52 



variety in our section by not pruning it, which will stand the severity of the weather 

 better than one that has been pruned, from the fact that it is not so vigorous in 

 growth. 



Mr. Willard. — I question whether there is any one winter pear so valuable to 

 the orchardman or to the amateur as the Josephine De Malines. It approximates 

 very closely to the seedling. It is, perhaps, the most uncouth pear growing — with one 



exception, and that is the ; yet it is very free from blight. With respect to 



the fruit not being satisfactory in its early stages, you must give the tree a little age to 

 have it produce the fruit in perfection. The greatest success in the shape of a pear 

 orchard that there is in the United States to-day is one the owner of which would not 

 allow a man to put a knife to a tree in it ; he says that anything that tends to disturb 

 the circulation of the tree might tend to cause blight. 



Mr. Morris. — I have noticed that pear trees planted on low, moist, rich soil are 

 usually subject to blight, particularly if there is much vegetable matter in the soil. This 

 induces a growth late in the season, and where that is the case you nearly always see 

 blight the next season. I have noticed again that where trees are planted on a high 

 knoll, particularly if it is on the edge of a ravine, you always find healthy trees. I think 

 one of the greatest causes of blight is the long trunks of the standards. I have seen 

 orchards in which the tops have been blighted, but which were allowed to grow from the 

 bottom, that have afterwards remained good, healthy trees for years. I think that by 

 proper selection of the soil pear growing might be made one of the most profitable 

 branches of fruit growing. 



Mr. Biggar. — I have not been troubled with blight except in one variety. I prune 

 off the blighted wood as much as possible, scrape it, and give it a coat of linseed oil. Any 

 time in the year that I find a tree is blighted I immediately take off the blighted part. 

 My standard trees are all tall. I believe it would have been better if I had kept them 

 close to the ground. My Clapp's Favourite is gone altogether with blight ; but the 

 blight has not prevailed to any great extent in my grounds. I use nothing but ashes for 

 fertilizing my trees, which are healthy. 



Mr. Dempsey. — We had a good deal of blight this last summer. There were only a 

 part of the pear trees in our garden that ashes were applied to ; and, strange to tell you, 

 we had scarcely any blight in them at all ; but where the ashes had given out we lost 

 several trees from the effects of the disease. 



Mr. Arnold. — We have had no blight in our section the last two years ; and we 

 have used no ashes. The thought occurred to me while I was sitting here that it was a 

 dangerous thing to spout about new pears. I think that a man should have from ten to 

 fifteen years' experience of a pear before he ventured to express an opinion of it. If I 

 was to speak of any pears at all I would confine myself to the' old varieties. I would 

 even go back to the old Bloodgood that I have rejected two or three times in my lifetime. 

 There were several old pears that were not mentioned. There is the Rousselet Stutgart, 

 which is a splendid pear, very like the Rostiezer. The Seckel is a good pear with us if we 

 get it on the right kind of stock, and it has arrived at an age of about twenty -five years. 

 It is rising in my estimation. As for the Tyson, I would not be without it. I think it 

 is equal to the Seckel in flavour ; and it is three times the size. We have not heard the 

 old Belle Lucrative mentioned. I always think that is hard to beat. It grows to a good 

 size with us. It is not equal to the Bartlett, of course, in that respect. It is very vari- 

 able in appearance. You might pick three or four different kinds of pears, you might 

 say, off the same tree. The Duchesse as grown on a quince stock and as grown on a pear 

 stock are altogether different pears. I never saw a Duchesse worth looking at grown on 

 a pear stock. It is not half the size with us grown on the pear stock that it is grown on 

 the quince stock. The Winter Nelis is a very ugly looking pear, but an excellent one. 

 The Vicar of Winkfield I would not have in my ground if I could grow the Glout 

 Morceau ; but I cannot grow it on my place. Mr. Saunders grows it. There is no 

 profit in winter pears ; because you cannot rely on them. You may pick winter pears 

 all at the same time, and pack them all away in the same place, and yet you will find 

 that while some of them will turn out excellent, others will not be fit to eat. 



Mr. Saunders. — The Glout Morceau is one of my favourite pears; and for some 



