The Canadian Horticulturist. 



57 



WINTER PEARS. 



INTER pears are not much 

 S grown for market, because, as a 

 Sj rule the summer pears have 

 been more profitable, and 

 *v many of the winter pears are 

 / poor in quality. Besides the 

 winter pears need to be rip- 

 ened and marketed in a cer- 

 tain manner or else they will 

 be unsatisfactory. American 

 ( harden has been inquiring 

 among its correspondents con- 

 cerning the merits of this class 

 of fruit, and the results seem 

 only in favor of two principal 

 varieties, the Lawrence and 

 the Anjou — though other var- 

 ieties are worth trying. 



Mr. T. T. Lyon, of South 

 Haven, Michigan, replied as follows: — 



Until a comparatively recent period, lew, if any, winter varieties of the pears 

 were of such a character as to command much attention beyond the few ama- 

 teurs who had made this fruit their speciality, and had mastered what was, at the 

 time, considered an abstruse or difficult process — that of properly ripening the 

 fruit. Even at the present time, with a list of varieties considerably increased, 

 and including many of decided merit, the earlier impressions seem to give way 

 very slowly ; and the popular demand for winter pears is yet so limited that com- 

 mercial growers rarely plant thqm. It may fairly be doubted whether even a 

 moiety of pear-growers have an adequate conception of the delectable quality 

 wrapped up in a well-grown and perfectly ripened Nelis, a Dana's Hovey, or even 

 a Lawrence. With such as these, and dozens of others, nearly or quite as good, 

 put upon our city and village markets ripe and full colored, there can be little 

 room for doubt than an appreciative demand would arise, quite as rapidly as 

 planters and growers would be prepared to supply it True, there are, even yet. 

 comparatively few long-keeping varieties adapted to market purposes ; but with 

 modern refrigeration, or cold-storage, even such varieties as Anjou, Angouleme, 

 and numerous others can now be carried over till the markets demand ihem. 



