270 Dwarf or Standard Pears ? 



DWARF OR STANDARD PEARS? 



By David Z. Evans, Jr., Chesapeake City, Md, 



As this question has been so thoroughly discussed by many different 

 pear culturists, in ahnost all sections of the country, with such varied 

 decisions, what little I can say on the subject, obtained by experience, 

 will not, I fear, tend to enlighten growers, on account of the entirely 

 opposite theories promulgated and made known through the columns 

 of the various periodicals devoted to this and kindred matters of interest 

 to the fruit grower. 



In the first place, I contend that to dwarf a tree is unnatural, causing 

 it to produce fruit before Dame Nature intended it to, thus tending to 

 injure the growth as well as the fruitfulness. I do not deny that some 

 few varieties of the pear do best as dwarfs, such as the Duchess, and a 

 few others ; but the majority do better as standards, bear almost if not 

 quite as soon, make better, larger, and more shapely trees, and last, 

 but by no means least, are not so liable to be attacked by the blight, 

 and the many other diseases to which the dwarf is undoubtedly subject ; 

 and this, if nothing else, should be sufficient inducement to plant stan- 

 dards in decided preference to dwarfs. 



From notes and gleanings here and there, I find that the dwarf is 

 becoming in bad repute among nurserymen as well as planters ; and 

 thus I find that I am not alone in my depreciation of the value of the 

 dwarf, or in my estimation of the merits of the standard as suitable to 

 cultivate for profit, on either a limited or extensive scale. 



As an indorsement to what I say, I will mention a case which is 

 not uncommon, which occurred on our grounds. In our young pear 

 orchard, which is composed of several different varieties on dwarf and 

 standard stocks, we picked off of a Bartlett tree thirty-six as fine pears 

 as could be wished for from so young a tree, while on a Duchess we 

 obtained but four, and on another of the same kind but two, thus 

 making a great difference in yield. Some other dwarf trees produced 

 rather more, but of a poor quality. The trees were two years old when 

 planted, and had been planted thi-ee years, malcing them but five years 

 old altogether. I planted all of the trees, dwarf and standard, at the 

 same time, gave all the same care and attention, cultivating market 

 garden crops of different kinds between, and thus gave them the best 

 of culture, with the success recorded. The Bartlett was a standard, 

 while the Duchesses, which bore but three or four, were dwarfs. The 



