60 



men that after lingering on in a sickly condition for several years will 

 finally be removed. 



It is reasonable to expect these diversities in the growth of stocks 

 produced from seed, and the influence they impart to the graft, but it 

 is seldom that allowance is made for the many peculiarities that may 

 undoubtedly be traced to this cause. This is still further confirmed by 

 the more uniform growth of dwarf pears, the stocks of which are pro- 

 duced from cuttings or layers, and are consequently of more uniform 

 vigor, being an extension of one individuality instead of the separate 

 individualities of seedling plants. 



BLIGHT. 



The greatest drawback to extended pear culture is the disease famil- 

 iarly known as blight. The predisposing cause of this malady has not 

 been specifically determined ; the active cause of dissolution is known to 

 parasitical fungi. This much, however, experience seems to confirm: 

 that trees placed in positions and under circumstances of soil and cli- 

 mate that insure a growth of moderate vigor, which growth shall become 

 perfectly matured and solidified before the advent of winter, are so sel- 

 dom" attacked by this disease as to be, for all practical purposes, exempt. 



A safe practice, and one that will probably become general when 

 further and extended experiments prove its value, is to cover the body 

 of the tree and all the principal branches with a wash, formed by plac- 

 ing 1 peck of lime and 4 pounds of sulphur in a vessel and adding suf- 

 ficient boiling water to slack the lime. If the white color is objection- 

 able it can be changed to any other more suitable. The spread of the 

 fungi on the bark of trees has been arrested by timely applications of 

 this mixture. 



DISTANCES APART FOR PEAR TREES. 



The opinion is now becoming prevalent that close planting, so that the 

 trees shelter each other, is advantageous. For standard trees, 18 feet 

 apart is considered a good maximum, and 10 feet for dwarfs. These 

 distances preclude the practicability of using horse-power in the culture 

 of the soil, at all events after a few year's growth, which, all things being 

 considered, may be regarded as a step in the right direction. 



NATIVE GEAPES. 



It is very generally conceded that the culture of native grapes is not 

 so promising a remunerative industry as could be desired. New varie- 

 ties, some of them possessing merit, are still being announced, but there 

 is no improvement in their adaptability to general culture in ordinary 

 localities. It was formerly the custom to compare the grape zone, as it 

 was called, to that of Indian corn, which was intended to convey the 

 idea that where this crop would mature the native grape would also 



