260 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



all the time, full of thanks, for corn. Sometimes I get more than thanks — 

 some send me insects. One gentlemen sent me specimens of the grass- 

 hoppers of the west; another the beetles of his part of Massachusetts. 

 Some send me Ichneumon flies; one some Katy-dids; another the seventeen 

 year locusts, &c., &c. 



I like to receive all these letters, but I do want to be relieved from the 

 labor of answering them. % 



Several members confirmed the statement as to the quality of this corn, 

 including John G. Bergen, William S. Carpenter, Nathan C. Ely, Solon 

 Robinson and Mr. Dodge, who stated that although the ears were short, 

 the productiveness per acre was very large, as every stalk bore two or 

 three ears. 



On motion of Mr. Win. S. Carpenter, the corn was named "Trimble 

 Sweet Corn." 



Help for the Bees. 



Mr. Steele, of Jersey city, exhibited a Swiss invention, used in Switzer- 

 land, to aid bees in the formation of their comb. Narrow sheets of wax 

 are imprinted by machinery so as exactly to represent the dividing wall of 

 comb between the cells. Tiiese strips are attached to the top of flie empty 

 Live, before the new swarm is put in, thus enabling the bees to go on 

 immediately to work, and also guiding them in making the sheets of comb 

 in the proper direction. 



Pruning of Pear Trees. 



Dr. Ward cautioned those who read theories about pruning dwarf pear 

 trees not to apply them to orchards, and to remember that there is a vast 

 difference in the natural habit .of growth between the varieties of pears; 

 that a system suited to one sort would ruin another, so that no rule of 

 pruning can be fixed. The place for dwarf pears is in the garden, not the 

 orchard, and whoever tries to grow an orchard of dwarfs in New Jersey 

 will be disappointed in the results. And he thought they would also be 

 disappointed in trying to grow winter pears for profit, as he had tried for 

 fifteen years, and never had a dozen fit for the table of those strictly winter 

 pears. The Lawrence and some other sorts that are good in early winter 

 are really autumn varieties. The Vicar is only fit for cooking, though at 

 Boston that and some other sorts are good that are not worth growing 

 bere. 



Mr. Wm. S. Carpenter contended for several winter sorts as being profit- 

 able with him, and he has kept Glout Morceau till the middle of April. He 

 also recommends pruning all trees with open heads. At the fruit exhibi- 

 tion of Western New York, held this month, there were 105 varieties of 

 winter pears, many of them unknown to him. 



Mr. John G. Bergen said his greatest success had come from not pruning 

 pears at all, except by cutting off such limbs as were in the way. lie had 

 nearly come to the conclusion to let nature take its course. We find it hard 

 to make a tree take a new form. It will answer well enough to experi- 

 ment in a small way upon dwarf trees in the garden, but for the orchard 

 the least pruning is the best. * 



