196 THE PEARS OF NEW YORK 



previously no other author had made mention of it, though M. Leroy, 

 writing in 1867, deemed it presumable that it had originated in France. 

 Besides its original names this pear has been known by some fifty others 

 in different localities and at different times, but Madeleine is now its 

 recognized name in this country. In England, it is known as the Citron 

 des Carmes. When and by whom it was introduced to America is not 

 clear, but it was a standard variety as early as 1831 when Prince first 

 described it. At the national convention of fruit-growers held in 1848, 

 Madeleine was recommended for general cultivation, and ever since this 

 time the variety has appeared in the fruit-catalog of the American Porno- 

 logical Society. 



Tree large, vigorous, upright, open-topped, tender, productive; trunk shaggy; branches 

 zigzag, light greenish-brown covered with gray scarf-skin; branchlets slender, long, reddish- 

 brown mingled with green, mottled with ash-gray near the tips, smooth, glabrous, with small, 

 raised, conspicuous lenticels. 



Leaf-buds small, very short, pointed, appressed. Leaves 3 in. long, if in. wide, thin; 

 apex taper-pointed; margin glandless, finely serrate; petiole if in. long, glabrous, reddish- 

 green. Flower-buds small, thick, short, conical, plump, free, distributed as lateral buds 

 or on very short spurs; flowers showy, if in. across, in dense clusters, average n buds in a 

 cluster; pedicels ij in. long, slightly pubescent. 



Fruit ripens in early August; inferior in size, 25 in. long, 2 in. wide, roundish-obtuse- 

 pyriform; stem if in. long, thick, curved; cavity very shallow and narrow, or lacking, the 

 flesh folded in a lip on one side of the stem ; calyx partly open ; lobes separated at the base, 

 short, narrow, acuminate; basin shallow, narrow, obtuse, gently furrowed, symmetrical; 

 skin thin, smooth, very tender; color dull green, occasionally with a faint, dotted, brownish 

 blush; dots numerous, greenish, obscure; flesh slightly tinged yellow, granular at the center, 

 tender and melting, very juicy, sweet, vinous; quality good to very good. Core closed, 

 with clasping core-lines; calyx-tube short, wide, conical; seeds wide, short, plump, 

 acuminate. 



MARGARET 



i. Horticulturist 21:172, 245, fig. 80. 1866. 2. Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt. 53. 1869. 3. Downing 

 Trees Am. 811. 1869. 4. Mo. Hort. Soc. Rpt. 35, 36. 1890. 5. Guide Prat. 68, 279. 1895. 

 Mary. 6. Horticulturist 21:78, figs. 43 and 44. 1866. 



The fruits of Margaret are early and attractive in color and shape. 

 This is about all that can be said for them, as they run small in size, and in 

 neither flesh nor flavor can they compete with the product of several other 

 varieties of the same season. The trees are hardly more desirable than the 

 fruits, since they are tender to cold, blight badly, and are short-lived, 

 seldom attaining full size. Despite these defects of fruit and tree, the 

 variety is a one-time favorite still rather commonly planted. Better sum- 





