74 



THE OECHAED ATS^D FETIIT QAEDE^f. 



pear-shaped, short, thick, yellowish pear, thinly covered 

 with reticulated grey russet ; juicy, sweety and peculiarly 

 delicious in flavour. The eye is small, in a deep, narrow 

 "basin, and the stalk is long and slender, set in an open, 

 shallow cavity. It does on pear or quince ; it is said, 

 I think without foundation, to do best on the pear ; it is 

 an excellent bearer, quite one of the best pears of its 

 season, and it produces well on an east or south-east 

 wall. To encourage this and other kinds to keep longer, 

 it is a good plan to make three gatherings: the first a 

 fortnight before the fruit is ripe, the next a week before, 

 and the last when it is ripe. The gathering of ripe 

 fruit will come in first, and the second and first gather- 

 ings will follow in succession. This progressive way of 

 bringing the fruit forward is especially advisable after a 

 hot summer. 



There is a variegated-foliaged Crassane, which is a very 

 ornamental tree. It is a variety of the Crassane ; the 

 fruit is similar, and the leaves are margined with pale 

 yellow when they first come out, turning to white as 

 they reach maturity. The tree has a slenderer growth, 

 it is more tender than Crassane, and it will bear only 

 against a wall, and with a warm aspect. 



The Beurre Clairgeau is a splendid pear to look at ; 

 one which for size and beauty any cultivator may like 

 to rear ; but it hardly comes up to its appearance in 

 goodness, being rather coarse. It is, however, sweet and 

 juicy, piquant, and with an agreeable aroma. It is a 

 very large pear-shaped pear, curving round at the stalk, 

 smooth and shining, bright yellow, with large russety 

 specks and patches, especially round the stalk, and glow- 

 ing red on the sunny side — certainly a most taking pear. 

 The eye is small and open, set in a shallow basin ; the 

 stalk rather short, stout, and fleshy. The pear ripens in 

 October, and keeps good throughout November. The 

 tree is not a rampant grower, on which account, as well 

 as the large size of its fruit, it is well adapted for dwarf 

 culture. It is good for pyramid or bush culture. 



The Winter Nelis is a pear which no garden should be 

 without. It is a medium-sized pear, wide in the centre, ^ 



