212 Successful Pear Culture. 



SUCCESSFUL PEAR CULTURE. — I. 

 SELECTION OF SOIL. 



By T. T. SouTHWiCK, Dansville, N. Y. 



Tobias Martin, of Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, has achieved un- 

 quahfied success in pear culture. 



His achievement does not consist in obtaining a few specimen pears 

 from the garden, or in producing a moderate crop of passable fruit from 

 an orchard. It does lie in the fact that in an orchard of four thousand 

 pear trees, in open culture, he has produced large crops of " specimen " 

 pears. The proof of their high quality is shown in the fact that Mr. 

 Martin markets the bulk of his crop " by the dozen " at the highest 

 prices. 



Judged by the high and critical standard reared by our mutual friend, 

 Dr. Houghton, the position assumed above stands the test ; for the pears 

 grown by Mr. Martin are uniformly large and beautiful. They are high 

 flavored and high colored, — exceedingly high colored, — and possess 

 a strong aroma. The trees are healthy and vigorous, bear young, and 

 abundantly. 



Those who attended the meeting of the American Pomological Soci- 

 ety held at Philadelphia last September will remember his superb col- 

 lection of pears, and those of us who have tasted of pears grown by 

 him will recollect, with " water in our mouths," their exquisitely high 

 flavor. Grown by him. Vicar becomes a dessert pear. 



Mr. Martin started his orchard about ten years since. He commenced 

 his new avocation with empty hands, having neither money nor experi- 

 ence. His total capital consisted in his sturdy will and his earnest, eager 

 desire to succeed ; and his only "backing" was a strong love of fruits. 

 It must afford him much gratification to reflect on his early struggles 

 and present success, as compared with that of others who have had an 

 abundance of capital to sustain their enterprise. 



His first planting of one hundred pear trees was made on a piece of 

 slate shale.* The land was covered (to use his own words) with " pov- 



* I believe some exceptions are tfoken to this word "shale ; " but I use it, as I know of no better word, to 

 indicate shelly, loose, slatestone soil. 



