Winter Meeting. 327 



THURSDAY— December 5, 8 p. m. 



The programme of the evening was varied by songs and recita- 

 tions, and a very pretty flag drill executed by twelve young ladies of 

 the Todd school. 



VARIETIES OF PEARS AND PLUMS. 

 (By W. L. Howard, Assistant Horticulturist, Columbia, Mo.) 



VARIETIES OF PEARS. 



In selecting varieties of pears for planting, some important points 

 must be kept in view. One must consider the relative time of riDcn- 

 ing of the fruit in order that it may be marketed with reasonable con- 

 venience with the facilities at hand, and also questions of pollination, 

 so as to have mutually fertile varieties which bloom at the same time, 

 planted close together. It is impossible to name any certain number 

 cf varieties which will succeed in this State, because, apparently, their 

 success or failure is purely a matter of local conditions. The pear 

 growing industry for the United States has been developed fully, 

 only in the Eastern and New England States. There the list of suc- 

 cessful varieties is not long, as compared with some of the other fruits 

 like Apples and Plums. All told, but 28 varieties have proved to be 

 reliable, as reported by practical growers, and there are instances 

 where some of this number did not do well in some sections. For 

 Alissouri conditions, the following 13 varieties are recommended by 

 growers as being the most reliable for the State at large, although 

 some failures may be expected in some localities from causes not yet 

 understood. Anjou, (called also, Buerre de Anjou) ; rather large, fine 

 grained, excellent flavor; ripens in late fall, but keeps till far in the 

 winter. Angouleme, (known also as Duchess de Angouleme) ; very 

 large, buttery, juicy and very good when well grown, but poor and 

 worthless when small ; ripens in midautumn. Bartlett ; large, flesh 

 nearly white, tender and buttery, and with a moderately rich flavor; 

 the best summer variety. BufTum ; size medium, skin yellow, with a 

 broad, reddish-brown cheek, somewhat russeted ; flesh sweet, very .good 

 but slightly variable; is a good producer; ripens in fall. Clairgeau, 

 (also known as Buerre Clairgeau) ; large, often with a crimson shade 



