Pears prefer a lighter soil than apples, the new red sandstone deposit, especially, the marls of this rock and the lias clays, when covered up, as in parts of the valley of the Severn, with sand drifts, suit pears admirably.
Like the apple, the pear is rich in sorts. It is said to be derived from the Pyrus communis, which is referred to as a native tree; but though it is really wild in the temperate regions of the European continent, and in parts of Asia, there seems reason to conclude that our occasional hedge-row denizen has, after all, been derived from pear cultivation.
Pears for dessert are very numerous, and each year adds to the list. Scott, of Crewkerne and Yeovil Nurseries, gives a list of two hundred and thirty sorts cultivated by himself, as Standards, Pyramids, and Dwarf-trained for walls and espaliers. This list abounds in French names given by both French and Dutch horticulturists, with whom the pear is a great favourite.
Lindley, in his “Guide to the Orchard and Kitchen Garden,” describes but six sorts of perry pears, of which there are doubtless several varieties. They are as follows:—
ORIGIN OF NAMES.
Barland, from Barland, in the parish of Bosbury, Herefordshire.
Holmore, from the parish of Holmore, between Hereford and Leominster.
Huffcap.
Longland, from the field in which the tree grew.
Oldfield, from Oldfield, near Ledbury.
Teinton Squash, from Teinton, in Gloucestershire.
Besides these are Blakeney Red Trump Pear, Honey Pear, Moorcroft, Malvern Hill, &c. Pears, like apples, being named from places and people, &c., each district having its own favourite sorts; but perhaps those in the previous list are the favourite.
This subject of variety in both apple and pear is interesting, as it has given rise to innumerable names upon this head. My old pupil, Mr. Clement Cadle, says:—
It is almost impossible to give satisfactory information on the sorts of fruit, because the same sort is not only known by different names in different localities, but it also assumes a widely different character under the influence of broad distinctions of soil and climate, and this is more frequently the case with pears than apples. In a tour I made last autumn in the south of Devonshire, I visited several farms in the neighbourhood of Totnes and Paignton, and amongst a great number of sorts that I there saw, I could in no instance recognize either an apple or tree as being like those I had seen before in Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, or Worcestershire.
In selecting for producing cider or perry it is very important, not only to get those kinds which suit the district, but to get a variety in their character, especially for making good cider. Thus, some of the apples should be sour, others sweet, bitter-sweet, tart, and harsh, as much of the keeping character of the cider depends upon this mixture, which also makes it fine down well. It may be remarked that sweet or eating sorts of pears seldom make perry that will keep any length of time, or that fines well.
There is another peculiar feature in regard to sorts of fruit, namely, that each variety has its day, then gradually dies out. The trees become non-bearers, and their places are filled with new sorts. This is especially the case with the Hagloe crab, Fox whelp, and Skryme’s kernel, which seldom bear or grow well now, and are nearly gone.
R. A. S. Journal S.S., vol. I. pp. 18, 19.
As regards pears, it should be stated that, while in Worcester, Gloucester, and Hereford much perry is made, and it is highly esteemed, especially for bottling, in Dorset this drink is almost unknown, and we were last year greatly surprised that a farmer who had an immense crop of pears of a sort that were not fit for dessert or culinary purposes, could not divine what to do with them, though he made excellent cider.
We conclude this portion of our subject with a quotation from the Botanical Looker-out, by our old friend and fellow worker, E. Lees, Esq.:—