424 STATE HORTICULTUEAL SOCIETY. 



seded this old method, and it is desirable to put up those which have a posi- 

 tive flavor, and all the better if acid. Pears like Seckel, Sheldon and Bart- 

 lett, that are generally liked for eating green, are too insipid when cooked. 

 For putting up in cans, quinces are now generally preferred to pears. Of 

 the varieties of pears used for canning, those like the Keifer, which are 

 harsh and almost uneatable, now are most esteemed. The Bartlett is liked 

 by some, but to very many its musky flavor is objectionable. 



PEACHES. 



Peach Culture. — From the Country Gentleman we get the following 

 note : J. M. White, in his report on peach orchards to the New Jersey ex- 

 periment station, says that in visiting various peach growers in Morris and 

 Hunterdon counties, he has found that those who cultivate the most thor- 

 oughly and fertilize judiciously realize the greatest profits. The healthiest 

 and longest lived orchards are those which have been fertilized with potash 

 and phosphoric acid. Among other orchards, he describes that of J. S. 

 Quinby, of Chester, who has 4,000 trees in bearing, six to ten years old. 

 He applies 500 pounds of bone to the acre, and as much ashes as he can se- 

 cure. The fruit is abundant and of good quality. If disease appears, every 

 affected tree is removed and destroyed at once; and no instrument on a dis- 

 eased tree is used on a healthy one until thoroughly cleansed. S. H. Wart- 

 man cultivates his 7,000 bearing trees twice in a season. The past season he 

 had 3,600 baskets of peaches. Dr. H. Race, of Pittstown, gathered 5,100 

 baskets of peaches from 3,000 trees. He used superphosphate and potash. 

 J. L. Nixon, of Quakertown, sold 9,000 baskets from his 12,000 trees the 

 past season for $9,045; he cultivates well, and applies barn manure and 

 wood ashes. On soils in other regions the potash and bone may give differ- 

 ent results. 



Alexander Peach in England. — T. Francis Eivers states in the Lon- 

 don Garden that he had this peach ripe in a cool house by July 4, and 

 that the fruit was brilliant in color and of very fine flavor. He adds that 

 he has fruited it for seven years, and it has always ripened at this period. 

 The Early Beatrice is a week or more later, smaller, but a more abundant 

 bearer. The Grosse Mignonne and Royal George at the same time were not 

 larger than walnuts. Mr. Rivers makes the remark, which will cause some 

 surprise, that while the Alexander is a freestone, the Amsden, which ripens 

 with it, is a clingstone, and often bitter. 



Pruning Peach Trees. — Peach trees, said J. J. Thomas, as every or- 

 chardist knows, and as we have had occasion to mention, have a tendency during 

 their growth in successive years to extend their branches into the form of long 

 poles, with leaves and bearing shoots at the outer ends, and bare towards the 

 center of the tree. They should therefore be pruned yearly, or frequently, 

 to keep them within bounds, and in a handsome, compact shape. There are 

 two periods in the year in which this work may be done. The first is in the 

 spring before the leaves open, and the second early in autumn. If done 



