﻿October, 
  1907 
  

  

  AMERICAN 
  HOMES 
  AND 
  GARDENS 
  

  

  IX 
  

  

  THE 
  SUBURBAN 
  PEAR 
  TREE 
  

  

  By 
  E. 
  P. 
  F'owell 
  

  

  THE 
  pear 
  tree 
  is 
  more 
  vital 
  than 
  the 
  

   apple 
  tree, 
  outliving 
  it 
  with 
  the 
  same 
  

   care, 
  so 
  much 
  so 
  that 
  we 
  find 
  trees 
  in 
  

   Michigan 
  planted 
  by 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  French 
  

   settlers 
  as 
  long 
  ago 
  as 
  the 
  founding 
  of 
  De- 
  

   troit 
  and 
  Philadelphia. 
  Downing 
  describes 
  

   a 
  pear 
  tree 
  which 
  he 
  knew 
  in 
  Illinois 
  that 
  

   was 
  ten 
  feet 
  in 
  circumference 
  one 
  foot 
  above 
  

   the 
  ground 
  and 
  nine 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  ground 
  

   was 
  more 
  than 
  two 
  feet 
  in 
  diameter. 
  Its 
  

   branches 
  extended 
  sixty-nine 
  feet. 
  In 
  1834 
  

   it 
  yielded 
  one 
  hundred 
  and 
  eighty-four 
  bushels, 
  

   and 
  in 
  1840 
  one 
  hundred 
  and 
  forty 
  bushels. 
  

   These 
  wide-spreading 
  pear 
  trees 
  are 
  admir- 
  

   able 
  for 
  shade 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  for 
  fruit. 
  We 
  have 
  

   in 
  our 
  popular 
  list 
  for 
  the 
  orchard 
  quite 
  a 
  

   number 
  that 
  make 
  excellent 
  lawn 
  trees. 
  I 
  

   am 
  specially 
  fond 
  of 
  a 
  group 
  of 
  buffums, 
  both 
  

   for 
  shade 
  and 
  for 
  autumn 
  coloring. 
  

  

  The 
  modern 
  evolution 
  of 
  the 
  pear 
  tree 
  be- 
  

   gan, 
  in 
  the 
  United 
  States, 
  with 
  Marshall 
  P. 
  

   Wilder, 
  of 
  Boston 
  and 
  Dorchester. 
  His 
  pear 
  

   orchard, 
  in 
  1840, 
  contained 
  twenty-five 
  hun- 
  

   dred 
  trees, 
  representing 
  eight 
  hundred 
  varie- 
  

   ties. 
  At 
  one 
  time 
  he 
  exhibited 
  four 
  hundred 
  

   and 
  four 
  varieties, 
  and 
  during 
  his 
  life 
  tested 
  

   twelve 
  hundred. 
  Closely 
  associated 
  with 
  his 
  

   name 
  must 
  be 
  that 
  of 
  Patrick 
  Barry, 
  of 
  

   Rochester. 
  The 
  more 
  recent 
  workers 
  have 
  

   been 
  busy 
  collecting 
  chance 
  seedlings 
  and 
  im- 
  

   porting 
  from 
  Europe, 
  especially 
  from 
  lower 
  

   Russia. 
  Mr. 
  Worden, 
  who^gave 
  us 
  the 
  Wor- 
  

   den 
  grape, 
  has 
  originated 
  the 
  Worden-Seckel 
  

   pear, 
  of 
  superb 
  quality; 
  and 
  Mr. 
  S. 
  Fox, 
  of 
  

   California, 
  has 
  added 
  to 
  our 
  list 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  

   winter 
  pears 
  of 
  great 
  value 
  — 
  the 
  best 
  of 
  all 
  

   being 
  Patrick 
  Barry. 
  Among 
  the 
  recent 
  in- 
  

   troductions 
  I 
  consider 
  the 
  Fame, 
  the 
  Snyder, 
  

   the 
  King 
  Karl 
  and 
  the 
  Alamo 
  among 
  the 
  best. 
  

   The 
  Lincoln 
  Coreless 
  is 
  a 
  worthless 
  affair; 
  

   but 
  another 
  Lincoln, 
  a 
  very 
  different 
  pear, 
  is 
  

   an 
  admirable 
  fruit. 
  

  

  We 
  still 
  need 
  a 
  winter 
  pear 
  as 
  good 
  as 
  

   Xelis 
  and 
  as 
  handsome 
  as 
  Bartlett 
  — 
  a 
  pear 
  

   that 
  will 
  keep 
  in 
  our 
  bins 
  alongside 
  apples, 
  

   and 
  ripen 
  up 
  perfectly 
  from 
  March 
  until 
  May. 
  

   Patrick 
  Barn' 
  will 
  meet 
  this 
  need 
  if 
  top 
  

   grafted, 
  but 
  on 
  its 
  own 
  roots 
  it 
  is 
  a 
  wretched 
  

   grower. 
  In 
  the 
  Southern 
  States 
  a 
  new 
  breed 
  

   of 
  pears 
  is 
  being 
  evolved 
  from 
  the 
  Chinese 
  

   stock. 
  Beside 
  the 
  Kieffer 
  and 
  the 
  LeConte, 
  

   I 
  find 
  in 
  Florida 
  the 
  Smith, 
  the 
  Stone 
  and 
  the 
  

   Magnolia, 
  all 
  of 
  them 
  of 
  excellent 
  quality, 
  

   and 
  adaptable 
  to 
  semi-tropic 
  climate 
  and 
  sandy 
  

   soil. 
  It 
  is 
  not 
  true, 
  however, 
  that 
  many 
  of 
  our 
  

   very 
  choicest 
  Northern-grown 
  pears 
  can 
  not 
  

   be 
  grown 
  in 
  the 
  South, 
  if 
  properly 
  mulched. 
  

  

  A 
  thoroughly 
  good 
  list 
  of 
  pears, 
  considering 
  

   both 
  tree 
  and 
  fruit, 
  would 
  be 
  Tyson, 
  Wilder, 
  

   Bartlett 
  and 
  Souvenir 
  Da 
  Congres 
  for 
  sum- 
  

   mer. 
  For 
  autumn 
  I 
  should 
  select 
  Sheldon, 
  

   Seckel, 
  Howell, 
  Onondaga 
  and 
  Flemish 
  

   Beauty. 
  The 
  last 
  named 
  must 
  be 
  very 
  care- 
  

   fully 
  sprayed 
  with 
  Bordeaux, 
  early 
  in 
  the 
  

   season, 
  or 
  its 
  fruit 
  will 
  crack. 
  The 
  Onon- 
  

   daga 
  can 
  hardly 
  be 
  ranked 
  as 
  the 
  highest 
  in 
  

   quality, 
  but 
  its 
  growth 
  is 
  superb, 
  and 
  its 
  crop 
  

   is 
  always 
  clean 
  and 
  abundant. 
  Close 
  after 
  

   these 
  I 
  would 
  place 
  Frederick 
  Clapp, 
  Hardy, 
  

   Superfin 
  and 
  Hoosic. 
  For 
  early 
  winter 
  I 
  

   should 
  prefer 
  Lawrence 
  and 
  Anjou, 
  and 
  

   for 
  late 
  winter 
  the 
  Josephine. 
  The 
  Lawrence 
  

   is 
  a 
  straggling 
  tree 
  and 
  short 
  lived; 
  the 
  Anjou 
  

   is 
  not 
  only 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  noble 
  of 
  pears, 
  

   but 
  the 
  tree 
  is 
  perfect 
  in 
  its 
  form 
  and 
  healthy. 
  

   If 
  this 
  list 
  must 
  be 
  reduced, 
  I 
  should 
  select 
  

   Tyson 
  and 
  Bartlett, 
  followed 
  by 
  Sheldon 
  and 
  

   Seckel, 
  and 
  these 
  followed 
  by 
  Anjou 
  and 
  

   Lawrence. 
  

  

  You 
  can 
  not 
  idealize 
  the 
  shape 
  of 
  a 
  pear 
  

   tree. 
  No 
  other 
  fruit 
  so 
  varies 
  in 
  the 
  style 
  of 
  

   growth, 
  from 
  the 
  round-headed 
  Seckel, 
  the 
  

  

  Before 
  putting 
  up 
  this 
  season's 
  screens, 
  remember 
  that 
  it 
  isn't 
  the 
  

   frame 
  that 
  makes 
  the 
  screen 
  — 
  it's 
  the 
  material 
  within 
  the 
  frame 
  which 
  

   will 
  spell 
  the 
  difference 
  between 
  comfort 
  and 
  discomfort 
  for 
  you 
  this 
  

   summer. 
  

  

  Spend 
  this 
  summer 
  undisturbed 
  by 
  flies, 
  mosquitoes 
  and 
  other 
  insects, 
  

   by 
  screening 
  your 
  doors 
  and 
  windows 
  with 
  Pompeiian 
  Bronze 
  IVire 
  

   Cloth 
  because 
  

  

  it 
  affords 
  absolute 
  protection 
  against 
  insects; 
  

  

  it 
  can't 
  rust; 
  

  

  it 
  offers 
  no 
  obstruction 
  to 
  light 
  and 
  air; 
  

  

  it 
  is 
  practically 
  invisible; 
  

  

  it 
  is 
  indestructible; 
  

  

  it 
  will 
  never 
  lose 
  its 
  color, 
  either 
  by 
  chipping, 
  wear, 
  fading 
  

   or 
  other 
  causes; 
  

  

  it 
  is 
  immune 
  against 
  the 
  corrosive 
  action 
  of 
  salt 
  air. 
  

  

  Pompeiian 
  Bronze 
  Wire 
  Cloth, 
  of 
  which 
  we 
  are 
  the 
  originators 
  and 
  sole 
  manufacturers, 
  is 
  made 
  

   of 
  an 
  alloy 
  of 
  copper, 
  aluminum, 
  and 
  other 
  non-corrosive 
  materials, 
  and 
  combines 
  the 
  durability 
  of 
  

   these 
  materials 
  with 
  the 
  toughness 
  and 
  elasticity 
  of 
  steel. 
  

  

  Pompeiian 
  Bronze 
  Wire 
  Cloth 
  is 
  woven 
  on 
  our 
  improved 
  power 
  looms, 
  which 
  insures 
  accuracy 
  

   and 
  uniformity 
  of 
  the 
  meshes 
  in 
  warp 
  and 
  filling. 
  

  

  Pompeiian 
  Bronze 
  Wire 
  Cloth 
  is 
  in 
  color 
  a 
  facsimile 
  of 
  the 
  ancient 
  Pompeiian 
  bronzes, 
  and 
  is 
  

   so 
  delicately 
  shaded 
  as 
  to 
  render 
  the 
  cloth 
  almost 
  invisible. 
  The 
  color 
  is 
  produced 
  by 
  the 
  combination 
  

   of 
  the 
  materials 
  entering 
  into 
  the 
  wire 
  and 
  not 
  by 
  paint 
  or 
  lacquer. 
  

  

  Pompeiian 
  Bronze 
  Wire 
  Cloth 
  is 
  for 
  sale 
  by 
  all 
  leading 
  hardware 
  dealers. 
  

  

  Packets 
  containing 
  samples 
  of 
  Pompeiian 
  Bronze 
  Wire 
  Cloth 
  can 
  be 
  secured 
  free 
  by 
  writing 
  to 
  Department 
  K. 
  

   We 
  strongly 
  advise 
  sending 
  for 
  one 
  before 
  installing 
  screens, 
  as 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  the 
  means 
  of 
  making 
  this 
  summer 
  a 
  more 
  

   comfortable 
  one. 
  

  

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