Slimmer Meeting. 131 



have a very full and interesting meeting. If it were possible, I would be 

 ever so glad to be with you ; as it is, I will be with you in spirit, and with 

 best wishes for a good and interesting time. 



In regard to the prospect of a fruit crop, I must admit that is not 

 very flattering. We had frequent frosts and freezes nearly all through 

 April, when buds were tender, and some sorts in bloom, and while it 

 seemed at the time to have done no harm, yet since fruits have set, there 

 has been very heavy dropping off, and take it on the whole, the fruit 

 crop will be away below the average. Strawberries, a full crop, just be- 

 ginning to ripen ; raspberries, a full crop ; cherries, half crop ; pears, about 

 one-third crop; Japan plums, a failure; other plums very light, except 

 Damson, which are full. There will be a few peaches. Trees of all kinds 

 are making a very vigorous growth, and don't show the damage, which 

 was expected, from the severe cold weather last winter. 



As you wished me to state my experience in pear growing, I will 

 state my experience is rather on a small scale. I have about fifty trees, 

 mostly of bearing size. I am, contrary to the general advice, a firm be- 

 liever in thorough cultivation and in preventing any sod about my trees. 

 My oldest pear trees have been set out over twenty years, and up to ten 

 years ago I had them in tough sod, and as they were making poor and 

 sickly growth, I concluded to experiment with them ; so I took a spade 

 and spaded carefully around them, and pulverized the ground, using a 

 good rake, frequently. I had left a few trees in sod for a comparison. 

 The result was so astonishing in the renewed and vigorous growth of 

 those trees under cultivation, and the poor, sickly trees left in sod, that 

 I have ever since given my trees good attention. I give my trees a 

 liberal coat of barnyard manure about every winter. I was afraid at 

 first that such treatment of trees might be the cause of pear blight, but 

 as my trees have shown no blight since 1899, I have come to the conclusion 

 that good care of trees is not the cause, of blight, as I know of several 

 pear orchards that have stood in sod for years that are almost gone from 

 blight. I have come to the belief that a well-fed and cared for tree, like 

 a strong and healthy person, are more able to resist disease than those 

 of stunted and weakly nature. The bulk of my pear trees, are Keiffer, 

 with a mixture of Duchess, Bartlett, L. B. De Jersey, and some Garber. 

 I usually realize one dollar per bushel for my pears. 



I will herewith close. With best wishes to you, and to all the old 

 veterans of our Society, to whom great thanks are due, and in particular 

 from your humble servant, 



Peter Dailing. 



