Shiner gazette. [volume] (Shiner, Tex.) 1893-current, 1907-05-23
Department of Horticulture.
Mr.. G. A. Schattenberg,
Boerne, Tex.

I have been experimenting on
the pollination of Kieffer and
Bartlett pears. l am now anx-
ious to know how each of these
varieties behave in the field, par
ticularly as to whether they show
the need of being planted with
other sorts poisoning at the
saem time to supply them with
pollen. 1 am told that you grow
one or both of these sorts. |
should appreciate a statement
from you giving the number of
trees of each sort, age, distance
from other varieties which
could cross pollinate them, pro-
ductiveness and whether you
think either Kieffer or Bartlett
is made to produce more or bet
ter fruit by being mixed with
other sorts. If you know of any
one else who could advise me,
please give address. Very truly
yours, S. w. FLETCHER.
Prof. S. w. Fletcher,
Horticulturist Michigan Agri-
cultural College.
Dear Sir: Maintaining for
the past twenty years a test-or-
chard of some extent, having
tested some 100 varieties of
pears now growing in orchard,
and having made a speciality of
pear growing as this section is
destined to become the best pear
growing district of the South, if
not in the United States, the
pear not being attacked by
blight here, had a good oppor-
tunity to watch the behavior of
the different varieties in the field
as to their pollination and cross
pollination as we'll as along
other lines.
AS the question relates to the
Kieffer and Bartlett only | shall
confine my remarks to these two
varieties. While firmly believe
that the greatest success will
come from mixed planting, l am
at the same time convinced that
both varieties are perfectly ca
pable of self-pollination, are to a
great extent self-fertile, in this
latitude and will give good re-
suits and bear heavy crops regu-
larly if planted in large blocks
by themselves. On the other
hand 4 is a well known fact that
the further south the location
the further separated in time Of
blooming the different varieties
will come, so you in Michigan
will have the natural advantage
over us here in the South of be-
ing free to choose and select a
suitable variety for fertilizing
another if found necessary. To
conditions in this re-
spect here, say with the Kieffer,
being one of the earliest bloom
ers, there would not be- much
choice in selection Of a variety
for cross-pollination, ripening
its pollen at the same time with
the Kieffer, the only ones, to my
knowledge, being LIE Conte, Gas
ton Smith, Cinninni and Kur-
biss-Prince. Likewise with
Bartlett, being of the Laterly if
not the latest bloomer. our choice
for crossing would here in
Southwest Texas be confined to
Idaho, Alamo, Jap, Gold, Russell,
Daimis, DR.. Greigo. 1 under
stand that in the East Kieffer
and Bartlett bloom about to-
gether, while here their bloom
ing time is separated by five 70
six weeks.
We have a heavy crop of Bart
let's set on a block of trees with
other varieties near by that
could be instrumental in furnish
ing pollen for them except Kief-
fer, Smith and LIE Conte, which,
however, as stated before, bloom
from four to six weeks ahead ot
Bartlett. AS to Kieffer, all QUA
trees, 25 acres in one block ane
II acres in another, are planted
in three rows, Kieffer alternat
ing with three rows of LIE Conte
Smith and others, but we hav'
nine Kieffer in the far-off corne.
of a 12-acre apple orchard 4O'
yards distant from all other pea
trees, bearing heavy crop a
rnnn1lar as all our other trees.