The Cultivation of the Pear. 151 



The most prevalent fault in all our shrubberies is monoto- 

 ny. In general, we find almost every portion of the grounds 

 laid out and planted in the same way, so that however varied 

 the surface may be, the one part is just the counterpart of the 

 other. And how rarely do we see a real sacrifice made to 

 absolute taste. Many indeed who lay out theii* own grounds 

 have so little appreciation of the beautiful in landscape gar- 

 dening, and so little idea of the enjoyments of taste, that they 

 can see no beauty in anything that is not strictly applicable 

 to the common purposes of utility, and while anxious to pro- 

 duce the best effect in their grounds, will nevertheless refuse 

 to sacrifice the silliest whimsicality to obtain it. And it has 

 often amused us in our course of practice to find the most 

 trifling reasons presented in objection to propositions and pur- 

 poses the most obviously effective and economical. 



I shall conclude this article under the same conviction with 

 which I began it, that a want of materials, and not of taste, 

 is the cause of our not being able to imitate the landscape 

 gardening of France and England ; though some of the 

 readers of this Magazine may, from the mere perusal of works 

 on the subject, be dubious of the fact — and landscape garden- 

 ers, in these more temperate countries, cannot believe it. 



March, 1853. 



[We ought, perhaps, to qualify the remarks of our corre- 

 spondent, by stating, that they apply only to New England 

 and a part of the Middle States. South of Baltimore, all 

 the above grow as freely in the open air as in England. — Ed.^ 



Art. III. Tlie Cultivation of the Pear. In a series of Con- 

 versational Meetings by the members of the Mass. Hort. 

 Society. 



Saturday, Feb. 5. — Mr. E. M. Richards being absent, 

 Capt. Lovett was called to the chair. 



Mr. Cabot stated, that, as the last meeting discussed the 

 propriety of heading in pear trees when transplanted, we 



