BUD TRANSFERENCE AND ITS EFFECTS ON FRUIT. 35 



shade, deepening in tint and tone as its still fairer cheek became 

 more and more beautiful as it became more fully exposed to the 

 action of the sun, when it reached a beautifully toned shade of 

 bronzy brick-red. I repeat I have never seen three such lovely 

 fruit ; but, of course, you Southerners, rejoicing in greater sun- 

 power, must remember I live in the Vale of York, and the flavour 

 was most certainly quite equal to the fair form, colour, and bloom 

 of the fruit. An expert who saw it in its glory on the spur, 

 turning to me said, " Where did you get that colour from ? " and 

 I jokingly said, " 0, that's a question very easily answered. I 

 gave them a little rouge." The three pears weighed 10£ oz., 

 8^ oz., and 8 oz.=27£ oz. Pitmaston Duchess, crossed on Glou 

 Morceau, is a very sound, good fruit, improved in form, and 

 partaking distinctly of the flavour of the parent stock, so I hope 

 the fruit will be able to prolong its season. Beurre de 1'Assomp- 

 tion, crossed on Glou Morceau, is a remarkably fine fruit, if 

 the shape only improves, but it is an ugly shape and altogether 

 a rough-looking diamond, nothing more could be desired as to 

 the delicious softness and sweetness of its flavour. Brockworth 

 Park, crossed on Glou Morceau, is a very good fruit, with very 

 good flavour, and the appearance and the colour is distinctly 

 pretty where the sun gets full power, but the position of the bud 

 is not very favourable, being low down on the tree, and to the 

 eastward, and somewhat screened by a large pillar-rose. 



Doyenne du Cornice is a splendid fruit ; the best of all pears 

 I consider, and that is why I have mixed so much of its generous 

 blood with others, though I hope its season may be prolonged by 

 being budded on to Glou Morceau. 



The Swan's Egg crosses are legion ; the poor parent seems to 

 sulk now that her numerous daughters bear so marvellously. 

 There was not one fruit on the old stock last year, though I had 

 wonderfully good crops on some of the buds. A large crop of 

 Louise Bonne of Jersey, a very fair crop of Doyenne du Cornice, 

 considering the size of the branches, and a really beautiful 

 cluster of Souvenir du Congres, quite a picture on a very small 

 branch, some ten fruits on a branch about two feet long. 

 Jargonelle gave good fruit ; and a few splendid Gratioli of 

 Jersey. 



The bloom promise for this year is most astonishing. I have 

 never seen anything like such a universal array of bloom spurs. 



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