It is an old maxim, and a true one, too, that "we are never too old to learn." This remark is, perhaps, quite as applicable to the horticulturist and pomologist as that of any other class of men. The severity of the winter of 1854-5, in the State of New York, and more particularly in the western part of the State, was a general theme of remark; and, in the opinion of many, has hardly been equalled during the past quarter of a century. On the morning of the 6th or 7th of February, 1855, the thermometer sank to 20° and 22° below zero. It was soon ascertained that the fruit-buds of the peach were all destroyed; and, soon after, the discovery was also made, that the trees, too, were all killed. On cutting off the branches of the trees, it was found that the wood was discolored, and quite black; and that all above the snow line, to all human appearance, was quite dead. Although the bark seemed to be alive, yet it was supposed that, on the first opening of spring, or soon after, the trees must wither and die.

Peach growing was now at a discount; and many, without further delay, cut down their trees, and cleared the ground of the rubbish. One gentleman, as I am very credibly informed, cut down his whole orchard of some two thousand trees, which, the autumn previous, had produced a bountiful crop. A neighbor of the writer cut down many beautiful trees which were then just in their prime. But everybody was disappointed. The spring and early summer opened most propitiously, with genial showers, and fine growing weather. The trees soon put on their summer dress, just as fresh and as fine as ever. New, healthy leaves and bark very soon completely covered up and encased the dead wood. The trees made a fine growth, and set full of fruit-buds; and, to a casual observer, appeared as healthy and as vigorous as ever. And yet, the old wood is literally dead, surrounded by a ring of new, healthy wood. Whether the trees will remain healthy, is a problem yet to be solved.

The writer, having a large fruit farm at Peach Haven, near Niagara Falls, naturally feels much solicitude in regard to the culture of the peach; and has been a close observer in regard to the best treatment of the trees. The centre branches of the trees are very liable to perish at an early day; and, after a few years, the trees present the unsightly appearance of all being dead, except the ends of the limbs. Very close pruning has been found a partial remedy for this evil; and it has been a question, whether it would answer to cat off the whole top of the tree at once? Would the tree be able to withstand this shock, and send out fresh shoots and form a new head? But this is no longer an experiment.

Last spring, Mr. Burdett, who has a fine peach orchard in our vicinity, supposing his trees were all dead and worthless, with axe in hand cat away all the tops of many of his trees, leaving only an unsightly trunk, with perhaps a few rough prongs of a few inches in length. As the season advanced, and the trees seemed to put out fresh shoots, he concluded to wait a little before clearing the ground. The result is, that all of these trees have put out numerous, vigorous, healthy branches, and formed complete, dense tops; in most cases, far superior to the old ones. I am so well satisfied with this, that, should the severity of the winter or spring destroy the prospect of the peach crop for next season, I should, on the opening of spring, cut off the tops of some 2,000 peach-trees, now five or six years old. By the way, I am anxious to learn whether any of our New Jersey, or other peach growers, have ever tried this method.

The pear-tree is so tenacious of life, that you may cut it back with impunity. A tree twenty feet high, may be cut down to within six feet of the ground, and in two or three years it will again form a handsome head. The only remedy that I have ever found for that mysterious disease, fire-blight (and which, in my judgment, is a sort of pear cholera), is to cut off all the diseased branches at least one foot below all marks of discoloration of the bark. We had no fire-blight here until about five or six years ago; and then it came in true cholera desperation. In a single month, hundreds of trees in this neighborhood were completely destroyed, and hundreds of others very badly injured.

Towards autumn, I directed my gardener to go through my grounds, and to cut off every diseased branch or tree at least one foot below the appearance of blight He obeyed my orders to the very letter; and I was not a little surprised the next day, in going over my grounds, to find that he had cut down even with the ground several valuable trees, of some eight or ten inches in diameter, and which, I supposed, were not very seriously affected. But, on examination, they were found badly affected in the trunks of the tree as well as in the branches. Others were left merely unsightly stumps, all, or nearly all, the tops being completely cut away. I was quite heartsick, and almost inclined to cut down to the ground these mere wrecks of my once beautiful trees. However, two or three years have wrought a wonderful change, and the most of those so closely pruned are now among my handsomest and most valuable trees. For the past two or three years, we have had but little fire-blight; perhaps not over three or four cases in a thousand trees.

Extensive orchards of the pear have been planted out during the past four years; and, in many cases, I fear, without much discrimination. The pear seems to be more capricious than any other kind of fruit; and it is a wonder to many, how so many miserably poor varieties ever came to be cultivated. Of the four or five hundred sorts in cultivation, I very much question whether there is one in ten of them equal in value to the old "Orange Bergamot," which my friend Allen and myself had some sparring over in the Horticulturist, some three or four years since; and which, in my opinion, is no better than it should be. But it has some redeeming qualities which many others do not possess, viz: It is productive; does not rot at the core; and it will sell. Now this may be deemed faint praise. It is so. But, is there one instance of the pears now grown among us, that possess even these good qualities?

But the world, of late, has been running mad after new varieties; and many of us, in the purchase of these, have caught a Tartar. I will relate a case in point. Three years ago, at the Massachusetts Horticultural Exhibition, the Bonne des Zees, a fine-looking pear, was passed around and tasted by some twenty or thirty of our most celebrated pomologists then assembled in the large tent; and it was pronounced "very good;" and even the distinguished gentleman that now occupies the White House at Washington, expressed his admiration of the pear. Soon after returning home, the writer went to the nursery, and engaged all the good trees of this variety. A good friend and neighbor, who was also at the Boston show, soon after made application for some of the trees, and was not a little disappointed to find all engaged. But mark the sequel. The standard of this variety has fruited each year since; and, although it is uncommonly productive, and fine in appearance, yet it has ever proved a mere juicy, wish-a-washy, insipid, quite tasteless, and inferior thing; every specimen so far falling short of "good." In appearance, it very much resembles the Bartlett.

Id orchard culture, for market purposes, it has been found much more profitable to plant out but few varieties, and those of well-tried sorts. In an orchard of some 3,000 peach-trees, the writer has confined himself to four or five sorts; of 1,000 apple-trees, mostly to four varieties; and, of 1,000 or more pears, to some ten or twelve sorts, of which the Bartlett, Seckel, White Doyenne, and Stevens' Genesee, are the most prominent. By the way, I notice that the American Pomo-logical Society class the Stevens'Genesee Pear among those that "promise well." Well, this is truly encouraging for a pear that has been so well known in Western New York for twenty or thirty years. We have some "promising" boys here, of some forty or fifty years of age, who came to the same conclusion a quarter of a century ago.

The next meeting of the American Pomological Society will be held at Rochester next autumn, at which time we anticipate a very large gathering of our pomo-logical friends from all parts of the Union, and also from the Canadas. Genesee has been called the garden of the world. Everything now indicates a fruitful season. We must trust that the exhibition of fruits from Western New York will be worth seeing. And not only this, but the most rare specimens of fruits from the east, the west, the north, and the south, will here meet. A rare chance to compare fruits from all parts of our wide and extended country.