AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
139 
loosens the corn, while the buckskin pro¬ 
tects it from pressure, which makes it, per¬ 
haps, to be pushed out, by the under growth 
of the parts. 
For the American Agriculturist, 
WHY DON’T WE SET OUT PEAR TREES ? 
To us Yankees—and I might as well in¬ 
clude all the rest—there is one great, and I 
fear, insurmountable obstacle to extensive 
fruit raising; and that is, we are decidedly too 
fast—we can not wait for returns—the labor 
of to-day must be settled for to-morrow. Too 
many of us prefer five per cent next week, 
to a hundred per cent next year; notwith¬ 
standing full and continual illustrations of 
the benefit of a contrary course. The hired 
laborer employed in tilling corn, and reciev- 
ing his wages at night, is not paid for all that 
his labor adds to the value of the farmers’ 
products. Again, the farmer waits a little 
longer for his returns, and by so doing pock¬ 
ets a larger profit; but yet, he must have his 
returns at least annually; to wait longer 
would be putting off pay for labor to a period 
not to be thought of—to bestow labor in set¬ 
ting fruit trees, and wait for returns, is too 
often absolutely out of the question. The 
profits of the better kinds of fruit raising, 
has lately been so clearly demonstrated, 
especially with trees already in bearing, 
where the gathering and selling constitute 
nearly all the labor, and the thing seems so 
much like clear gain, that a few as excep¬ 
tions, are induced to try it, and now and 
then an orchard of apples is set. Why did 
they not set pears 1 One barrel of good pears 
is worth in market a half a dozen barrels of 
apples, and an acre can be made to produce 
about as many of the former as the latter! 
The reason is found in the slow growth of 
the pear-tree, the can’t afford to wait—quick 
returns and small profit! Suppose there is 
an inducement to set pears, how many are 
procuring dwarfs, (fit only to occupy a few 
corners of the garden) for no other reason, 
than their early bearing will make a small 
return in a few years, while standards would 
be longer coming to maturity, but certain to 
surpass them in the end. No matter if each 
dwarf in the beginning costs as much as a 
standard, and three times the number is re¬ 
quired for an acre, and the cultivation and 
care multiplied ten fold, we can not wait— 
let us have the profit quickly. 
But seriously, this matter of fruit raising 
is well worthy of careful consideration. It 
is better to set apples rather than nothing. 
Let us look a little further at the pear tree 
of slower growth. Did the reader ever es¬ 
timate the value of an acre of good sized 
standard trees, producing annually, say, two 
barrels from each tree, of some of the lead¬ 
ing varieties, such as sell in market for six 
dollars the barrel, (many kinds sell for 
double or treble that sum)'? An acre would 
contain one hundred trees, twenty feet apart 
each way. At two barrels per tree, you 
have $1,200, as the produce of one acre ! 
Does this seem too much? Take half the 
amount per tree, a very moderate yield, and 
you have a crop with just a little more than 
any crop of wheat ever harvested ’ The la¬ 
bor is no more—not as much annually, as 
for a crop of wheat. Another very satisfac¬ 
tory feature with pears is, the trees are per¬ 
fectly willing and always ready to do the 
same thing, and a little more for you, again, 
next year. 
“ All this is very well, very satisfactory, 
and all that, if we only had the trees, but 
they grew too slowly to suit our ideas of 
hastening to be rich.” 
I admit there are some few farmers in such 
circumstances that they can not wait along 
time for returns for labor; yet there are 
thousands of others, who are toiling, not for 
a competence, but to secure a legacy for 
children, in dollars and cents. How much 
better for such to invest a trifle for this kind 
of permanent stock ; a thousand trees in 
twenty five years w'ould be a fortune to a 
man of small pretensions ! 
Now to obtain trees of most value at the 
end of twenty or twenty-five years, I would 
recommend a very singular course for our 
fast men; it is not probable they will try it., 
yet the hint may be worth something to a 
slower class. Set out the natural fruit, and 
let the trees make wood and nothing else for 
twelve or fifteen years. Large spreading 
trees would be the result, and they could 
then be changed, by grafts of the right sort, 
set in the limbs, and in three years would be 
bearing fruit in quantities to make up for 
waiting. Fowls, while laying eggs abundant¬ 
ly, can not be expected to raise chickens at 
the same time—so trees that produce much 
fruit can not make much wood while bear¬ 
ing, and hence the advantage of natural fruit 
for a rapid growth. Such trees are less 
liable to disease, and seldom disposed to 
bear young. If fruit should appear, there 
would be no hesitancy in removing it. But 
should we attempt to get a large tree speedi¬ 
ly, by taking one already grafted, a certain 
failure might be predicted. The Seckel, and 
many others, grow provokingly slow. To 
think that we will remove the fruit from such 
a tree to promote a growth of wood for even 
one year, let alone a series of years, is per¬ 
fect nonsense. Why most of us would be 
watching for the first opening flower bud. 
Every swelling germ would be carefully 
noted, and if the delicate little twig was not 
likely to sustain its extra load, why, tie it up, 
rather than remove one when to leave a tenth 
part would be too many. No ! don’t think 
of our waiting any longer than necessary for 
this first crop to mature, that is long enough ; 
we are anxious for the golden tinge, or blush- 
cheek to pronounce it ready. 
We are all selfish ; the fruits of our own 
labor we wish to enjoy ; life is uncertain, 
and we may never realize the good we do— 
expectation so far in the future' does not 
suit, even should it be the most profitable. 
Then let me urge the adoption of the next 
best course, viz., set out grafted standards 
wherever you have room, instead of dwarfs, 
they will make a moderate return very soon, 
and be continually on the increase. As for 
a surplus of the better sorts, some of our 
wisest fruit growers have decided that out of 
the question. 
Of the varieties best to cultivate, those 
will be pretty well posted who take and read 
one or more agricultural journals, together 
with some of our works on fruit culture. 
Whoever is without such helps to assist him 
in these matters, in this day, is certainly to 
be pitied, as he can never realize the loss of 
saving the price of his paper, (a dollar or two 
annually,) which might have instructed him 
how to make or save a hundred. 
I have only endeavored to show here the 
value of the pear as a maket article, and left 
out of sight the satisfaction of being able to 
feast our families and friends, at any time 
from July to April, with a delicacy not yet 
commanded by one farmer in ten thousand. 
—M. Q., St. Johnsville, N. Y. 
For the American Agriculturist 
IMPROVEMENT OF NATURAL FRUIT. 
Within the last few years, considerable has 
been said in agricultural journals, upon the 
necessity, and profitableness of an increased 
attention to the cultivation of fruit. Tens of 
thousands of trees have been sent out, by 
nurserymen in different parts ofthe country, 
many of which, probably, through neglect 
will disappoint the purchaser, while others 
for many years will continue to yield an 
abundant and satisfactory harvest. But few 
persons in planting fruit trees now, set other 
than what they suppose to be the best of im¬ 
proved varieties. This was not to the same 
extent so twenty or even ten years ago; the' 
result is, there are many fruit trees occupy¬ 
ing valuable ground, bearing but little better 
than worthless varieties of fruit. Shall these 
trees be cut down and other and better varie¬ 
ties planted in their stead, or can they with 
but little trouble and in less time, be made to 
produce fruit of the best quality ? If the trees 
are not too old, and are in a reasonably 
healthy condition, they can be made, in two 
or three years, to produce any desired varie¬ 
ties of fruit. Within the last few years very 
many orchards of native varieties of apples 
have been changed by grafting. So exten¬ 
sive has been the demand for the grafter’s 
saw and knife, that very many persons have 
given their whole attention to the business, 
during the appropriate season of the year. 
It has been estimated that from this small 
county alone, at least three hundred persons 
go annually to almost every State in the 
Union to engage in grafting. At prices, vary¬ 
ing from four s to twelve cents per scion, hand¬ 
some properties have been made by many ; 
but we regret to say that, in a few instances, 
dishonorable men have introduced varieties 
no better than the native ones they professed 
to change, to the no small vexation and dis¬ 
appointment of the owner of the mutilated 
trees. 
He who has trees that he wishes to have 
changed by grafting, should procure the sci¬ 
ons of such varieties as he wishes to cultivate, 
and then either set them himself, or if he 
chooses, engage a good grafter to do it for 
him. The process of grafting apples and 
pears successfully, is so simple and so fre¬ 
quently described, that we offer no sugges¬ 
tion. We commenced this article with the 
design of offering a few hints upon thefeasi- 
