold the seedlings as ornamental trees, for this species is of very distinct and handsome growth and the fruit is ornamental and fragrant.
Alongside the sand pears were Bartletts. Amongst one of the batches
of seedlings from the sand pear he noticed a plant with different
foliage, and this he saved. Its fruit was found to be superior to the
sand pear, and it was introduced as the Kieffer. It fruited in 1873.
The Kieffer pear is now very popular in many parts of the country
because of its great vigor,healthiness, productiveness, and the
keeping qualities of the fruit. In point of quality, the fruit is
distinctly inferior, but it meets the demands of the market and is an
excellent fruit for canning.
Pyrus serotina itself bears a very hard pear which is inedible in the
raw state, but it is excellent when used as quinces are. It is
fragrant and ornamental. The tree is a most vigorous and clean
grower. The plant is well worth growing as an ornamental. It is used
for stock for ordinary pears, particularly in the southern states.
For an historical and horticultural account of the oriental pears and
their hybrids, see Bulletin No. 332, Cornell Experiment Station, by
Cox (under direction of the late John Craig).
In the cold prairie countries and other parts of the cold north,
Russian pears have gained some headway in recent years. These are
hardy types of Pyrus com- munis. The fruit is usually of low quality,
but the trees are considerably hardier than the ordinary pear.
Pear-culture is the one American fruit industry which seems to show
little expansion. Pears are not a popular dessert fruit in this
country, and the product is largely used in canning. This is a great
pity, and a loss to the people. The cultivation of the Kieffer on a
large scale has probably bred a generation of people who are little
aware that the pear is a fruit that may be good to eat out of hand;
and the commercial and cultural difficulties are greater than with
other fruits.
The pear thrives on a variety of soils, but it succeeds best on those
that are rather hard clay. On sandy and loamy lands it tends to be
short-lived. This is perhaps due, in part, to the fact that trees
grow rapidly on such lands, and are, therefore, more liable to the
attacks of blight. It is now generally accepted that trees which are
making a strong and soft growth are more susceptible to blight than
those which grow rather slow and firm, although all trees are liable
to attack. Some varieties are more nearly immune than others. Caution
must be exercised, therefore, in the tilling of the pear orchard.
Whilst pears profit by the best tillage, as apples and potatoes do,
it is easy to carry the tilling and fertilizing so far as to produce
top vigorous growth and thereby invite the blight, and this disease
is the one great menace to pear-culture. Therefore the most careful
pear- growers use sparingly of stable manure and of nitrogenous
cover-crops. They prefer to supply fertility by means of concentrated
fertilizers which are not very rich in nitrogen. If, however, the
trees are not making a strong and steady growth, it is as necessary
to apply nitrogenous fertilizers to the pear tree as to any other.
In the interior country, pears are likely to suffer from sun-scald,
and therefore the tops are started very low, usually not more than 2
or 3 feet from the ground. Standard pears (those not grown as dwarfs)
are pruned much as are apple trees, except not so severely. Heavy
pruning may open the top and invite sun-scald, and it also tends to
make too strong and sappy growth. After the top of the pear tree is
well formed and established, it is customary to do little pruning,
only keeping the top fairly free and open.
The pear bears mostly on spurs which continue to branch and to bear
for a number of years, and in pruning it is important that these
spurs be not removed unless it is desired to thin the fruit. The
flowers are borne in umbel-like cymes (Fig. 2805), but in most kinds
only one fruit sets in a cluster. Pear trees are usually planted much
closer than apple trees. The customary distance is 18 to 20 feet.
Fig. 2812 shows an average east-American pear orchard. Fig. 2813 is a
picking scene.
Many of the varieties of pears are infertile with themselves: they
need the pollen of other varieties to cause them to set fruit freely.
Probably any variety will fertilize any other variety in case the two
bloom simultaneously. Such varieties as Kieffer and Bartlett are
usually classed as self-sterile kinds, but the degree of sterility
varies in different places and with different conditions. The safest
plan in the setting of a pear orchard is to plant not more than two
rows of one variety together, and to alternate with one or two rows
of another variety.
Good varieties of pears are numerous. The one most important variety
is the Bartlett (Fig. 2806), which was early introduced into the
United States from Europe, where it is known as the Bonchretien. At
present, the Kieffer probably holds second place. In the eastern
states, the Seckel (Fig. 2814) is a prominent variety, and is the
standard of quality. Other prominent varieties are Anjou (Fig. 2815),
Clairgeau, Hardy, Howell, Sheldon, and Diel. The list might be almost
indefinitely extended. In the Gulf region, the oriental hybrids alone
are successful, and the leaders are Kieffer, LeConte, Garber, and
Smith. The most notable pear of early American origin is undoubtedly
the Seckel, which originated near Philadelphia in the eighteenth
century. As late as 1880, the tree presented the appearance shown in
Fig. 2816, which appeared (in larger size) in the Gardener's Monthly.
In 1908, all that remained was a dead and decayed stump (Fig. 2817).
The season of the maturity of pears runs from midsummer, when it is
introduced by Summer Doyenne and (Manning) Elizabeth, to late winter,
when it is closed with such late winter varieties as Nelis (Winter
Nelis), Malines, and others. The winter pears are relatively little
known in the eastern states. As a rule, they come into bearing late
or are not very prolific; but there is no reason why they should not
be better known. Winter pears are kept as are winter apples, although
somewhat greater care is necessary. They should be stored in a
uniformly cool temperature. If allowed to hang too long on the tree,
they become over-ripe, and then if placed in an ordinarily warm
cellar, they do not keep more than one or two months.
Unlike most other fruits, all pears are greatly improved in quality
if they are ripened indoors. They should be picked as soon as they
have reached their full size and have begun to color, but before they
have become soft, and be placed in a dry and rather cool room. If the
wind is allowed to blow over them, they are likely to shrivel. If
kept too warm, they ripen too quickly and soon rot. The best quality
is secured when they are picked about two weeks in advance of their
normal ripening.
Pears are marketed much as are apples, although the barrel is little
used for the dessert varieties. For export, as well as for a good
home trade, the following sentences by George T. Powell are useful:
"The fruit should be gathered when it has reached its most perfect
development, but not allowed to come to its full maturity or
approximate ripening. This is the right condition of fruit when it is
to be shipped without refrigeration. With refrigeration, a little
fuller maturity may be allowed. Each specimen should be wrapped in
paper. A layer of excelsior should be placed on the bottom of the
box, which is marked to be opened; over this place a sheet of paper.
Pack the pears in single layers, covering each with paper and
excelsior until the box is filled, nailing cover securely under
considerable pressure. Boxes should hold thirty-six large pears, and
sixty of medium size. [Fig. 2818.] This is a refinement of even the
best packing for the common domestic trade. [Fig. 2819.]
Dwarf pears.
When worked on the quince root, the pear is easily grown as a dwarf.
The free stocks—those grown normally' on pear roots—are known in this
country as standards. The dwarf pear comes into bearing earlier, and,
since the trees are small, the fruit can be thinned and the trees
sprayed, and the fruit therefore should be of the highest quality.
Dwarf pear trees require more care than the ordinary standards,
however, and they should not be planted unless the cultivator
understands this fact and is willing to give the attention that they
need. Although the trees are by nature dwarf, since they are worked
on a smaller-growing species, they nevertheless tend to become half
standard if left to themselves. Therefore they must be very severely
headed-in every year. A dwarf pear tree should never reach a greater
height than 12 feet. To keep it down to this stature, from one-half
to two-thirds of the annual growth is removed late each winter. The
trees are often planted as close together as 10 feet each way, but
this is too close. With the ordinary broad-top pruning, which nearly
all American growers give, 1 rod apart each way is not too great. A
good dwarf pear tree is one in which the union with the quince stock
is very close to the ground. When the tree is planted, this union
should be 4 to 6 inches below the surface after the ground has
settled. This deep planting prevents the breaking of the union and
places the quince beyond the reach of borers. If planted deeper than
this, the pear cion may throw out roots of its own; in fact, it
sometimes does this if planted only 6 inches deep. This rooting of
the stock is no particular disadvantage, although the tree thereafter
tends to grow stronger and greater pruning is necessary. An expert
grower can pick out the trees which are rooted from the pear stock by
their more vigorous growth: if he desires to check this redundant
growth he may cut off the pear roots. It is the common opinion that
dwarf pear trees are short-lived. This may be true as regards the greater number of specimens which one sees about yards and on untilled areas, but a dwarf pear orchard on good well-drained ground, which is well-tilled and given regular pruning, will last a lifetime. Many varieties of pears do well when grafted on the quince root, but the one that is oftenest grown as a dwarf is the Angouleme (Duchesse d'Angouleme).
(Fig. 2820.) This is a large pear of irregular shape which sells well
because of its size, but it is of indifferent quality and may not be
good enough for a special or personal market. Other varieties popular
for dwarfs are Louise Bonne, Anjou, Clair- geau, Elizabeth, and, to a
less extent, Bartlett and Seckel. Even Kieffer is sometimes dwarfed
with satisfactory results. The growing of dwarf pears is a special
practice; in general it is not commercially profitable.
Writing on dwarf pears from a long experience in New York, L. T.
Yeomans says: "The soil best adapted to dwarf pears is a rich loam,
with a subsoil that requires thorough underdraining—a tile drain
within 5 feet of every tree in the orchard would be thorough
draining. The soil should be good strong corn or potato ground, and
kept in such condition of fertility from year to year, for which
purpose good well-composted barnyard manure has no equal, but may be
supplemented by other fertilizers—as ground bone and potash. Small
crops, as beans and potatoes, may be grown between the trees the
first few years after planting, but never should they be allowed in
the least to interfere with thorough tillage, or to rob the trees of
proper and desirable nourishment. The growth of the tree is of far
greater value than any farm crops which can be grown between the
trees. The soil should be thoroughly cultivated at least every ten to
fifteen days during the growing season till about August 15 to
September 1. It should cease in time that the wood may fully ripen.
Suitable cultivation can hardly be given with any crop on the ground,
except, possibly, when sufficient space is left without a crop next
to the trees.
The trees should be planted in rows 15 feet each way, or in rows 20
feet apart each way, with one tree in the center of each square. As
the trees become older, the entire ground should be given up to
frequent cultivation; and under no conditions should a dwarf pear
orchard be seeded to grass, unless to clover for the purpose of
plowing it under for fertilization.
Dwarf pears require thorough annual pruning, which may be done at any
convenient time after the fulling of the foliage and before the buds
become in the least swollen in the spring; but, where the cold is
severe, it is better not to prune till about the first to middle of
March. This pruning should begin with the first year, and be
continued annually during the life of the tree, cutting back all of
the growth to within four to eight buds, and thinning out all surplus
branches which will not be wanted for limbs to the tree, so that at
maturity the tree shall be open-headed, with opportunity for plenty
of air and sunshine all through the tree, without which superior
quality of fruit cannot be grown. The lower limbs should be within 20
to 24 inches of the ground. Trees when twenty to fifty years old
should not be more than 12 to 14 feet high, and the diameter of the
branches about 12 to 16 feet. [See Fig. 2821.] It is a very erroneous
impression that a dwarf pear orchard under proper conditions is
short-lived. There are in the United States orchards in vigorous
condition, and now producing annual crops, that are from thirty to
fifty years old.
Some of the advantages of dwarf over standard pears are: more trees
can be planted to the acre, they commence bearing much younger, the
fruit is not so liable to be blown off by early winds before
maturity, it is much more quickly and easily gathered than from high
trees, the fruit is larger and of better quality than that on
standards. All varieties do not succeed equally well as dwarfs,
because they do not all form an equally perfect union with the
quince. Angouleme is the leading and most profitable variety now
grown as dwarf, although many others succeed well."
Pears in the prairie region. '
On the northern plains, the culture of pears follows the general
lines of pear-growing in the Atlantic states, but there are some
radical points of difference. According to C. L. Watrous, "The
difficulties of pear-growing in the upper Mississippi Valley are many
and grievous. Above the 40th parallel and west of the Great Lakes,
nearly all efforts have been failures. The best successes have been
on high rather steep ridges and bluffs near watercourses, with
light-colored clay soils and northerly exposures. Pear trees are not
planted to the bottom or to the top, but in belts midway around the
slopes. Plums may be used lower down and cherries above. The ground
should be already set in clover or blue-grass. Small circles are
spaded out for the trees. These are cultivated with the hoe and
widened with the growth of the tree. Small trees branched very low
are best. The trees may be cut back the second year to within a few
inches of the ground. Only a very moderate annual growth is
desirable. Use no manure until the tree has borne several crops of
fruit, and then only with extreme care. Rich black soils, plenty of
manure, and clean culture are deadly to pear trees in this region.
The critical period is that of the first fruit crop. The deadly enemy
is blight, which is sure to appear then. The successful pear-grower
must not neglect his orchard a single day during the season of
blight, but watch for the enemy and cut out and burn every blighted
twig as soon as seen. Sultry damp weather in June is most critical.
Such varieties as Warner, Longworth, Vermont (Beauty), Koonce, and
Kieffer are said to succeed farther north and resist blight better
than any others. Under slightly more favorable conditions, Clairgeau,
Howell, Seckel, Tyson, Washington, and Flemish (Beauty) may be used.
The hardiest and blight-resistant varieties may be grown, and when in
bearing a branch or two grafted with a more delicate sort with
success."
Insects and diseases.
The insect enemies of the pear are numerous, but, with two or three
exceptions, are not very serious. The tree is attacked by borers,
although to a less extent than peaches and apples. These are kept in
check by digging them out once or twice a year as on other fruit
stocks. The fruit is attacked to some extent by the codlin- moth, but
the arsenical sprays keep this insect in check. Of late years the
psylla, attacking the growing parts, has been very damaging in parts
of the East, although it is irregular in its outbreaks. It can be
controlled by thorough work with a spray in winter and also when the
blossom-buds are expanding, at the former time by the use of "Black
Leaf 40" tobacco preparation or kerosene emulsion and similar
compounds, and at the latter period by lime-sulfur. If the rough bark
is removed in winter and burned, very many of the pests will be
destroyed. In some parts of the East the fruit is attacked by the
pear midge, a minute fly whose maggots work in the very young fruit.
Thorough cultivation will check this serious pest, but its complete
control often involves the destruction of all the young fruit on the
infested trees; the application of kainit to the soil in the second
half of June (1,000 to 2,000 pounds to the acre on sandy soils in New
Jersey) is said to kill the insect after it leaves the fruit to
undergo its transformations. Repeated shallow tillage in early summer
is a good protection.
The foliage and fruit of the pear are attacked by parasitic fungi,
which cause the leaves to drop and the fruit to become scabby. These
diseases are readily held in check by spraying with bordeaux mixture
or lime-sulfur. More than fifty years ago the White Doyenne pear was
the most popular variety for growing on the quince root, but because
of the pear scab it passed away. It was supposed that the disease was
due to uncongenial climate. Since the advent of the sprays, however,
it has been found that the White Doyenne can be grown as well as
ever. Flemish (Flemish Beauty) is also an example in point. Years ago
it was one of the most popular standard varieties, but of late years
it has been ittle grown because of the cracking of the fruit.
Pear-blight or fire-blight is the most serious disease of pear trees.
It is an American disease. It is caused by a microbe which enters
through the growing points (flowers and tips of shoots) and thrives
in soft or "succulent" parts. Gradually the micro-organism works down
the stems, killing the tissues and causing the leaves to die. In the
leaf-blight, which is a distinct disease, the leaves are more or less
spotted and they fall; in the pear-blight, the leaves turn black and
hang on the tree. The fire-blight also attacks apple trees,
particularly in the Plains region. It is probably aboriginal on
hawthorns and related plants. There is no perfect preventive of the
disease. Some varieties seem to be relatively immune, as, for
example, the Angouleme. It is now generally believed that trees are
more subject to the disease when they are making excessive growth;
therefore it is advised that tillage and the application of
stimulating manures be moderate. As soon as the disease appears, cut
out the affected parts, severing them some inches below the lowest
point of visible attack. Do not allow blighted branches to remain on
the tree over winter. Disinfect the wounds or stubs and the
implements with bichloride of mercury or other antiseptic. Destroy
hedgerows and thickets hi which are other trees on which the blight
is carried, as hawthorns, quinces, and diseased apple and pear trees.
It is probable that there is a connection with insects in the spread
of pear-blight.
Literature.
There are no recent American books on the pear. Two books have been
written on this fruit: Thos. W. Fields' "Pear Culture," New York,
1858; P. T. Quinn's "Pear Culture for Profit," New York, 1869. new
edition, 1883. There are bulletins from the United States Department
of Agriculture and some of the state experiment stations. Many years
ago the writer secured from the venerable T. T. Lyon (Vol. Ill, page
1585), an article, for publication, on the pear. This was published
in the "Cyclopedia of American Horticulture." The Editor is glad
again to place this article alongside the others in order to contrast
the viewpoints of two generations. Mr. Lyon's article, which is
excellent and cautious and characterized by beauty of style, is of
the type that we no longer see. The person who is familiar with
present-day points of view will discover that it lays the emphasis on
formal presentation, propagation, pruning, varieties, whereas little
or no attention is given to systems of tillage, pollination,
spraying, and commercial methods. The methods in pear-culture, and
the varieties, have probably changed less in the last fifteen to
twenty-five years than those of any other standard fruit; as a whole,
pear-culture is not extending to any marked degree; and the article
that follows is still timely.
L H B
The pear and its cultivation.
So far as cultivators generally are concerned, this fruit is less
important than its near relative, the apple, for the reason that,
while the two begin to ripen at nearly the same season, there are
few, if any, desirable varieties of pears in season later than
December (if we except a few austere ones, suitable only for culinary
purposes), while apples are abundant for four or five months longer.
Moreover, during its entire season, the pear is supplemented by the
mass of luscious, though perishable, summer and autumn fruits. The
liability of very many_ usually excellent varieties to be rendered
indifferent in quality by unfavorable seasons, neglect or unsuitable
soil, is also a serious detriment to the general popularity of this
fruit. The liability to the loss of the trees by blight, beyond
question detracts greatly from the value of the pear, especially for
commercial purposes; while it also exerts a discouraging influence
upon amateur planting. To the careful and discriminating amateur, as
well as to the man of wealth, with a fondness for fruit-culture
whether in person or by proxy, this fruit often assumes a prominence
over any, if not all, others.
Extent of cultivation.
Doubtless, for reasons heretofore stated, pear trees are but
sparingly planted by most persons. The fruit sent to market comes
largely from the plantations of specialists who. with
oils adapted to the purpose and the necessary knowledge of
varieties, have undertaken the business as a commercial enterprise.
In the climates of the seaboard, and, to a considerable extent, in
the region of the Great Lakes, the pear is exceptionally successful;
while away from the influence of large bodies of water, and
especially in the prairie regions of the Mississippi Valley, from
unsuitableness of climate or soil, or both combined, the trees are
liable to be either killed or seriously injured in winter, and hence
are short-lived and unprofitable.
Aspect.
Perhaps in no other important particular does the climate of eastern
and central North America differ more widely from that of the
pear-growing regions of Europe than in its liability to sudden and
extreme variations of temperature. Owing to this climatic pecularity,
aspect becomes an important consideration in the selection of a
location for a plantation of pear trees. As a means of avoiding the
full influence of exposure to the rays of the sun, during the severer
paroxysms of summer heat, while the trees are in actual growth, and
also to mitigate the liability to alternate freezing and thawing in
winter, a northerly or northeasterly slope is to be preferred ;
which, however, should be so gradual as not seriously to interfere
with the convenience of cultivation. As we approach the northern
limit of practicable pear-culture, however, a modification of this
rule of selection may be found desirable, since, with the shorter
growing season, a warmer exposure may prove necessary as a means of
hastening maturity.
Soils.
While the pear tree will pear, yield more or less satisfactory
results in a variety of soils, it is found to succeed most perfectly
in a strong loam, of moderate depth, overlying a porous subsoil.
Soils which are liable to be wet during any considerable portion of
the growing season are unfit for this purpose, unless deeply and
thoroughly underdrained; while even then they are quite liable not to
prove fully satisfactory. A few varieties are found to be moderately
successful on sandy soils, but for general planting such soils should
be avoided.
Manures.
The liability of the pear tree, in this climate, to the attacks of
blight is thought to be increased by excessive growth. It is,
therefore, desirable that the annual growth be completed, and ripened
at as early a date as practicable; and the more so since the
liability to blight apparently exists only while growth is in actual
progress. Stable and other nitrogenous manures should, for this
reason, be applied in moderate quantities, in autumn, after the
liability to excite renewed growth shall be past. Potash, lime, and
phosphorus, which enter more or less largely into the composition of
both tree and fruit, and which rarely exist in excess in the soil,
may be profitably applied in either autumn or spring. Salt may also
be profitably applied to the comparatively dry soils recommended for
the pear, but with care not to apply in excess. One or even two
quarts may be safely applied to each tree, before the commencement of
growth in the spring, if well distributed upon the surface over a
space of at least 6 or 8 feet in diameter, and left to be carried
gradually into the soil by dew and rain. It is believed to possess
little, if any, manurial value; but to act rather as a conservator of
moisture, and probably also as a repellent of insects. Coarse mulch
may be placed about the trees, covering the soil as far out as the
roots extend, for the purpose of keeping the earth cool, and also to
check evaporation from the soil; but this should not be done as a
substitute for cultivation; and the soil beneath the mulch should be
kept well pulverized.
Propagation.
(a) By seedlings: Seeds, when to be planted for the origination of
new varieties, should be selected from well-grown and fully matured
fruits, of such varieties as possess in a high degree the qualities
sought to be reproduced or improved, since a variety in which a
characteristic is strongly developed and persistently manifested is
the more likely to transmit such peculiarity to its offspring. Seeds
resulting from known or artificial cross-fertilization, and therefore
of known and selected parentage on both sides, offer increased
probability of valuable results. Seeds intended for the origination
of new varieties should be planted very thinly in strong, rich,
deeply prepared soil, in a single row, and covered with not more than
an inch of earth, so that the young plants shall have ample space for
development.
Seeds intended for the growing of stocks for nursery
purposes should be collected from varieties in which the seeds are
plump and well developed, as well as from healthy, vigorous trees.
American nurserymen obtain pear seeds mostly from Europe. Seeds
intended for nursery stocks are usually planted in broad, shallow
drills. In our American climate the foliage and unri- pened wood of
seedling pears is very liable to be attacked during midsummer by
leaf-blight or mildew, which prematurely arrests their growth. For
this reason European stocks are generally preferred by nurserymen.
This attack of mildew may often be partially or wholly avoided by
planting in virgin soil remote from other cultivated grounds. Pear
seedlings form a very long taproot during their first year, with few,
if any, side-roots. For this reason they are taken up preferably in
autumn, and the tap-roots shortened to 6 or 8 inches, when they may
be replanted in nursery rows, and earthed up, or otherwise protected
from heaving, or other injury during winter; or, preferably, they may
be heeled-in, in a frost-proof cellar, and planted in spring, to be
budded during the ensuing summer or left to become more fully
established for budding a year later.
Seedlings intended for fruiting are usually transplanted in rows,
about 8 feet apart each way, with the expectation that many will be
found worthless, and either removed or destroyed. Seedling pears
usually require to be fruited several years before their
characteristics become fully developed. This generally recognized
fact may be taken as a warning that the occasional effort to hasten
the puberty of a seedling by fruiting a cion from it upon a bearing
tree of different variety cannot be trusted to indicate the ultimate
character of the fruit of the yet incipient variety, since it is
impossible to foresee to what extent such transfer may interfere with
the occult formative processes through which its ultimate qualities
would have been developed.
(b) By budding: Seedlings of one or two years growth, intended for
standard trees, are usually planted from 6 to 10 inches apart in the
nursery row; for the reason that space, as well as cultivation, must
be economized to correspond with prices, although it is impossible to
grow trees of good form and properly branched of the size and age
demanded by most planters when thus closely planted. Trees thus
closely planted should be removed, or at least thinned, after having
made one year's growth from the bud; while trees intended to be grown
two or more years in the nursery row, and properly branched, should
be given twice or even three times the space mentioned.
The budding of pear stocks may be done during July and August if they
continue in a growing condition, but they are liable to be attacked
by mildew of the foliage, for which reason they must be closely
watched, and should the malady prove troublesome the budding must be
done as soon as properly matured buds can be obtained. Such stocks
as, for any cause, were left unbudded at budding time, together with
any in which buds shall have failed, may be grafted the following
spring; but this, as well as any and all grafting of the pear, mast
be done very early, before the earliest movement of the sap in
spring. In the spring, as soon as the swelling of the buds indicates
that the germs are alive, the stocks are cut back to force them into
growth. Often to insure the formation of straight, upright,
symmetrical trees, careful nursery-men leave 3 or 4 inches of the
stock above the insertion of the bud. to which the young shoots may
be tied, if it shall fail otherwise to take an upright direction.
Shoots may also be thus tied to prevent their being blown out, or
otherwise injured by the wind. These stubs should be cut back to the
bud when no longer needed for the purposes indicated. Such sprouts as
spring from the stock in consequence of the cutting back must be
removed from time to time to encourage the growth of the bud. This
should be done while they are yet tender and succulent and can,
therefore, be taken off without the use of a knife. This process must
be repeated as they reappear, unless it is rendered unnecessary by
the failure or loss of the bud.
Pruning.
Beyond that described under the head of budding, little pruning is
required during the first season, except to pinch in such side shoots
as threaten to rob the one intended to become the trunk of the future
tree. Early in the spring of the second year, all lateral shoots must
be wholly cut away, and since the pear tends strongly to renew its
growth from the terminal buds of the previous year, the shoot
intended to become the trunk of the future tree must be cut down to
the point at which the top is to commence, when the branches to form
the head will start from the buds nearest the top. The uppermost
shoot must, if needful, be confined in an upright position to
constitute the continuation of the trunk.
The habits of growth of varieties differ so widely that no inflexible
rule can be laid down to determine the height at which the top of a
pear tree should be commenced, unless it be that the heads of the
more spreading varieties should be started higher than those of a
more upright habit. The preferences of the larger number of
purchasers have begotten among nurserymen the practice of forming the
heads of all varieties at a height of 3 or 4 feet. This height is
open to the objection that, while not seriously faulty in the case of
such spreading varieties as Onondaga, Osband (Summer), or Flemish
(Beauty), it is essentially unsuited to such very upright growers as
Buffum, Sterling, Clapp (Favorite), and even Anjou. In this
particular, as in various others, the practice of nurserymen,
begotten by the preferences of the average of their customers, fails
to adapt itself to the needs of the more intelligent and considerate
orchardist, and to those of even smaller planters, who regard the
health and productiveness of their trees as of higher importance than
the possibly increased convenience of cultivation.
A proper system of primary branches, upon which to grow a permanent
head, should be provided from the growth of the second season.
Probably the most satisfactory provision for this purpose consists of
a central shoot, with from three to five laterals diverging from the
trunk at its base. A head should, in no case, be grown upon two
shoots, forming a crotch, since this will be very liable to split and
thus ruin the tree. A few varieties, of which Rostiezer is a notable
example, have the habit of producing but few branches, and also of
making successive annual growths, mainly from the terminal buds of
the previous year, thus forming a too open or straggling head. Such
tendency is best overcome by cutting back the branches in spring, the
effect being to increase their number, though at the expense of
vigor.
After the primary branches have been developed, and the growth of the
third year is in progress, comparatively little pruning will be found
necessary beyond the occasional cutting away of a straggling or
crossing branch, although there is a class of varieties, of which
Summer Doyenne and Winter Nelis are types, which, especially when
growing vigorously, incline to twist and straggle so awkwardly that
the branches must frequently be tied in position to insure the
formation of a satisfactory head.
Prior to the third or fourth year, all pruning must necessarily have
for its object the direction and encouragement of wood-growth, for
which purpose it is most effective when performed in late winter or
early spring, while the trees are yet dormant.
The fact should not be forgotten that pruning, in proportion to its
extent or severity, may be a tax upon the vigor and health of the
tree, and, therefore, to be practised as sparingly as possible. Such
necessity may be to a considerable extent avoided if the orchardist,
with a well-defined ideal in mind of a tree such as he desires to
produce, will, during the growing season, pass frequently through his
plantation and pinch out, while yet small and succulent, all growths
not needed for his purpose, at the same time "stopping" such of the
reserved ones as may be too far outgrowing their fellows. With the
efficient performance of this process while the framework of the top
is being developed, very little pruning will remain to be done on the
arrival of spring, while nearly the entire growth, which would
otherwise have been pruned away in spring, will have been employed in
developing the reserved branches.
While the cutting away of an occasional small branch may be done at
almost any time, large branches should be removed only in case of
actual necessity, and at a period early enough to permit the thorough
drying and hardening of the cut surface prior to the movement of the
sap in spring, as a means of preventing bleeding and consequent
decay.
Summer pruning tends to check rather than encourage wood-growth, and
since it acts to a greater or less extent as an obstruction to the
circulation, it also tends, as does the permanent bending of the
branches and the hardening of the tissues, to hasten the formation of
fruit-buds and the production of fruit.
The pear may be successfully grafted upon the white thorn, the
mountain-ash, and the apple, and such grafts have occasionally proved
more or less productive for a time, but in such cases the union
between stock and cion is generally, if not always, imperfect; and
such uncongenial combinations are therefore usually shortlived. The
quince is the only dissimilar stock upon which the pear is
extensively grown. Quince stocks for this purpose are largely
imported from France. The Angers quince is generally preferred for
this purpose. These stocks are usually planted in nursery rows at the
age of two years, to be budded during the following summer, in the
same manner as pear stocks. When intended for dwarf trees, nurserymen
usually cut them back after one year's growth from the bud to the
nearly uniform height of 18 inches, although with the more
upright-growing varieties it is by many deemed preferable to branch
them even 6 or 8 inches lower. Aside from the height at which they
should be branched, the pruning and management should be identical
with that prescribed for standards, with the important exception that
when planted out for fruiting the junction between the quince and the
pear should be 3 or 4 inches below the surface to encourage the
formation of roots from the pear. Trees thus planted will begin to
bear while yet growing solely from the quince stock, and will
continue to produce fruit after rooting from the pear, thus affording
the early fruiting of the dwarf, as well as the permanency of the
standard.
Not more than a specimen or two should be permitted to grow upon a
dwarf the first and second years after planting. Such trees, if left
to fruit freely, will almost certainly be ruined from overbearing
before they are fully established. Many varieties when grown as
dwarfs can never be safely allowed to mature more than a small
portion of the fruit which they will naturally set.
While several varieties are found to be especially successful when
grown upon the quince, most others prove only moderately so,
requiring careful and expert management to insure satisfactory
results. A few others,of which Bosc may be named as a prominent case,
are obstinately unsuccessful upon the quince, and even when
double-worked upon a dwarf of a congenial variety, their success
appears to be by no means assured.
Dwarf trees trained as hereinbefore specified are commonly known as
half-standards. Other and more elaborate forms are known as pyramids,
cordons, and the like, descriptions of which are not deemed necessary
here.
Choice of trees.
Aside from the selection of the location for an orchard, the first
important particular is the selection of the trees, leaving the
choice of varieties for subsequent consideration. Trees of one year's
growth from the bud are to be preferred for the following reasons:
(1) Fewer roots need be injured or lost in the process of lifting and
replanting, for which reason the tree may be expected the more
promptly to recover from the shock of removal. (2) The single
season's growth may be cut back and the top commenced to suit the
preferences of the planter. (3) The top will present little or no
obstacle to the force of the wind until the roots shall have gained
such hold upon the soil that there will remain little liability to
displacement from this cause. (4) The risk of failure from removal is
greatly diminished, while the more prompt recovery and increased rate
of growth of the trees in the more open orchard rows may be expected
to compensate fully for one or two years more of growth in crowded
nursery rows. (5) Something will also be saved in the cost of the
trees and in the expense of transportation, as well as in the labor
of planting.
If older or high-branched trees are not objected to, it will usually
be found that they are but imperfectly branched from having been
grown in crowded rows.
Preparation of the soil.
When the late John A. Warder was asked how large the holes should be
dug for planting orchard trees, he replied, "Of the full size of the
orchard;" and it may also be remarked that when the ground for an
orchard has been well tilled and fertilized to a depth at least equal
to that at which trees are to be planted, there is no longer occasion
for holes larger than shall be necessary to receive the roots in
their proper position. If the subsoil be not freely pervious to
water, the ground must be deeply and thoroughly underdrained, and in
no case should the hole in which a tree is to be planted be sunk into
a subsoil so impervious as to retain water beneath or about its
roots. If such retentive subsoil occurs too near the surface and is
not considered suitable to be mixed with the surface soil, it should
be thoroughly disintegrated to the requisite depth by means of a
subsoil plow or other equivalent device. In all nearly level
retentive soils, it will be found advantageous to "back- furrow" a
land along the line of each row in the direction of the surface
drainage, so that when the trees have been planted the drainage will
be away from them.
Laying out, staking, and planting.
The most economical mode of laying out and planting an orchard, so
far as space is concerned, is doubtless that commonly, but
erroneously, designated as quincunx, and more correctly as hexagonal;
but whether planted thus, or in rectangles, the work may be most
rapidly and accurately done by planting a stake where each tree is to
stand, and using what is known as a planting-board, consisting of a
strip of board 6 or 7 feet long, with a hole for a stake near each
end, and a notch or slot intermediate and in line between them to
receive the stake, and to support the tree while the earth is being
carefully filled in, under, among, and above its roots.
The following are good general rules to be observed
in the digging, handling, preparing, and planting of trees:
1. In digging trees, aim to secure as many of the main fibrous roots
as possible.
2. Expose the roots as little as possible to the drying influence of
sun and wind.
3. Prepare the roots for planting by cutting away the bruised and
broken portions.
4. If the roots have been essentially shortened in lifting, cut away
the superfluous branches and also cut back such as are to remain till
a proper balance of root and top is secured.
5. In heavy retentive soil, plant the tree very little if any deeper
than it stood in the nursery, and, in addition, raise a slight mound
about the trunk to avoid the occurrence of standing water at that
point.
6. In strong but dry soil, a tree may be planted an inch or two
deeper than it stood in the nursery.
7. In light sand, with dry subsoil, a tree should be planted 3 or
even 4 inches deeper than it stood in the nursery.
8. Dig the hole in which a tree is to be planted deep enough to
receive 2 or 3 inches of fine soil, before putting the tree in place,
making it large enough to allow the roots to be spread out in their
natural position.
9. See that good, friable surface soil is well filled in beneath,
among, and over the roots.
10. Should the soil be dry, with no immediate prospect of rain, it
will be well after nearly filling the hole with earth, to apply a
pail of water, and, after it shall have settled away, to fill up the
hole with earth and tramp it down firmly. Staking will rarely be
found necessary, except, possibly, in the case of trees old enough to
have been already branched, but such stake must be watched and the
tree protected against injury by rubbing against it.
Subsequent cultivation.
(a) Newly planted trees: Ground occupied by young trees must be kept
well cultivated during the spring and early summer. If hoed crops are
planted, larger quantities of manure will be required; but, in either
case, cultivation should cease as early as the beginning of August in
order to hasten the ripening of the young wood. This process should
be continued during at least five or six years, after which green
crops may be grown and plowed under as a means, in part, of
maintaining the fertility of the soil.
(b) Mulching: Especially during the first few years after planting,
in case of hot dry weather during the growing season, mulch may be
applied to check evaporation from the soil and to keep it cool, but
it should not be permitted to take the place of cultivation. The soil
should be well pulverized before applying it.
(c) Manuring: As stated previously, manures should be applied
sparingly but regularly, preferably in late autumn, and should be
plowed under, or otherwise mixed with the soil at that time or in the
early spring, as a means of promoting early growth and the thorough
ripening of the wood in advance of severe cold. Thorough ma-turing of
the wood should also be assisted,as already said, by ceasing
cultivation the early part of August.
Gathering and ripening the fruit.
All selected pears, whether intended for the market or for use at
home, should be carefully hand-picked.
(a) Gathering summer and autumn pears: With very few exceptions all
pears acquire a higher quality if gathered before they are fully
ripe. The generally accepted rule is to gather the crop when an
occasionally full-grown wormy specimen is ripe, or when there is a
perceptible change in the color of the maturer specimens, or when the
stem parts readily from the branch if the fruit is slightly lifted.
(b) Ripening summer and winter pears: When gathered, the fruit should
be placed in a cool room devoted to the purpose, and spread upon
shelves, or in lack of a suitable room they may be placed in shallow
boxes or drawers, where in due time they will acquire their full
color and flavor. Since this fruit parts with moisture quite freely,
it, and especially the later ripening varieties, should be protected
from a drying atmosphere, particularly from drafts of air, which will
cause the fruit to shrivel and become tough and leathery. It is also
true of at least very many varieties that even if blown off or
gathered when but two-thirds grown, the fruit if put away as already
described will usually acquire a satisfactory quality. Fruits thus
gathered and ripened are found to have less tendency to decay rapidly
at the core.
(c) Gathering and ripening of winter dessert pears: These should
remain upon the tree as long as practicable without danger from
frost. When gathered, they should be placed in a cool frost-proof
room, and it will be well also to wrap each separately in soft paper.
Some varieties are found to ripen perfectly without further
attention, but the quality .of most kinds will be much improved if
they are brought into a temperature of 60° or 70° a fortnight before
their usual season of maturity.
(d) Winter cooking pears: These should be gathered and put away in
close packages in a cool, frost-proof room, in the same manner as
russet apples, like which they will shrivel, and become tough and
leathery if left exposed to the air. They may remain in this
condition until needed for use.
Packing and marketing.
In America, pears are generally packed for market directly from the
tree, without awaiting the process of ripening. Barrels are largely
used as packages, although this fruit is frequently put up in
half-barrels and sometimes in bushel, peck, and even in half-peck
baskets.
American growers rarely ripen their fruit before marketing it. This,
if done at all, is more generally accomplished by the dealer,
doubtless with decided profit, since in the larger cities fully $50
have been known to be paid for a single barrel of selected fruit, and
yet the same fruit ripened and offered in quantities to suit
customers has been sold at two or three times the original cost. The
marketing of unripened pears is obviously unprofitable so far as the
producer is concerned.
In Europe, the choicest fruits are carefully selected and
house-ripened. When approaching their best condition the fruits are
separately wrapped in soft paper, and are then put up in packages of
perhaps one or two dozens, and sent so as to appear upon the market
when in the best possible condition. Such fruits command prices quite
in excess of what they would have realized had they been offered in
an immature condition.
Varieties.
Since the popular and desirable varieties of pears may be found fully
described in standard pomological works, such descriptions here are
not deemed necessary. Among the very numerous varieties of pears
described in such works there are doubtless many possessing high
quality and other valuable characteristics, which, for some
unexplained reason, have failed to attract the attention of growers.
Since varieties vary in their season of ripening with change of
latitude, and often, to some extent, with change of location, even in
the same latitude, the designation of such season becomes a matter of
more or less difficulty. In the following lists the season given will
be approximately that between parallels 42 and 43 of north latitude.
(a) Amateur pears: It is as true of the pear as of most other species
of fruits that very many varieties are of small size, unattractive
appearance, or of such delicate texture when ripe as to disqualify
them for the market, although they may possess, in an eminent degree,
the peculiar characteristics which render them desirable, and to
persons of cultivated taste, indispensable for the supply of the
family. Such are termed amateur pears.
The following is a list of a few of the mosf popular of these,
arranged approximately in the order of maturity:
Name. Season. Remarks
Madeleine m. e. July Earliest good pear.
Summer Doyenne e. July.
Bloodgood e. July. m. Aug.
Giffard m. Aug Excellent,but very
perishable.
Dearborn m. e. Aug.
Rostieier m. Aug. m. Sept.
Elizabeth e. Aug.
Brandy wine e. Aug. b. Sept.
Tyson e. Aug. b. Sept.. A tardy bearer.
Stevens (Genesee) b. Sept Rots soon at the core.
Clapp b. m. Sept Rots soon at the core.
Washington m. Sept.
(Belle) Lucrative m. e. Sept.
Bose. e. Sept. Oct.
White Doyenne e. Sept. Nov Liable to crack badly.
Seckel Oct.
Sarah Oct.
Anjou Oct. Nov.
Gray Doyenne m. Oct. Nov.
Reeder Nov.
Heyst (Emile d'Heyst) .Nov. Dec.
Mount Vernon Nov. Dec.
Dana Hovey Nov. Jan.
Langelier Nov. Feb.
Germain Nov. March.
Lawrence Dec
Winter Nelis Dec, Jan.
Easter Jan. March.
*e, early; m, middle; b, beginning.
(b) Culinary pears: Very few dessert pears are found to be
satisfactory for culinary uses, since they too generally lose at
least a portion of their flavor and aroma in the process of cooking.
There are, however, several varieties of high, austere character
which prove adapted to this purpose, among which are the following:
Name Season Remarks
Vicar Nov. Jan Occasionaly good enough
for dessert.
(Black) Worcester Nov. Feb.
Catillac Nov. March.
Pound Dec. Feb.
(c) Market pears: The markets demand varieties of attractive
appearance, of at least medium size and of fine texture. To the
grower, productiveness and vigor of tree are also of primary
importance. If possessing the foregoing characteristics, a variety
may prove at least temporarily popular, even though of comparatively
low quality. The following varieties, some of which may also be found
in the amateur list, are all more or less popular as market fruits:
Name. Season. Remarks.
Tyson e. Aug. b. Sept. .Excellent, but a
tardy bearer.
sterling e. Aug. m. Sept.. Productive,and
exceedingly beautiful.
Clapp b. m. Sept. Rots soon at the
core.
Bartlett b. e. Sept. Leading market pear.
Souvenir du)Congress.b. e. Sept. Sometimes very
large.
Buffum m. Sept. Variable in quality.
Howell m. Sept. Oct.
Flemish (Beauty) m. e. Sept. Rots soon at the
core.
Bose e. Sept. Oct. Excellent for all
pur-[poses.
Boussock e. Sept. Oct.
Louis Bonne e. Sept. Oct.. . Grown only as a
dwarf.
Onondaga e. Sept. Nov.
Superfin Oct.
Sheldon Oct Is russeted and dull
in (color.
Rutter Oct. Nov.
Anjou Oct. Nov.
Kieffer Oct. Nov Not valuable north
of 43 degrees.
LeConte Oct. Nov Succeeds best at the
extreme South.
Angouleme Oct. Nov Grown only on quince
(stocks.
Diel Oct. Dec
Clairgeau Oct. Jan.
Columbia Nov. Jan.
McLaughlin Nov. Jan.
Lawrence Dec.
Malines Jan. Feb.
Relative desirableness of dwarfs.
There arc a few varieties, among which Louise Bonne and Angouleme may
be especially mentioned, which on free (pear) stocks are either tardy
bearers or require to be fruited several years before developing
their ultimate qualities, but which succeed unusually well upon the
quince. These, especially the Angouleme, are valued as market
varieties when grown as dwarfs.
Angouleme, and perhaps some other varieties as dwarfs, occasionally
bloom so profusely as apparently to prove unable to develop the
fruit, which in consequence proves abortive. The natural and obvious
remedy in such case is disbudding, or its equivalent, cutting back
the fruit-bearing shoots before growth is commenced.
The fact that very many varieties are not permanently successful when
grown upon the quince is doubtless partially, if not in many cases
even wholly, to their increased tendency to early and excessive
productiveness when grown upon that stock, which, owing to the very
common unwillingness of the grower to remove the excess of fruit, is
allowed to consume the material needed for wood-growth, and thus to
occasion exhaustion before the tree has gained a thorough hold upon
the soil.
If, with any variety capable of forming a satisfactory union with the
quince, and with the tree planted in the manner heretofore described,
the entire crop of bloom or incipient fruit of the first one, two, or
even three years (dependent upon the vigor of the tree) were removed,
and if subsequent crops were carefully and thoroughly thinned, it is
at least highly probable that permanent health and longevity would
prove nearly or quite as general with dwarfs as with standards, thus
permitting the more extensive growth of the pear in greater variety
in small or amateur plantations and in limited grounds than is
practicable with the use of standards.
T. T. Lyon.
The pear in the South.
The following table from the. Thirteenth Census shows the status of
the pear industry in thirteen southern states, 1910 (crop data 1909):
State Number Production.
of trees. in bushels.
Alabama 142,300 100.041
Arkansas 221,764 37,547
Florida 110,709 98,223
Georgia 202,982 149,667
Kentucky 337,355 251,536
Louisiana 57,630 35,554
Mississippi 118,536 101,288
North Carolina 243,367 84,019
Oklahoma 235 22
South Carolina 105,251 65,680
Tennessee 233,407 83,557
Texas 558,478 110,967
Virginia 457,177 74,486
----------- ------------
Total 2,849,191 1,192,587
Throughout the whole South the average production of pears to the
tree is less than one-half bushel. Virginia and Kentucky have many
pear trees in comparison with the other southern states, but should
hardly be considered with the remainder of the South, 'as their pears
are produced mainly on the northern borders of the states. Texas, on
account of its area, has more pear trees than any other southern
state; and El Paso County, the most western county, produces over
2,000 bushels. Conditions existing in this region are not at all
comparable with the other pear sections in the South.
It can hardly be said that pears are well adapted to southern
conditions, although in certain sections, particularly in the
mountains, it is possible to produce fruits of good quality; but on
account of the blight the industry has never attained importance. At
one time, the late P. J. Berckmans, of Augusta, Georgia, had 600
different pears under test in his nursery, 500 of them being named
varieties. Berckmans says that of the 600, those of any worth in the
South would not exceed twelve in number, and that the great
commercial varieties were the LeConte, Garber, and Kieffer, although
Bulletin No. 126 of the Bureau of Plant Industry shows seventy-seven
varieties of pears that have originated in the thirteen southern
states.
The history of the southern pear industry begins with the
introduction of the LeConte into Thomasville, Georgia, in the early
seventies of the last century by L. L. Varnadoe. The original cutting
carried into Thomas County came from Liberty County, Georgia. This
pear was planted extensively around Thomasville, being taken from
there into northern Florida, southern Alabama, Mississippi,
Louisiana, and Texas. The propagation was mainly by cuttings, and in
the early days of the industry $1 apiece was often paid for trees. At one time it was conservatively stated that there were at least 200,000 trees in Thomas County. Great prices were received for the product, the
growers in those days netting from $3 to $7 a barrel. There are
reports from H. H.Sanford, one of the early growers of this fruit, of
LeConte trees producing thirty bushela or more. The growing of this
pear, like many other horticultural industries in the South, was
along extensive rather than intensive lines. The growers thought that
they did not need to till or to fertilize their lands and that they
could plant these wonderful trees and reap a harvest of dollars, and
for a time it seemed as if this were so; then the blight appeared.
The "die- back,"as it was originally called, began, and between 1890
and 1895 the industry was in a fair way to succumb. No systematic
efforts were made to combat this disease, except by introduction of
the Kieffer, which was considered at that time resistant, and which
was largely planted in the pear sections of the South.
Because of the blight and lack of care, with no systematized methods
of marketing, the pear industry of the southern states fell to a low
ebb. For the past several years no commercial orchards have been set,
and a great number of the trees that were planted in this early
period are either dead or cut down; therefore the production of the
hybrid pears in the South is not only at a standstill, but is at this
time declining.
The management of these orchards, even while the industry was at its
height, was very crude. It is reported on good authority that 95 per
cent of the pear plantings in the southern pear sections were most
seriously neglected. Some orchards were cropped, to the detriment of
the land; others so badly neglected that young pine trees contended
with the pears for space; consequently the fruits were not of the
best quality. The growers who followed approved methods of tillage
and fertilizing received a serious set-back when the blight appeared,
as these plantings seemed to be more susceptible to this disease. In
time a balance was reached, and it is now considered good practice to
run the orchards in sod and every third year to give a light plowing,
the application of fertilizers being determined by the growth of the
tree. Spraying was little practised in the older orchards. The
growers who are still producing pears now find the use of a
spray-pump advisable. Harvesting during the height of the pear
industry in south Georgia was aptly described by the Thomasville
"Times Enterprise:" "The annual slaughter of the LeConte pears has
commenced. The trees are full of little gamins, picking a few,
flailing some and shaking off the remainder. All—good, bad, and
bruised—are dumped into barrels and rushed to market." It is
unfortunately true that many of these fruits were gathered in this
way. There were growers who hand- picked their product, carefully
packing it into ventilated barrels. These, however, were the smaller
number. There is an instance on record of a gentleman having sold
three hundred and odd dollars worth of pears from a small orchard, on
which he had expended $5 since the last harvest. Most of the pears
were shipped in barrels, though some were shipped in bulk. The
distribution is still poor, and for the past few years the profits
from the remaining trees have not been sufficient to warrant further
planting.
At present, the South as a whole cannot be considered as a
pear-producing section. There are still quite a number of pear trees
around the homes. These are rapidly disappearing, due to the blight
and the lack of care. The old orchards along the Atlantic and the
Gulf are rapidly dying with blight. The hybrid pears, LeConte,
Kieffer, and Garber, do remarkably well in this part of the country;
but the pear industry will never thrive as it did once until there is
a systematic fight made upon the blight. Besides this disease, the
pears are subject to bitter-rot, brown-rot and crown- gall, as well
as the codlin-moth and the San José scale; but of course these
insects and diseases can be easily controlled by spraying.
In the catalogue of fruits appended to the Proceedings of the
Thirty-Ninth Annual Session of the Georgia State Horticultural
Society is to be found this remark concerning pears: "Owing to the
prevalence of the pear blight, the commercial production of pears is
an uncertain and hazardous industry. Until it is demonstrated that
pear-blight can be successfully controlled, it is useless to
recommend the planting of pears in commercial quantities. So far as
is known, the Kieffer pear is the most resistant to the pear-blight
of the commercial varieties." This report of the Georgia State
Horticultural Society can be taken as a general recommendation for
practically all of the South, except for particularly isolated and
special places.
T. H. McHATTON.
The pear in California.
Visitors at the old California missions during the early part of the
last century noted many thrifty seedling pear trees in the mission
gardens. Many of these trees survived the neglect which came upon the
mission properties after their secularization, and were in thrifty
growth and bearing at the time of the American occupation. The first
pears sold in San Francisco and in the mines in 1849-1850 were
gathered from the old mission trees, and some of these old trees
grafted over gave the first California product of the European and
American varieties of more than half a century ago. From this
beginning the growth of pears increased until the commercial product
of 1914 included the following: 2,725 carloads sent overland to
eastern and foreign markets (about the same as for the five years
preceding); 2,000,000 pounds dried pears shipped to the same
destination (a decreasing product because of the increasing demand
for shipping fresh and canning);805,740 cases of canned pears, mostly
Bartletts—a product which is rapidly increasing. There are about
2,000,000 pear trees in California orchards. The decade 1905-1915 was
a sensational period in California pear- growing because of the
appearance of the pear-blight about 1902. It made such rapid progress
that in 19O4 practically all the pear trees in one district were
seriously attacked and largely destroyed. Control measures were
provided by state appropriation in 1905 and continued several years,
and it was demonstrated that the disease can be held in check and
profitability of trees continued by cutting out all blighted parts
from twig to root—disinfecting between cuts all tools used in the
work. This demonstration, coupled with an apparent lessening of the
virulence of the disease, restored confidence among growers and
resulted in largely increased new planting in 1914—1915.
It is a most interesting fact that a single variety furnishes a very
great part, perhaps even as much as four-fifths, of the pear products
of the state, and that is the Bartlett. Whatever it may lack in high
quality is more than compensated for by its commercial
serviceability. It is handsome and of good size, endures long
carriage, cans well and dries well. and is of sufficiently good
quality to please consumers: in fact the California-grown Bartlett is
said to be better than the same variety grown in the Atlantic states
and in the west of Europe. This is not, however, the chief reason why
the Bartlett so largely preponderates in California. The ruling
condition is found in the fact that owing to the marked differences
in localities not widely distant and yet differing in elevation, in
exposure to coast influences and away from them, and other local
causes, the Bartlett has a very long ripening season, and valley,
coast, and mountain Bartletts follow each other through nearly three
months and thus make succession of different varieties during this
period unnecessary. There is, however, at present a greater
disposition than heretofore to extend the season by growing other
varieties, but they are selected for resemblance to the Bartlett
type. Clapp Favorite is sold as an "Early Bartlett," and a Winter
Bartlett, an Oregon seedling, has been planted to carry the same
style of pear as late as possible. Still some progress is being made
in extending the California list of popular pears and some of local
and of distant origin will probably achieve prominence, especially in
the shipments to distant markets.
California pears are grown on pear-seedling roots (especially of the
Japanese pear because of less liability to blight in the root), very
little recourse being had to rooted cuttings or to dwarfing stocks. A
dwarf pear tree is almost a curiosity. The heavier loams and even
clays are sometimes planted with pear trees, not because they are
best for pears but because other fruits do worse than they. To plant
fully the area intended for fruit, pears will go on the intrusions of
heavy or too moist soils, while the freer soil will be given to other
fruits. Still the chief product of pears is from the best loams
California affords, and the profits from the tree warrant the use of
such land. Pear trees are regularly pruned to a low vase form, but
seldom opened in the center, the interior being used for bearing
wood, and foliage enough retained partially to shade the fruit. The
fruit is thinned to favor size and to relieve the tree from
overbearing. Irrigation is employed in some parts of the state. The
varieties chiefly grown are the following: Bartlett, Winter Nelis,
Easter, Comnice, Glout Morceau, Hardy, P. Barry (a California
seedling), Seckel, Lawson (Comet), Winter Bartlett, Wilder.
E. J. Wickson.
Pear. Alligator P., Persea gratissima. Avocado P., Persea gratissima.
Balsam P., Momordica Charantia. Garlic P., Crataeva gymandra .
Prickly P., Opuntia.
}}
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