188 THE PEARS OF NEW YORK 
Tree medium in size, vigorous, upright, very productive, a regular bearer; branches 
strongly zigzag, brownish-red mingled with green and covered with scarf-skin; branchlets 
thick, reddish-brown mingled with green, smooth, pubescent on the new growth which 
later becomes glabrous, with numerous very small, conspicuous, raised lenticels. 
Leaf-buds small, short, pointed, appressed. Leaves 33 in. long, 13 in. wide, long-ovate 
or long-oval, leathery; apex taper-pointed; margin finely serrate; petiole pale green, 
glabrous. Flower-buds small, short, conical, plump, free, arranged singly on very short 
spurs; flowers open very early, 1} in. across, in dense clusters, 7 to 10 buds in a cluster; 
pedicels 1 in. long, slender, lightly pubescent, pale green. 
Fruit ripe late October to November; large, 37's in. long, 2§ in. wide, uniform in size 
and shape, roundish-oval, tapering at both ends, ribbed, symmetrical; stem 1} in. long, 
very thick, often curved; cavity obtuse, very shallow and narrow, smooth, slightly fur- 
rowed and wrinkled, often compressed; calyx partly open; lobes usually dehiscent, separated 
at the base, short, narrow, acute; basin usually very deep, abrupt, gently furrowed; skin 
thick, tough, smooth; color pale yellow, occasionally marked with russet; dots numerous, 
small, russet, conspicuous; flesh white, firm, granular, stringy, tender, juicy, sweet, with a 
strong and disagreeable flavor; quality poor. Core very large, closed, axile, with meeting 
core-lines; calyx-tube short, wide, broadly conical; seeds large, 2 in each carpel, wide, 
long, very plump, acute. 
LE LECTIER 
1. Mathieu Nom. Pom. 246. 1889. 2. Guide Prat.95. 1895. 3. Rev. Hort. 466. 1899. 4. Garden 
50:14, 93,124. 1901. 5. Soc. Nat. Hort. France Pom. 420, fig. 1904. 6. Cat. Cong. Pom. France 287, 
fig. 1906. 
In size and beauty of fruit, Le Lectier surpasses most of its associates, 
and the quality is first rate in soils and climates to which the variety is 
suited. Unfortunately the tree, while very satisfactory in some situations, 
is capricious to both soils and climates, and is seldom at home on this side 
of the Atlantic. The season is December and January, when good pears 
are scarce, and it would seem that the fine, large fruits of this pear would 
be most acceptable for either home or market if it could be made to thrive. 
In Europe, it grows best on warm, rich soils. 
Auguste Lesueur, a horticulturist at Orléans, France, obtained this 
late winter pear about 1882 as a cross between Bartlett and Fortunée. It 
was named after Le Lectier, the great pomologist of Orléans, who was 
growing in the year 1628 about 260 varieties of pears. The variety was 
introduced about 1889. In France, Le Lectier has been described 
as greatly superior in flavor, aroma, and sweetness to varieties of the 
same class having established reputations. In 1894, the Royal Horti- 
cultural Society of London recommended this variety for cultivation 
in England. 
