PEARS 



1593 



Fall Sweet 



Duchess 



Rotter Seedless 



for this is that in planting, fillers have 

 been generally used, that is, temporary 

 trees have been set out between those 

 which were to remain permanently. By 

 planting out the orchard, for example, 

 with standard pears at intervals of 12 by 

 16 feet every other row of the 12-foot 

 rows is a filler row. As the trees begin 

 to crowd, these are taken out, and the 

 trees are left 16 by 24 feet apart. In 

 either case the rectangle approaches so 

 nearly a square that it is perfectly con- 

 venient to carry on the operations of cul- 

 tivating, spraying, etc.; in fact, it is more 

 practicable to have the trees farther apart 

 one way than the other, as this leaves a 

 broader strip for plowing and more room 

 for spraying and hauling out the fruit as 

 the trees begin to fill the space completely. 

 For dwarfs the distance of 12 by 16 feet 

 was adopted, with a filler row between 

 16-foot rows, which makes the trees stand 

 12 by 8 feet. The distance for the stan- 

 dard pears is 16 by 24 feet, with fillers 

 between the 24-foot permanent rows, the 

 trees thus standing in the original plant- 

 ing 16 by 12 feet apart. In the Oriental 

 orchard the distance is 24 by 32 feet, 

 with a filler row between the 32-foot rows, 

 making the trees stand 16 by 24 feet 

 apart. It will be noted that each of the 

 two latter distances is double that of the 



preceding, so that the orchards can be 

 planted adjoining and the rows be con- 

 tinuous, which is a great advantage in 

 plowing and cultivating. Furthermore, 

 all the distances are multiples of 4, and 

 this arrangement gives the convenient 

 distance of 4 feet for planting truck crops, 

 cow peas, etc., in the young orchard. 



Preparation of the Soil 



The pear, like most other fruit trees, is 

 very susceptible to previous preparation 

 of the soil. As a rule, it is best, if pos- 

 sible, to plan beforehand where the or- 

 chard is to be located, and begin the 

 preparation of the soil one or two years 

 before the trees are planted. A well- 

 cultivated crop of Irish potatoes, or any 

 of the hoed garden truck crops which re- 

 quire high manuring and thorough culti- 

 vation, may be considered as good prep- 

 aration for the pear orchard. The soil, 

 unless naturally very deep, should be 

 plowed an inch or two deeper each year 

 for a year or two in anticipation of plant- 

 ing out the orchard. In this way the soil 

 will be materially deepened and enriched 

 and its mechanical state improved. 



These remarks apply more especially to 

 dwarf-pear culture, but also have a con- 

 siderable bearing on the behavior of 

 Orientals and standards. The principal 

 advantage in thorough preparation is the 



