548 ' EXPEIU MENTAL FARMS 



5 GEORGE v., A. 1915 



The onliiud, containing several hundred seedling apples already in bearing, some 

 fruiting for the tirst time, has given quite a large percentage of most promising fruit. 

 The work entailed in recording the quality and characteristics of these seedlings is in 

 itself a work of no mean proportions, and is largely undertaken hy Mr. Maeoun per- 

 sonally. 



PEARS. 



^• ith regard to pears, several crosses were made between our tender varieties, such 

 as Clapp's Favourite, Clairgeau, Sheldon, and Kieffer, with the more hardy and blight 

 resistant, but otherwise much inferior pears of Russian origin, such as Kurskaya, 

 Zucherbirn and Lemon pear. The pollen was secured from orchards in the Niagara 

 district and the crosses were effected on the hardy trees in the Experimental Farm 

 orchard. A number of fruits were obtained, and the seed from them sown as in the 

 ease with the apples. 



The following is a list of crosses made with pears : — 



16-17 • — Lemon Pear, F. X Clapp's Favorite, M. 



16-18 —Kurskaya, F. X Ivieffer, M. 



16- 18a — Kurskaya, F. X Clapp's Favorite, M. - 



16-19 — Zuckerbirn, F. X Clapp's Favourite, M. 



16-21 —Clairgeau, F. X Kurskaya, M. 



16-22 — Clapp's Favourite, F. X Kurskaya, M. 



An experiment was conducted to ascertain if possible the length of time that pear 

 pollen might be obtained during the winter and saved for hybridizing puri)oses for the 

 following spring. With this object in view, branches were cut from the varieties 

 Kurskaya, Lemon Pear, and Zuckerbirn, early in February and again in the middle of 

 March. These branches were placed in water in a warm atmosphere. The branches 

 cut in February flowered about March 4, and those cut on March 15 flowered April 9. 

 Pollen was saved from these flowers, 'thoroughly dried and stored in glass vials. The 

 following crosses were made on May 9, Avith the pollen that had been secured the 

 March previous : 



m 



16.11 — Kurskaya, F. X Zuckerbirn, M. (Eighteen fruits, all seedless). 



16.12 — Kurskaya, F. X Lemon Pear, M. (Twenty-one fruits developed ; forty- 

 three seeds). 



16.13 — Lemon Pear, F. X Kurskaya, M. (No fruits developed). 

 The following crosses were made with pollen secured during the previous April : — 



16.15 — Kurskaya, F. X Zuckerbirn, M. (yielded ten fruits, no fully developed 

 seeds). 



16.16— Zuckerbirn, F. X Kurskaya, M. (yielded twelve fruits containing 

 twentj'-one fully developed seeds). 



These facts seem to suggest that the pollen from the Lemon Pear and Zuckerbirn 

 (that produced normal fruit, but having no seeds) was deficient in sexual vitality, but 

 sufiiciently potent to cause a pseudosexual enlargement of the torus, or fruit tissues of 

 the receptacle. 



The pollen of Kurskaya that had been saved a month, and had lieen obtained under 



similar artificial conditions, produced both fruit and i>ecds. The pollen of Zuckerbirn 



or Sugar Pear had produced fruit in both instances, but in neither case had the fruit 



flovoloped any seed. 



Ottawa. 



