The Pears of New York. U. P. Hedrick
of these borers are very harmful on the pear in New York, but all must be reckoned with occasionally. All are difficult to control.
The pear thrips attack the newly opening flower- and leaf-buds and when the insect, a small winged creature with sucking mouth-parts, is abundant much damage is done. This pest in New York is chiefly confined to the Hudson River Valley. The European grain aphis, closely related to the destructive apple aphis, is sometimes a serious pest on pears. Both of these pests are comparatively easily controlled by timely applications of contact insecticides.
Lastly, there are several chewing insects which feed on the leaves of the pear, which, unless checked, sometimes become major pests for a season or two in an orchard here and there. All of them, fortunately, are controlled by the arsenical poisons which are necessary to keep the codling moth down. The pests are: Cigar case-bearer, green fruit worm, pistol case-bearer, and oblique-banded leaf-roller. With these, as with most of the other pests of the pear, cultivation to keep down all foreign vegetation, and orchard sanitation, consisting chiefly of the destruction of infested fruit, foliage, or wood, are essential preventives.
CHAPTER IV
LEADING VARIETIES OF PEARS
ANDRÉ DESPORTES
1. Leroy Dict. Pom. 1:127, fig. 1867. 2. Mas Pom. Gen. 3:51, fig. 122. 1878. 3. Cat. Cong. Pom. France 138, fig. 1906.
This old French sort is sparingly grown in New York, and is still listed by a few American nurserymen. The pears are handsome and very good in quality, but they quickly soften at the center and neither keep nor ship well. While usually of medium size, or sometimes large, the pears often run small. The variety is well worth planting in a collection, but has no value in a commercial plantation, and there are many better sorts for home orchards.
The parent tree of this variety grew in the seed beds of M. André Leroy, the well-known authority on pomology, at Angers, France. M. Leroy obtained it in 1854 from pips of Williams’ Bon Chrétien, or as it is better known here, the Bartlett pear. He named it after the son of M. Baptiste Desportes, manager of the business department of his establishment. The vigor and high quality of the fruit were quickly appreciated, and the variety was soon disseminated far and wide.
Tree characteristically upright and vigorous, rapid-growing, hardy, productive; branches slender, smooth, light brown overlaid with thin, grayish scarf-skin, marked with small lenticels; branchlets thick, long, with short internodes, reddish-brown, slightly streaked toward the tips with ash-gray scarf-skin, dull, smooth, glabrous, with numerous small, but very conspicuous, raised lenticels.
Leaf-buds large, pointed, plump, appressed. Leaves 2¾ in. long, 1⅝ in. wide, ovate, stiff, leathery; apex taper-pointed; margin glandular, slightly crenate; petiole 1½ in. long. Flower-buds large, long, conical, plump, free, arranged singly as lateral buds or on short spurs; flowers showy, 1¼ in. across, occasionally tinged pink, in dense clusters, averaging 9 flowers per cluster; pedicels ¾ in. long, thick, pubescent.
Fruit ripe in August; medium in size, 2⅞ in. long, 2¼ in. wide, obovate-obtuse-pyriform, symmetrical, uniform; stem 1 in. long, thick, curved; cavity obtuse, shallow, dotted with russet, often lipped; calyx small, open; lobes separated at the base, short, narrow, acute; basin shallow, narrow, obtuse, gently furrowed, symmetrical; skin thin, tender, smooth; color dull greenish-yellow, dotted and marbled with reddish-brown, blushed on the sunny side; dots numerous, small, light colored, obscure; flesh tinged with yellow, fine, tender and melting, buttery, juicy, sweet, aromatic; quality very good. Core large, closed, with clasping core-lines; calyx-tube short, wide, conical; seeds small, wide, plump, acute.
ANSAULT
1. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat. 36. 1883. 2. Can. Hort. 24:454, fig. 2169. 1901.
Bonne du Puits-Ansault. 3. Leroy Dict. Pom. 1:486, fig. 1867. 4. Downing Fr. Trees Am. 1st App. 123, fig. 1872. 5. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat. 34. 1877.
Well grown, the fruits of Ansault rival those of Seckel in quality. In particular, the flesh is notable, and is described by the term buttery, so common in pear parlance, rather better than that of any other pear. The rich sweet flavor, and distinct but delicate perfume contribute to make the fruits of highest quality. Unfortunately, the pears are not very attractive in appearance. They are small, and the green coat, nearly covered with russet dots and markings, is dull, though enlivened somewhat at full maturity by a rich yellow. The tree in good pear soils is vigorous, productive, bears annually, and is not more subject to blight than that of the average variety. While not at all suitable for commercial orchards, Ansault should find a place in every collection of pears for home use.
The pear Bonne du Puits-Ansault was raised from seed in the nurseries of M. André Leroy, Angers, France. The parent tree bore fruit in 1863, and M. Leroy states that the name which it bears is that of the enclosure where it was first raised. It was propagated in 1865. The American Pomological Society first listed this variety in its catalog in 1877, and in 1883 shortened the name to its present form.
Tree large, upright-spreading, hardy, very productive; trunk stocky, shaggy; branches thick, dull brownish-red, tinged with green and heavily covered with greenish scarf-skin, with numerous raised lenticels; branchlets long, reddish-brown, with traces of gray scarf-skin, smooth, glabrous, with few inconspicuous, small, slightly raised lenticels.
Leaf-buds plump, pointed, nearly free. Leaf-scars prominent. Leaves numerous, 2¾ in. long, 1½ in. wide, ovate or broadly oval, leathery; apex abruptly pointed; margin finely serrate, with small, reddish, sharp-pointed glands; petiole 1½ in. long, slender, glabrous. Fruit-buds large, conical, plump, free; flowers 1⅛ in. across, in dense clusters, 7 to 9 flowers in a cluster; pedicels ⅝ in. long, thick, greenish, lightly pubescent.
Fruit ripe in late September and early October; medium in size, 2⅜ in. long, 2⅛ in. wide, uniform, obtuse-obovate-pyriform, irregular; stem ⅝ in. long, short, thick; cavity obtuse, russeted, furrowed, ribbed; calyx partly open, large; lobes acute; basin somewhat abrupt, furrowed and wrinkled; skin roughened with russet markings and dots; color pale yellow, considerably russeted about the basin and cavity with russet dots, with scattered flecks and patches of russet; dots numerous, small, russet; flesh tinged with yellow, granular at the center, melting and tender, buttery, very juicy, sweet, aromatic; quality good to very good. Core closed, axile, the core-lines clasping; calyx-tube long, narrow, funnel-shaped; seeds rather short, plump, obtuse.
BARTLETT
1. Downing Fr. Trees Am. 334, fig. 134. 1845. 2.