SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. 
25S 
Osceola . — It is a little above medium size, nearly round; 
skin dark cream-colored, with a deep red cheek. Flesh 
orange colored, very juicy, with an exceedingly sweet 
and rich aroma, resembling that of a Jefferson Plum. 
Most of the Autumn Peaches are a little deficient in 
sweetness. This, however, is as delicious as any Peach 
in July and August ; ripe the last part of September ; 
freestone. Robert Nelson. 
Fruitland Nursery, Augusta, Ga , July, 1857. 
PEARS ON QUINCE- THEIR ADAPTABIEITY 
to the South. 
Editors Southern Cultivator— I see some statements 
in the Cotton Planter and Soil, (the January number,) in 
regard to Dwarf Pears, and from the author’s remarks con- 
clude he is not well informed in regard to them, or the 
charges he institutes against nurserymen. I defend the 
cause, not to satisfy the writer, but for the benefit of those 
who may be misled by his remarks. 
He says they are “ the hobby of the nurserymen.” 
Now, I transplanted some three hundred Dwarf Pears 
two years since, and was anxious to procure them at the 
South and accordingly wrote to a good many nursery- 
men, but found I could not procure them of the age and 
size I desired, (three years old.) I then sent my order, 
with a check accompanying it, to a well known firm on 
Long Island, N. Y., and the check was returned to me, 
with the information that they had disposed of all the 
trees of that age they had grown, and that one man had 
taken between two and three thousand. My check was 
again returned, and they imported them for me. What 
necessity is there for any such remark as ‘'hobby,” when 
the demand fully equals the capacity of the energetic ex- 
ertion of the grower to keep pace with it 1 
He says, again, that the “ Quince may do for the North, 
but will not suit the South.” We shall now make ex- 
tracts for the satisfaction of all who desire the Dwarf, and 
compare the adaptability of the two climates from well 
authenticated sources. 
M. J. De Jonghe; of Brussels, says : “ On the Quince, 
the wood of a variety of Pear, may acquire a different 
tinge, but the form of the fruit is generally the same. 
Occasionally, however, the fruit of some varities worked 
on the Quince become larger, is produced in greater abun- 
dance, and acquires a richer flavor than that grown on 
the seedling tree.” 
Mr, L. E. Berckmans, a Belgian gentleman, one who 
has been familiar during the greater portion of this life 
with pomology, and enjoyed the advantages of the best 
lore, in this respect, that the v/orld has ever furnished, 
remarks; {Honey's Magazine, November 185G,) “Let 
the Quince be slandered, it will remain one of our best 
friends. \ our profits in fruit raising are mostly derived 
from Quince stocks. The best fruits of your splendid ex- 
hibitions are from Quince stock.s. Mr. M. P. Wilder’s best 
fruits are on the Quince stocks ; so are Messrs. Charles 
Downing’s, Ellwanger and Barry’s, Dr. Grant’s, Mr. 
Reid’s, and my own.” 
Mr. P. Barry, in his Fruit Garden, page 19T, says: 
“There are some dwart standards on the Quince in our 
grounds here, and in gardens in this city, that are now ' 
eight years old, and about seven to eight feet high, with 
trunks from two to three feet, heads four to five feet hio-h, 
and three or four in width, that have borne regular and 
heavy crops for the last four or five yeai's, without any 
other care than thinning out superfluous wood.” 
Mr. J. J. Thomas, in the American Fruit Culturist, 
page 197, says: “ The varieties of the Pear do not grow 
with equal facility upon the Quince. A few, as Duchesse 
d’Angouleme, Louise Bonne of Jersey, and Beu'-re Did, 
are so much improved in quality that their cultivation on 
pear stocks is wholly discontinued by skillful fruit grow'- 
ers. * it: * * * a general rule, double-worked 
trees do not flourish for a great length of time. Single- 
worked have done well for thirty or forty years, under 
favorable influences.” 
Col. John C. Jenkins, of Mississippi, says, (Agricul- 
tural Patent Office Report, page 249,) “ I cultivate over 
one hundred varieties of the Pear, The greater number 
are dwarfed on the Quince. On this stock trees six or 
seven years from the bud have grown from twelve to 
twenty feet in height, and have a diameter in trunk of 
six to eight inches. ***** Beurre Diel— on 
quince and standard. My trees, on quince stocks, seven 
years from the bud, are large and vigorous growers, bear 
heavy crops, trees this year thinned out, with one hun- 
dred and fifty specimens on each tree, fruit attains a much 
larger size here than at the North — some of my specimens- 
weighing from one to one pound and a half, and few less 
than a pound.” 
We have here arrayed such evidence in regard to 
Dwarf Pears as our present limited facilities will admit — 
they are all, however, from good authority, and from 
parties of extensive information in this particular. 
We shall now call the attention of our friend of the 
Cotton, Planter and Soil, to a comparative statement of 
trees on Quince, at the North and the South : 
Mr. Barry resides in the Genesee valley, in the north- 
western portion of the State of New York. This Genesee 
country is almost fabled for its fertile lands. The place 
on which their nurseries are situated has a rich black 
loam of about twelve inches, and receives such culture as 
we seldom dream of, and never execute here. Dr. Jen- 
kins was on the Mississippi river, near Vicksburg, and 
his soil is about eighteen inches in depth, but, wm pre- 
sume, he never gave his the thorough cultivation which 
Mr. B. alludes to, and we shall place them on an equal 
footing. Now comes the deciding question, whether the 
Quince will stand or fall, and whether it flourishes to a 
greater advantage at the North or South'? Mr. Barrjr 
says his trees on quince are eight years old, and seven tD 
eight feet high. Dr. Jenkins says his, on the same stock,, 
are six to seven years old, and are from twelve to twenty 
feet high. Thus giving the South, trees on same stocks 
and from one to two years younger with same advan- 
tages, double the size of the Northern ones. Dr. J. says he 
had to thin out his specimens to one hundred and fifty, 
and they weighed from one to one pound and a half each, 
which would give, at fair estimate, two hundred pounds 
of Pears on his dwarf of seven years old. Does this look 
like a catch-penny affair'? If so, we would beg to be 
caught with a good many of them near some of our cities, 
especially when they are worth what they have been in 
New York city during the past winter. 
And now, in conclusion, I will make the following 
query: Do any of your nurseries have a surplus lot of 
Pear trees left over? Does not the demand generally 
equal and sometimes exceed the stock on hand 1 Does it 
not cost every cent as much to produce a dwarf pear on 
a true Angers stock, and give you as much labor, time, 
and care, as it does to produce one on its own root, and 
if so, why should it be christened “ hobby of the nursery- 
men % ” Pomona. 
Mississipjn , April, 1857. 
P. S. — My quotations from the Cotton Planter and 
Soil are from memory. I subscribe for it, but have not 
the January number yet, but rny meaning will, in the main, 
concur, if not verbatim. 
[Remarks. — The demand lor Dwarf Pear trees, both 
North and South, has thus for exceeded the supply ; and 
we would say further, that two conditions are alone neces- 
sary to the perfect success of the Dwarf Pear in the South, 
viz: 1st. Select the proper ra/'ic/igs — such as knovm 
