WINTER MEETING. 147 



During the days in St. Louis with the Missouri fruit exhibit at the 

 Exposition, the Secretary of our Society received numerous letters of 

 which the following is a part : "One fruit man with twelve acres of 

 orchard, eight acres planted, sold twelve hundred barrels at $1.45 per 

 barrel, fruit hanging on the trees, leaving the refuse apples to be used 

 on the farm." Twelve hundred barrels at $1.45 makes $1740, or $145 

 per acre. How many acrcS of wheat, corn or oats would it take to 

 produce this amount of money from twelve acres of orchard laud ? 

 Another one of the correfipondents had twenty acres of orchard trees, 

 either ten or eleven years planted. This man sold his crop for $4000, 

 or $200 per acre — thus showing that a true horticulturist has no need 

 of being discouraged. 



In different parts of our country there have been trees put out on 

 what is known as the "two-crop" plan : that is, the planter gives the 

 nurseryman two crops of apples in fifteen years simply for the pur- 

 chase price of the trees. While this, in many cases, may induce tree- 

 planting, the cost of the trees is too great, thereby proving a hindrance 

 to horticulturists' interest rather than benefiting it. To illustrate 

 this further, I have any number of first-class trees, from 20,000 to 40,- 

 000, that I would gladly give out on the "one-crop" plan, or one crop 

 in twelve years, giving the planter the option to pay for these at any 

 time within eight years, if he so wished to do. And even one crop in 

 twelve years is paying many prices for the trees. 



PLANTING TOO MANY VARIETIES. 



After years of study upon this question of orchards and orchard- 

 ing, and consulting and deliberating with the leading horticulturists of 

 the State, I have come to this conclusion : That we are planting too 

 many varieties of apples and I want to say right now that a man con- 

 templating planting one thousand or more trees, if he does not give 

 variety and soil a careful study and post himself thoroughly, especially 

 on varieties, that man will be lost in the shuffle. Six varieties are 

 plenty ; eight varieties are more than plenty ; but in no case or under 

 any circumstances should a man wishing to plant an orchard be talked 

 into putting out more than ten varieties at the most. 



After years of study and careful observation made at the World's 

 fair in Chicago, and at two great fruit shows in St. Louis, and from 

 evidence gained here and there, I shall attempt at this time to name 

 some ten varieties that will cover the list from a commercial stand- 

 point, by giving a brief sketch and history of each apple as it comes 

 in turn (showing to you the fruit as well as the trees — making it, as it 

 were, an object-lesson ). Commencing first with the old stand-by, the 



