82 



the good, so that people cculd see and select for themselves 

 such as are worthy of culture. 



My soil is a heavy gravelly loam, with a subsoil of clay 

 and hard gravel, enriched generally, once a year, with quite a 

 variety of manure, sometimes one kind, and then another. A 

 compost of barn manure, hog and night soil, makes a good 

 stimulant. The offal from the tan yard is good. 



I prune considerable. I think a small amount of good 

 fruit is better thari much poor. Spring and summer I like 

 best for small-pruning, and the fall for large limbs. Some 

 kinds need much pruning, while others need but little. It 

 needs good judgment and practical experience, and should be 

 attended to. 



My trees have been troubled considerably with the blight \ 

 my remedy for it is amputate immediately, as you would 

 your leg or arm, if they were affected with gangrene, and 

 you must be careful to get below all the affected part, for the 

 poison runs down in the sap and destroys as far as it goes. 

 •My success, when the work is done in season, is complete, 

 but neglect is fatal. 



For the most profitable pear trees to set out, Standards 

 are the only kind I would set, unless Dwarfs are set deep 

 enough to root from the pear stock. The Dwarf makes only 

 a small tree, the roots not being sufficient to support it ; then 

 it is short lived, and affords but little fruit. 



When to pick pears is altogether governed by circumstances, 

 but most pears should not ripen on the trees. By giving at- 

 tention, with very little experience, a mere novice might 

 know when to pick his pears, which will ripen, some in three 

 da^^s, others weeks. I keep them best and longest in a dark 

 cool place. I find for late pears no better place than a cool 

 cellar. Light and heat ripen them up quickly. Some seasons 

 some kinds will not ripen up good. This is peculiar to the 

 Vicar, and in consequence some think it not worth raising ; 

 but it is an excellent pear, and often will keep till spring, but 

 it must be grown large. 



