Pointer has them all growing in his ground at Twickenham, near London, who is a most cunning and curious grafter and planter of all manner of rare fruits; and also in the ground of an excellent grafter and painful planter, Master Henry Bunbury, of Touthil-street near unto Westminster; and likewise in the ground of a diligent and most affectionate lover of plants, Master Warner, neere Horsly Down, by London; and in divers other grounds about London." The neighbourhood of Worcester was probably then celebrated, as at the present day, for the cultivation of this fruit, for three pears are borne in the arms of the city. We have already alluded to the manufacture of perry, which is almost peculiar to Worcestershire.

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the

Most of the fine sorts of pears are of continental origin, the horticulturists of France and the Netherlands having paid more attention to that species of fruit than those of England. As these varieties have retained their original names, a good many laughable corruptions have been produced in their popular nomenclature in just the same way that Boulogne Mouth" is now rendered the Bull and Mouth." Thus the Bon-Chrêtien is converted into the Boncrutching; the Beurré into the Bury; the Chaumontelle into the Charmingtel. Such odd names as the Bishop's-Thumb, and many others which our fruiterers use, may probably be traced to a similar cause. In the names of apples there is the same corruption,—as Runnet for Reinette. The names of fruits in all countries occasionally present some laughable anomalies, such as the BonChrêtien Turc," one of the finest of the French pears.

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The Chinese, who are said to carry the cultivation of fruit to much greater perfection than the European gardeners, are stated by Marco Polo to

have pears, white in the inside, melting, and with a fragrant smell, of the enormous weight of ten pounds each.

The wood of the pear is much firmer than that of the apple, and it is much less liable to be attacked by insects, or to decay. In some of the old orchards, where the apple-trees have wholly disappeared, the pears are in full vigour and bear abundantly. This is remarkably the case at the old Abbey-garden at Lindores, on the south bank of the Tay, in the county of Fife: disease could have nothing to do with the death of the apple-trees there, as the soil is one of the very best for apples in the kingdom, being fine strong black loam to a great depth. Yet there are many old apple-trees in the kingdom. At Horton, in Buckinghamshire, where Milton spent some of his earlier years, there is an apple-tree still growing, of which the oldest people remember to have heard it said that the poet was accustomed to sit under it. And upon the low leads of the church at Rumsey, in Hampshire, there is an apple-tree still bearing fruit, which is said to be two hundred years old.

The fruit catalogue of the Horticultural Society contains above six hundred varieties of the pear; and it is there observed, that "the newly introduced Flemish kinds are of much more importance than the greater part of the sorts which have been hitherto cultivated in Great Britain, and when brought into use, will give quite a new feature to the dessert."

THE QUINCE-Cydonia vulgaris.

The quince was introduced into Europe, according to Pliny, from the island of Crete. From the large

ness of this fruit, and its splendid colour, it is not improbable that it was the same with the apples of the Hesperides; for Galesio, in his treatise on the orange, has shewn that the orange tree was unknown to the Greeks, and that it did not naturally grow in those parts where the gardens of the Hesperides were placed by them. The fruit of the quince, however useful and ornamental it may be in some respects, does not warrant such honours, and in truth has not continued to receive them; for the French, who have paid great attention to its cultivation, particularly for grafting pears upon its stocks, call the quincetree coignassier," probably, according to Duhamel, because the disagreeable odour of the fruit requires that it should be placed in a corner (coin) of the orchard or garden. In the south of France, particularly on the borders of the Garonne, the quince is very extensively grown; and the peasants prepare from it a marmalade which they call cotignac. The term marmalade is derived from the Portuguese name for the quince, marmelo. Gerard says, that in his time quince-trees were planted in the hedges of gardens and vineyards; and marmalade, two centuries ago, seems to have been in general use, principally from a belief that it possessed valuable medicinal properties. The seeds of the quince are still used in medicine, on account of the great quantity of mucilage which they yield to boiling water.

There are eight varieties of the quince noticed in the fruit catalogue of the Horticultural Society. Amongst these the Chinese quince (Cydonia Sinensis) is inserted on account of the resemblance which its fruit has to that of the common quince; although in France, where only in Europe it has produced fruit, it is not considered eatable. The Chinese

quince was introduced into England and Holland nearly forty years ago, and was planted in France about ten years later. The tree has much the appearance of the common quince, as well as the fruit. It is remarkable for the number and brilliancy of its flowers.

ORNAMENTAL CRABS.

The

The crab of Siberia, which had been introduced into this country within the last fifty years, has contributed to the extension of our varieties of apple, by offering a valuable stock for grafting. fruits thus produced by the union of our richest apples and the Siberian crab are remarkably hardy and luxuriant. The Siberian crab differs in a peculiar manner from our native crab. It furnishes one of the many evidences of the continued influence of original climate upon vegetables, when they are naturalized in another region. The winters of Siberia are intensely cold, the change to summer is sudden, and the heat equally violent. Our own changes of temperature are much slower, and more irregular. Thus, when the native crab scarcely shew signs of life, the Siberian variety puts forth its leaves, blossoms, and bears fruit, early even in an unfavourable season*. The flowers of the Siberian crab are beautiful; and its fruit is of a sharp, yet pleasant, flavour. There are many pretty varieties of Pyrus, which are principally cultivated in our gardens for their flowers. The Chinese crab (Pyrus spectabilis) is most showy and ornamental. It grows to the height of twenty or thirty feet. Its blossoms are of a pale red, but they are of short

*See Hort. Trans., vol. i.

duration. Dr. Fothergill is considered to have introduced this native of China, which he cultivated in 1780. The Japan crab, or quince, (Pyrus, or Cydonia Japonica,) was brought here about 1796; but it was described as a very rare plant in the Botanical Magazine of 1803. Its blossoms are of a deep red, and its flowers succeed each other during many months. The white variety of the Pyrus Japonica is a yet more recent introduction. It blooms abundantly in April and May; and as it will grow in almost any soil, and may be increased by layers and cuttings, is very valuable as an ornamental tree. The Pyrus pollveria (figured in Loddiges' Botanical Cabinet, vol. xi.) is a native of Germany. Its flowers are beautiful, and its fruit not unpleasant. The Pyrus salicifolia is said to have been introduced into this country by Pallas, the celebrated naturalist. He found it in sandy deserts, between the rivers Terec and Cuma. It grows also on Caucasus and in Persia. With us it is a small tree, with pendulous branches, and beautiful silvery leaves*

THE MEDLAR-Mespilus Germanica.

The medlar is a fruit resembling the smaller apples, and has a good deal of flavour, but is not fit for use until it is very ripe. This ripeness is seldom or

never attained while the fruit remains on the tree. It is generally understood to be a native of the south of Europe; but it has been naturalized, though rarely, in the hedgerows in England.

The common medlar is a middle or small-sized branching tree; covered with spines in the wild state, and having ash-coloured bark. In Sicily, according

* Loddiges' Cabinet, vol. xii.

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