The pears of New York

by U. P. Hedrick

Pome-fruits are all woody plants, shrubby or tree-like, of which the pear is always a tree. The value of the variety and the recognition of it usually depend on characters of the fruits, but the trees are nearly as distinct as the fruits, are always helpful in identification, and in the absence of fruit must be relied upon to identify a variety. Also, and even more important, the pear-grower must know whether the plant is manageable in the orchard, for which purpose he must have a description of the chief characters of the tree.

Size and habit of tree.—Size of tree is a very reliable character to determine varieties of pears. The Winter Nelis pear is dwarf as compared with other pears. Size varies greatly with environment, it must be remembered in using this character. The terms large, small, and medium are commonly used to designate size. Vigor, which may be defined as internal energy, must not be confused with size. Small trees may be as vigorous as large ones.

The term habit of growth, as used by pomologists, has reference to the form of the top. In describing the tops of pear-trees a number of self-explanatory terms are used, such as pyramidal, upright-spreading, drooping, tall, low, dense, open-topped, and round-topped. Many if not most varieties of pears may be told by the form of the top. One can tell Bartlett or Clapp Favorite at a glance by their upright branches; as one can, also, Beurré d’Anjou and Beurré Superfin by their wide-spreading branches; or Winter Nelis pear by its drooping branches. Depending upon the form of the top, a variety is easy or difficult to manage in an orchard.

Constitutional characters.—Hardiness, productiveness, susceptibility to pests, adaptability to diverse soils and climates are vaguely supposed to be dependent on the constitution of the tree. Pomologists very generally refer to these characters as constitutional. They speak of the constitution as the aggregate of the vital powers of a variety.

Horticulturally, hardiness is ability to withstand cold. Obviously, hardiness is of utmost importance in characterizing the value of a variety to the pear-grower, and degree of hardiness is of some use in identifying pears. Bartlett and Beurré Bose are relatively tender to cold, Tyson is hardy, and Flemish Beauty is very hardy. Less important, but still of some importance, is the ability to withstand heat, a character possessed in varying degrees by varieties of pears.

Productiveness, age of bearing, regularity of bearing, certainty of bearing, and longevity are constitutional characters that must be noted in full descriptions. All help to determine the value of a variety, and all aid more or less in classification. For most part, these are inherent characters and are influenced but little by environment.

The degree of susceptibility of a variety to fungous diseases and insect pests is a valuable cultural character, but has little use in identifying or classifying pears. There are great variations in varieties of pears to the dreaded pear-blight: Bartlett, Beurré Bose, Beurré d’Anjou, and Clapp Favorite are among the varieties most susceptible; Kieffer, Seckel, and Winter Nelis are among those least susceptible to blight. Kieffer and related hybrids are somewhat immune to San Jose scale, but are very susceptible to psylla. Flemish Beauty and White Doyenné are so badly attacked by the scab-fungus that it is almost impossible to grow them in eastern America.

Some of these constitutional characters are much modified by care and environment, as all are more or less. Care and local environment often make it possible to grow varieties in special localities, although some varieties are inherently adapted to a greater number of diverse conditions than others. Bartlett, Seckel, and Kieffer have in common as one of their most valuable characters adaptability to a great diversity of soils and climates.

Trunk and branch.—The trunk does not count for much in descriptions of varieties. The height of the trunk usually depends on the whims of the pruner. Whether stout or slender is sometimes noteworthy. The bark may be smooth or shaggy. Color of bark is often a valuable diagnostic character, especially in young trees. Many if not most varieties of pears can be identified in nursery rows by an expert nurseryman from the color of the bark. Seckel, Sheldon, and Beurré d’Anjou have remarkably distinctive color as young trees.

The branches of pear-trees are often reliable guides in identifying varieties in orchard or nursery, especially when trees are leafless and fruitless. The twisting, drooping branches of Winter Nelis serve to identify that variety at any time. The zigzag branches of Beurré d’Anjou and Bloodgood are typical. The branches of Beurré Superfin are rough and shaggy. Those of Dorset and Fox are slender. The branches of several well-known pears are spiny. A glance through the technical descriptions in [Chapter IV] shows that branches and branchlets are variously colored. The branchlets may be stout or slender, long-jointed or short-jointed, pubescent or glabrous, straight or zigzag. The angle at which branchlets are set is often characteristic. The epidermis may be smooth or covered with scarf-skin. Lastly, the size, shape, color, number, and position of the corky cells or lenticels on young wood is most important in identifying trees after leaves have fallen.