28 



Vm: rOLLlNATloN Ol' VKAU TLOWKIIS. 



1,'>-1() jiisf before tlie lloweriiig. On tlie lattei* date it was necessary to 

 l emove an oecasional opened llo^yer in order to iuclndein the bags only 

 unopened buds. 



Weather record. — The weather conditions during the week of flower- 

 ing were favorable to the setting of fruit. The buds had no frosts or 

 very severe weather to encounter from the time tlie clusters opened 

 until they came into bloom. The critical period was from May 15 to 

 20, inclusive. These six days were uniformly w^arm, bright, and 

 sunny. Light rains occurred on May 15, 16, 19, and 20, but these came 

 during the night, leaving the day bright and clear. It rained almost 

 continuously from May 21 to 25, during which time the petals were 

 shed, but even during this period the sun shone part of the time. The 

 wind Avas strong on the 16th, 17th, and 18tb. This, Avith the sunshine, 

 made the air seem dry, though doubtless the soil and air were well pro- 

 vided Avith moisture. 



The following table shoAVS the temx)erature and rainfall for May, 1892: 



TAiiLK S.— lVeaihcr record at Hochester, N. T., May, 1802. 



Day of 

 inoiitli. 



Temperature. 



Pvainfall. 



Maximum. 



Minimum. 



Mean. 





Degrees F. 



Degrees F. 



Degrees F. 



Inches. 



1 



'59 



' 40 



50 



0. 30 



2 



58 



47 



52 



0. 34 



3 



77 



46 





0. 64 



4 



07 



50 



58 



0.06 





50 



:i9 



44 



0. 18 



tj 



44 



40 



42 



0. 20 





52 



40 



46 



0. 01 



8 



59 



37 



48 





9 



59 



38 



48 





10 



06 



43 



54 



0. 01 



n 



65 



53 



59 



0. 21 



v> 



51 



49 



50 



0. 02 



i:j 



68 



43 



56 



0. 01 



]4 



67 



.52 



00 





15 



74 



54 



64 



0. 29 



IG 



66 



50 



58 



0. 18 



17 



71 



47 



59 





18 



74 



46 



60 





19 



68 



54 



61 



0.01 



20 



(52 



49 



56 



0.04 



21 



50 



40 



45 



0. 92 



22 



46 



38 



42 



0.43 



23 



52 



40 



40 



0. 27 



24 



(■)5 



45 



55 



0.02 



25 



06 



53 



(30 



0. 23 



Details of the ivorh, — Cross-i)ollinating Avas begun on the 15th of May 

 and continued until the 18th, inclusive, when the flowers Avere x)rac- 

 tically all open. The Winter Nelis was pollinated on the 19th. On tbe 

 22d the petals Avere falling rapidly and the young fruits were beginning 

 to increase in size. Most of the common varieties droi^ped their petals 

 on that and the following day. A Aveek later the unfecundated flowers 

 wrre falling oft'. On June 8, after many young pears (about one-fourth 

 inch in diameter) had dropi)ed oft*, the count was commenced, but 

 before proceeding far it was found that a third set of young fjuits 



