^ IRational Hurserpmatu 
FOR GROWERS AND DEALERS IN NURSERY STOCK 
The National Nurseryman Publishing Co., Incorporated. 
Vol. XX. ROCHESTER, N. Y., SEPTEMBER, 1912 No. 9 
ORIENTAL PEARS AND THEIR HYBRIDS 
THE LATE PROFESSOR JOHN CRAIG 
The story of the Oriental pear in America is one of sur¬ 
passing interest to the horticulturist and fruit grower. 
A striking parallel is found in the behavior of the Oriental 
plum in this country. Both fruits failed to reach the stage 
of their highest usefulness until they had been combined 
with either American varieties, or varieties which had by 
long culture become well adapted to American conditions'. 
The story of the Oriental pear in America is practically 
then the biography of the Kieffer, the LeConte, Garber, 
all hybrids between pure Orientals and American varieties 
descended from European types. 
The Oriental pears as typified by the sand pear and .snow 
pear of Japan and China, respectively, are noted for their 
vigor and productiveness, and are also characterized by their 
fruit of relatively low quality. This fruit varies very con¬ 
siderably in size, form and appearance. One of the better 
known types of the Japan pear has been called the Golden 
Russet, on account of its striking likeness to the apple of 
that name. The skin is covered with a beautiful buff coat 
of rus.set, and the fruit is quite apple-like in form. The 
stem is long and crab-like, although much stouter than the 
ordinary crab. The Chinese pear, on the other hand, is 
more pear-like in form, but possesses the same glossy, leathery 
leaves and vigorous habit of growth, which make these trees 
valued as much for ornamental as fruit bearing jiurposes. 
Both Chinese and Japanese pears were introduced into 
this country at a comparatively early date. They came 
to us by way of England through the good offices of the 
Royal Horticultural Society in London, and the progressive¬ 
ness of a noted New York nurseryman, Wm. Prince, the 
proprietor of the Prince Nurseries of Flushing, Long Island, 
the first nursery of any importance in the United States. 
Later importations were made by individuals in this country, 
and by French nurserymen. It is a curious fact that the 
Oriental pears have never attained a point of any commercial 
importance in Europe, yet in this country by a lucky com¬ 
bination, wholly by chance, we had produced a variety, the 
Kieffer, in the gardens of Peter Kieffer, who resided at Rox- 
bory, near Philadelphia. Mr. Kieffer was for a number of 
years a grower of the Chinese sand pear. These were sold 
for ornamental purposes. In his garden there were also 
trees of the Bartlett variety. In examining adventitious 
seedlings which appeared from time to time in his garden, 
he was struck in one instance by the peculiar growth of a 
certain individual, and saved it. This tree bore fruit in 
due time. It was exhibited at the Massachusetts Horti¬ 
cultural Society, and finally at the Centennial Exposition, 
where in 1876 it was given the name of the originator. It 
was then introduced by Wm. Parry of New Jersey. It soop 
sprang into popularity on account of its tremendous vigor 
and great productiveness. In the decade between 1890 
and 1900, more trees of this variety werejjplanted in the 
United vStates than of all other varieties combined. Or- 
chardists were more or less Kieffer mad. The trees were 
set without reference to the region to which they were 
adapted, and while the tremendous productiveness of the 
variety in most cases enabled the owners to secure adequate 
returns as a rule, yet it was a serious mistake to plant this 
in sections where its parent Bartlett and others of that type 
.succeeded. 
Another pioneer in the production of hybrids between the 
Oriental and the American j^ear was Mr. S. F. Smith of 
Marietta, Ohio. He .secured a variety of the Oriental type, 
Cincincis, in 1854. This Oriental pear was planted along¬ 
side a number of varieties of the European type, including 
Bartlett, Seckel, and Flemish Beauty. He then planted 
seed of his Oriental and in due time developed a number of 
hybrids, of which Smith’s Hybrid, Dewey Premium, Cotn- 
modore Perry, and Smith’s Marietta are examples. None 
of these, however, have become as prominent or as valuable 
as Kieffer. 
Kieffer, therefore, became the dominating variety in the 
decades between 1880 and 1900 in all the country east of 
the Rocky Mountains. But its region of greatest useful¬ 
ness was found to be in the South, where it was .set as a 
blight-proof variety. This cheerful fancy was later dispelled 
by the experience of the growers, who found that though 
Kieffer was freely attacked by blight, it did not succumb 
so rapidly to the disease as the European varieties. 
The present region where Kieffer holds sway is in the 
Delaware Peninsula, and New Jersey. In the latter state, 
an inquiry made in 1899 developed the fact that the follow¬ 
ing varieties in the order given were the most popular: 
Kieffer, Bartlett, LeConte, Duchess, Seckel, and Lawrence. 
At this time sixty-eight per cent of the pear orchard area 
was set to Ki^'er, twenty-four per cent to Bartlett, and the 
remainder to tne other varieties mentioned. - 
This variety finds a congenial home throughout all the 
southern states, where its thick, leathery foliage enables it to 
stand heat and drought and makes it adapted to the hot 
weather conditions which prevail in that region. As far 
north as New Jersey and Missouri, it may be said to be 
