STATE HORTICULTURAL, SOCIETY. 15 



REPORT OF GRUNDY COUNTY— By J. \V. Ridings. 



H. C. Graves, Committee on General Horticulture for First District. — Dear 

 Sir, — " Little Grundy " county does not boast a high position in the noble art of horti- 

 culture, yet the number of those who appreciate the value of fruits, and are extending 

 their cultivation, is, I think, increasing from year to year. It is quite noticeable, also, 

 that there is a growing discrimination in respect to varieties ; people are not satisfied 

 with fruit simply because it is fruit of any particular variety or species, but are learning 

 that there is a wide difference in the value of varieties in each species, and are inquiring 

 for and planting such varieties as are known to have the requisite hardiness and pro- 

 ductiveness of tree or plant combined with good qualities in the fruit. 



The one great obstacle to success and progress in this direction is the swarm of 

 conscienceless leeches, in the name of " agents" for nurseries, which yearly spread them- 

 selves over the county, duping farmers and owners of village lots, by selling them, at 

 exorbitant rates, trees and plants with new and high-sounding names, not one in 

 twenty of which has ever proved worth the planting. It is true that the purchasers of 

 "iron-clad Russian" apple-trees, "hardy sweet cherries," " curculio-proof " plums, 

 "blight-proof" pears, "grape-vine" raspberries, "Japan" persimmons, tree-roses, etc., 

 etc., etc., are almost universally those who do not take agricultural journals, all of 

 which, every year, warn the people against these marauding parasites. If every farmer 

 would take, read and heed some good agricultural journal the "occupation" of these 

 oily-tongued gentry would soon be gone. Much has been written and said of the scourge 

 of tramps which for several years has infested all parts of the country, yet I venture to 

 affirm that the actual loss to the country at large has been ten-fold greater through tree- 

 peddlers than tramps. 



Is it not high time for a law to be enacted to suppress them, even though it neces- 

 sarily exterminate all classes of agents who take orders for goods ? 



The weather is usually the first topic for discussion when anything is to be said or 

 written, however remote the subject on hand or in mind may be from any meteoric 

 influence; but horticulture is so directly dependent upon suitable warmth and moisture 

 that these necessarily demand the first place in a horticultural report. Yet I feel so 

 keenly in regard to the scourge of tree-peddlers that my mind is never free to discuss 

 any other subject relating to horticulture until I have worked that off. Now I feel 

 better, and will go on with my say about the weather. 



Perhaps in not one year in twenty have the extremes of temperature, drouth and 

 rain-fall come so near meeting as during the past spring, summer and autumn, in this 

 county. Last winter found the soil drier than usual, and this circumstance in connec- 

 tion with the intense cold of 26° below zero damaged many trees and plants usually 

 hardy. Snyder blackberry, never before known to be damaged by cold in this latitude, 

 was considerably hurt, yet not so much but the canes put out full-sized leaves in spring. 



Spring opened with timely rains, and with extreme heat in March and April, which 

 was followed by extreme cold and drouth in May, so that the blossoming of all trees 

 and plants was from one to two weeks later than usual. To these extremes, following 

 each other in a reversed order, is probably due, to a great degree, the blasting of 

 blossoms of our apple and cherry-trees, and the dropping, when quite small, of more 

 than half of all the fruit which set. There were many exceptions to this general 

 failure in the apple and cherry crop, however, some apple orchards bearing quite fully 

 in close proximity to others which were almost barren ; and I have not been able to 

 account satisfactorily to myself for the fact. In short, the behavior of api)le-orchards 

 has been unreasonable, and in many instances quite trying to the temjier of the owners. 



Here, orchards cultivated or " set in clover," according to the most approved 

 modes, were barren of fruit, while just over there a neglected orchard bore a good 

 crop; yonder, orchards rewarded the owners for good culture by returning a bountiful 

 crop of fine fruit, while near by neglected orchards seemed to chide their owners for 

 such neglect by refusing to mature sufficient fruit for their families' use. Generally, 

 however, good cultivation, with moderate use of the knife and saw, has paid in the 

 quality if not in the quantity of fruit, even in this freakish year. A severe freeze 



