THE 



Canadian Horticuuurist 



DECEMBER, 1902 



Volume XXV 



Number 12 



THE SECKEL PEAR 



OUR frontispiece is an excellent repre- 

 sentation of the Seckel pear, a variety 

 that is everywhere acknowledged to be the 

 very finest dessert pear in cultivation. This 

 pear originated on the farm of a Mr. Seckel, 

 of Philadelphia, near the Delaware River. 

 No one seems to know anything about the 

 origin of the original tree, which bore its 

 first fruit about the year 1765. In 1819 a 

 tree of this pear was planted in the garden 

 of the London Horticultural Society, and 

 the fruit was pronounced "to exceed in 

 flavor the richest of their autumn pears." 



For years we have grown this pear at 

 Maplehurst, both as a standard and 

 as a dwarf, and must pronounce in 

 favor of the latter for beauty and for 

 quality. For the garden of the amateur 

 who wants the finest quality of pear for his 

 table, or for the connoisseur who wants to 

 complete an interesting collection, we know 

 no pear so desirable ; indeed it should find a 

 place in every fruit garden which is planted 

 for home uses ; but we do not consider it 

 advisable to plant it largely in the com- 

 mercial orchard on account of its small size. 

 True, very high prices have been secured for 

 the Seckel pear in special markets where it 

 is well known, but, as a rule, the buyer of 

 a fruit looks for size as well as for beauty 



and quality, and the commercial grower 

 must not expect ready sale for small sized 

 pears or small sized apples. 



The tree is readily distinguished from 

 other trees in our experimental grounds by 

 the olive brown color of the wood, its short 

 stout joints, and the compact, symmetrical 

 head. The fruit itself has a deep, yellowish 

 brown color, with a bright red cheek ; the 

 flesh is very fine grained, melting and juicy; 

 the flesh is honey sweet, with a spicy and 

 delicate aroma ; season September to Oc- 

 tober. 



OPINIONS OF OTHERS ON THE VALUE OF 

 SECKEL. 



Mr. T. H. Race (Mitchell) :— By its very 

 nature the Seckel pear is a dwarf. It may 

 be a paradox to say that, so far as size goes, 

 it is less a dwarf when grown on a dwarf tree 

 than when grown upon a standard. As a 

 standard the tree is inclined to load too 

 heavily and the fruit to run too small, 

 the tree itself grows too thick and close if 

 left to itself, and the wood is too brittle to 

 stand much, or any trimming. A dwart 

 tree, if inclined to over-load, can easily be 

 thinned, and a good sized fruit may always 

 be obtained. It is not so easy thinning a 

 standard, and if the tree is cut out to lessen 



