This section is from the book "The Gardener's Monthly And Horticulturist V20", by Thomas Meehan. See also: Four-Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables from Your Home Garden All Year Long.
J. C. W., Hudson River, New York, writes : "Will you please answer the following queries through your journal? We wish to plant 1000 standard and from 1000 to 3000 dwarf pear, to grow fruit for New York market. What sorts would you advise us to plant ? We wish also to plant five acres of grapes. Could we do better than plant the Concord, with a view to grafting to leading white or other sorts? Further, what variety of crab-apple would you advise us to plant, with a view to selling the fruit in New York, and Geneva, N. Y.? Nurserymen advise us to plant Hyslop. What work can you recommend as the best on the cultivation and management of the standard and dwarf pear? also on the grape?"
[While visiting the fruit farm of Col. Edward Wilkins, of Maryland, last fall, Mr. W. told the writer that he had had so much profit from an orchard of dwarf pear trees, that he was about to set out - we believe - 50,000 more. These were of the Duchess d'Angouleme. Another of our large standard pear-growers finds the Bartlett,for fall, and the Lawrence, for winter, the best standard varieties. For market, however, one has to study what is his market, and what is the demand there. We have known some old people about Germantown make fabulous sums from old Catharine Pear Trees, by merely whipping off the fruits, and selling them immediately, on the market prices of Philadelphia. But this would be useless in a place where they could not be all gatthered one day and sold the next. Concord would be the best variety in most localities not over-favorable for grape-culture; but if you are on light, dry ground, as on the Hudson you probably are, the Salem, Brighton, Delaware, or others of the better class, ought to do well. All kinds do better grafted on Concord or Clinton Roots. Hyslop or Transcendent Crabs are very good market fruits, but many prefer the smaller, old-fashioned kinds.
A week or two an watching the market in which you will probably sell, is good practice for one who intends to set out an orchard for profit.
It is unfortunately the case that those who have been the most successful in fruit-growing seldom write books. Some of the best - at least the most taking - of the literature of fruit-growing in this country, has been the product of enthusiastic, well-meaning men, who earnestly believed in all they wrote, but whose orchards •(when they had any) afterwards proved disastrous failures. With Barry's Fruit Garden and Thomas' Fruit Culturist in hand, and then some good judgment in adapting their experience to your surroundings and circumstances, you will, however, have as good a start as you will need on your road to successful fruit-culture. - Ed. G. M].
 
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