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of tlio finest tabic pears : "while Van Mons produced more 

 than a score of them. Mr. Ives had noticed some unusual- 

 ly healtliy trees^on the farm of General Josiali Newhall of 

 Lynnfield. They were seedlings unpruned either on the 

 roots or side branches : some of them had last spring began 

 to flower, they were about 16 years old. Similar process of 

 allowing the side branches to grow had been practiced in 

 Illinois with complete success, no instance of the pear blight 

 appearing among tlie trees of the person, who followed it, 

 while his neighbors' trees, which had been pruned when 

 young were much affected. The dry canker seen on the 

 trunks of trees especiolly on tlie sides exposed to the sun 

 arose from a want of shelter and shade such as suckers and 

 side branches afforded. Mr. I. had found that the pear tree 

 generally requires a retentive soil, in order to render profit- 

 able crops ; swampy or wet land where water stands under 

 the surface or remains in the subsoil, is an unsuitable loca- 

 tion ; and perhaps in such spots the tap root pruning might 

 be serviceable, and tlie roots of any fruit tree which find 

 their way into such stagnant and wet places will decay and 

 communicate a corresponding decay of the branches, com- 

 mencing in the top of the tree. 



Yet no fruit tree varies so much in regard to soil as the 

 Pear. It may be said that each variety of pear has its own 

 soil. The " Bartlett" will grow in almost any soil and pro- 

 duce abundant crops in any kind of good soil ; but a strong, 

 deep soil is requisite for successful fruit bearing of the 

 Beurre d'Aremberg, Diel, Wilkinson, Lewis and some others. 

 Some kinds bear best when the trees are young, as for in- 

 stance tlie Flemish Beauty ; others do best Avhen grafted up- 

 on old trees ; such arc the Seckel, the Winter Xelis and the 

 Lawrence. 



Mr. I. did not recommend working fine varieties of pears 

 upon quince roots, as the dwarfing of the trees is unfavora- 

 ble to long life or abundant crops. Some kinds however do 

 best so, as the sort known as Dutchesse d'Angouleme shows. 



