The pruning of the pear tree is substantially the same as that of the apple. Where pear blight is a factor in the problem, due allowance must be made for it. It sometimes happens that entire branches or arms have to be cut away on account of blighting. The system of pruning therefore should furnish a means of renewing such members promptly when necessity requires.
[Illustration: FIG. 30--ORCHARD OF DWARF DUCHESS PEARS, LOCKPORT, N. Y.]
The quince root prefers a fairly heavy and even moist soil. A heavy clay loam is best, although a strong clay will answer. Light sandy soils or loose gravelly soils will not give such good results. On the other hand any clay soil which holds water to a considerable extent will answer. As these are the requirements for quince roots, they become also the requirements for dwarf pears. Any attempt to grow dwarf pears on a light loose soil is almost certain to prove a failure.
[Illustration: FIG. 31--PYRAMID PEARS IN A GERMAN ORCHARD]
It is often said that dwarf pears should be planted deep in the ground when they are set out. The rule is to put them deep enough so that the bud union will be buried beneath the surface of the soil. With such treatment the pear itself often throws out roots and eventually establishes a feeding system of its own, becoming independent of the quince stock. It is then no longer a dwarf tree except by the authority of the pruning knife. It is probably true that many varieties of dwarf pears are longer lived when treated in this way. In planting, therefore, it becomes a question whether one desires chiefly a long-lived tree or a strictly dwarf one. The ease with which dwarf trees are replaced makes longevity a less important factor than in commercial orchards of standard trees.
Of course, it is understood that if the dwarfest form is to be maintained, the tree must be planted high enough to leave the union out of the ground, thus preventing the pear from throwing out roots of its own.
The varieties principally grown in this country as dwarfs are Angouleme, Bartlett, Anjou, and Louise Bonne.
In European nurseries the list of pears propagated on quince roots is much larger. The following varieties are recommended for England by Mr. Owen Thomas, and are said to be particularly good for training on walls: