1920.] 



Profitable Pears for Market. 



761 



spite of their poor quality. This is especially the case 

 where growers are near seaside towns and can supply 

 the retail trade direct. 

 A succession of varieties should be selected, so that picking 

 and marketing are spread over as long a period as possible, and 

 — in the case of the grower who sells direct to retailers — a 

 continuous supply should be maintained. 



(2) Method of Cultivation. — Standard and half-standard trees 

 which are grafted on pear stocks are not generally recom- 

 mended. They are so slow in bearing that often a profitable 

 crop is not obtained until 20 years have elapsed after planting, 

 and the fruit from this form of tree is not of such good quality 

 as that from bushes or cordons, owing to the greater attention 

 which the latter receive. 



Bush pears on quince stock are preferable, for their habit 

 of growth is generally upright and the trees come into bearing 

 a very few years after planting. As " fillers " they are ideal, 

 as they are somewhat short-lived and are usually past their 

 prime by the time their removal is necessaiy. Unlike many 

 apples, pears crop well on a system of close spur pruning and 

 restrictions, and they are. therefore, particularly suitable for 

 cordons. This system entails a high cost of production, and 

 should only be adopted for the best of the commercial varieties, 

 where locality and situation are favourable, on suitable land in 

 good heart, and when it is quite certain that the trees will 

 receive the necessary amount of attention. 



(3) Locality and Soils. — Pear growing — especially of high 

 quality varieties — is mostly confined to districts with a mild 

 climate, and for this reason the South Western Counties and 

 many districts with suitable soils bordering on the English 

 Channel are particularly suitable. 



Pears worked on Quince require particular soil condition-, 

 but as a general rule it can be taken that in their likes and 

 dislikes they follow closely apples worked on the weaker types 

 of Paradise. The ideal soil is a sandy retentive loam with good 

 natural drainage ; brickearth with a shght mixture of sand is 

 particularly suitable. They require good land and do not thrive 

 on extreme t^-pes of soil such as cold wet clays or thin soils on 

 chalk or gyavel, but there is a wide ranee between these on 

 which they can be profitably grown. Local information as 

 to the suitability of a district and the soils therein can usually 

 be obtained and should be given due consideration, especially 

 in relation to the fruitfulness of a variety and its power to resist 

 disease. 



