THE PEARS OF NEW YORK 99 
(2) phosphate as above and muriate of potash to give 100 pounds of potash 
to the acre on another plat; (3) phosphate and muriate as above and nitrate 
of soda and dried blood to give 50 pounds of nitrogen per acre on a third 
plat; (4) six tons of stable manure on a fourth plat; and (5) one plat 
left unfertilized as a check. 
Planting practices vary so greatly from place to place and from time 
to time, and each method at the place and time seems so justifiable, that 
one can hardly advocate particular methods and can only state what they 
are. Thus, pears have been set in accordance with all of several 
planting plans, and at distances ranging from sixteen to twenty-five feet 
apart. At present, pear-orchards are usually laid out in meridians and 
parallels at intervals of eighteen and twenty feet; when the first distance 
is used, one hundred and thirty-four trees are planted to the acre; if the 
second, one hundred and eight trees. It is patent to the eye of every 
passer-by that these distances are more often too small than too great. 
Certainly on rich soils and with varieties the trees of which are spreading, 
the distance might often better be put at twenty-two or twenty-four feet. 
A poorly-colored pear is usually a poorly-flavored pear; and color and 
flavor are largely dependent on sunshine and air which are hardly to be 
had in closely-planted trees. Perfect alignment is imperative for con- 
venience in working and pride of appearance. Dwarf trees in New York 
should be set at least fifteen feet apart each way, one hundred and ninety- 
three trees to the acre, although it is a common practice to set them 
closer. 
Until recently one of the discouragements in pear-growing was the 
failure of fruit to set, even though the trees bore an abundance of blossoms. 
The discovery that failure was often due to self-sterility in a variety, and 
that it was necessary to set another variety near-by to furnish pollen to 
fertilize the self-sterile blossoms has removed much of the uncertainty in 
growing pears. We now know that self-sterility has a most important 
economic aspect in the planting of pears. Some of the Varieties most 
profitable when planted to secure cross-pollination, are so unfruitful as to 
be quite unprofitable when a tree stands alone or when the variety is set 
in a solid block with no other sort near. Under most conditions Bartlett 
and Kieffer, the mainstays of American pear-culturé, both need pollen 
from another variety to insure a full set of fruit. Under some conditions 
both may be sufficiently self-fertile. From these two statements it is 
seen that self-sterility is not a constant factor in a variety. 
