The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1870-03-01
IN REPLY To DR.. ]. 9. UoUGHToN.

AFTER twenty-five years experience,
We seldom prune only the superabundant
limbs, and let nature have her perfect
work When the fruit gets large enough
TO endanger the limbs, we prop them
with strips with crotches attached to them
and as the fruit ripens we go around
each day with pole with a bag on the
end, take all the ripe pears off, put them
in dry cool cellar on long table made
of narrow boards covered with shavings !;
this perfects them. All my trees are in
she sod We mulch them but never dig
around them; we have no blight and can
always show as good fruit and as much
for the number of trees as could be
desired, DR.. j. s. HoUGHroNs opinion to
the contrary Notwithstanding. I have
them growing in every variety of soil,
and can show pears from the first of Sc-
venth month until the following year, not
by the dozen but by the bushe.
F. MIDDLETON
Darby, Del. Co., Pa.
The above short article by one of our
most successful pear growers in the vicin-
ity of Philadelphia, deserves great atten-
ton, The growing Of pears, not the
growing Of pear trees, has been and now
is, one of the most puzzling in the science
Of horticulture. We know now of two
pear orchards in this section, one in
Chester and one in Delaware county,
some ten or twelve years planted, the
trees being selected with great care plant
ed and managed according to the books,
and without regard to, expense,-the soil
drained, fertilizers applied--and still no
pears. Our friend MIDDLETON evidently
believes in the pairs being test of right
management We rather faver this doc
trine ourselves; and where a person can
show, as he does, regular crops Of perfect
fruit at all seasons, from very early to
very late varieties, there is a strong pre-
sumption that there must be something in
his mode Of management. His difficult
ties are entirely new to u.s. and such as
We do not remember to have herd OF be-
fore, viz: the having to procure props to
keep the limbs from breaking with their
load of fruit, The expense of procuring
these props is not usually incident to pear
culture,at least near Philadelphia
Now, what is the secret? We believe
it to consist in the mulch which he ap.
plies around the trees, as far as the
branches extend, This shades the sol
and equalizes and regulates the tempera
ture, avoiding the dangers from change,
in the mercury 20 to 30 degrees in day
Ii keeps the soil moist
Some years ago a friend of our
purchased farm in Chester county ,wher,
there were some fine and thrifty pea,
trees, but never pears. These latte
were what he believed in, and he brough
them, by simply mulching the ground, a
far as the branches extended, with stones
We saw space of five or six feet arounc
the trunks paved with stone, and Their,
were pears, and regular crops every sea
son
The question of having pear trees il
sod or cultivated ground, and frequent,
stirred, has been discussed at length and i
seems to us the true system lies just be
tween. We would not have the groun,
sod unless the trees were large and pas
injury from this cause. The grass, Will,
acting as mulch, must by its roots Il
some extent dry and exhaust the SOIL
Our plan would be to avoid this, and t,
dig or cultivate around the trees, to lie
in the air, but Immediately aherward
and at all times, to keep the groun'
covered around the trunks with shor
manure, coarse hay, leaves or rubbish
This could occasionally be raked off, tn
ground stirred once or twice in season
and then be replaced. Mulch or cover
ing is wanted, and there can be no othe
advantage in growing sod. If GOVERN
to the soil can be had without exhaust
ing by grass roots, so much the better
Any one whe has ever taken up sot
knows that the soil in connection wit
and under it is drier than where it HI
been stirred and cultivated.
Our friend MIDDLETON covers the 80
under his trees as far M the branches e,
tend, with short manure, which fertiliz'
and at the same time acts as mulch.
He has "pears by the bushel and NJ
by the dozen, and his system Of manag
ment is well worthy of attention.