KEPOPtTS OF LOCAL SOCIETIES. 275 



WASHTENAW COUNTY POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



The society liolds monthly meetings at Ann Arbor, and on the completion 

 of the new court house, the County Board has assigned it a room in conjunction 

 with the County Agricultural Society. Fruits and flowers of the season are 

 usually displayed at the meetings, — a feature that greatly adds to the usefulness 

 and attraction of the society. The meetings are also well attended by the 

 ladies, who take a deep interest in the progress of horticulture. Prof. Sage 

 and quartette enliven the meetings with musical entertainments, a pleasure 

 highly appreciated by all. 



Novemher Meeting, 1878. 



The pear was the subject selected for discussion. Mr. Evert 11. Scott read 

 a paper on this topic, in which he said that for his own pear orchard he selected 

 an elevated site ; soil, a strong clay. He favored low headed trees, and but 

 one to two years from bud or graft. The system of pruning he recommends 

 to be such as to protect the trunk by the branches. He cultivates thoroughly, 

 but does not manure. For market varieties, he recommended the Bartlett, 

 Flemish Beauty, Sheldon, Beurre Diel, Lawrence, and AVinter Nelis. For 

 amateur culture, he would add Seckel, Rozteizer and White Doyenne. 



Mr. N. B. Covert spoke highly of the Beurre Gifford, it having borne 

 nnformly good crops with him for twenty-three years, and he likes its quality 

 well. He regards the Seckel as the best of all pears. 



Mr. J. D. Baldwin said that he had given his best efforts to the cultivation 

 of the pear, but failed on account of the blight. He thought well of it as a 

 market fruit, if it could be successfully grown. He hoped that the barrier to 

 its success would in time be overcome. 



President Scott believed that the pear can be successfully grown. The much 

 dreaded blight, he had every reason to believe, could be conquered by cutting 

 off the affected branches promptly and low enough to find sound wood. Stable 

 manure freely used around pear trees, he believes tends to bring on the blight. 



Mr. J. J. Parshall presented the same views regarding the use of stable 

 manure. 



Mr. Jacob Ganzhorn said that there is but little loss occurring to the pear 

 tree till it gets to bearing ; then the blight is most destructive, and he finds 

 few trees in the county over twelve to fifteen years old. He hoped to raise the 

 pear more abundantly on dwarf trees. The latter, he said, come into bearing 

 quickly ; the trees can be planted close together, and where one is lost by the 

 blight another is soon established again in its place. The failures with dwarf 

 trees, he attributed to a want of a proper knowledge in cultivating the ground, 

 thinning the fruit, and pruning. 



January Meeting , 1879. 



There was no special programme prepared ; the meeting was largely occu- 

 pied by reports of the annual meeting of the State Pomological Society held 



