262 State Horticultural Society. 



So far as the small fruits were concerned we had a very light crop 

 of blackberries and raspberries. The small fruits seemed to suffer more 

 from the drouth than our field crops did. 



Our corn and oat crop was very good ; and yet in that land a little 

 loose, the berries will very ofteij suffer when the other crops don't. They 

 can't stand the drouth. Our strawberry prospects for the coming year 

 are nothing to boast of at all. In fact, in some places they are almost 

 worthless. I have seen acres of them that have not made any new plants 

 whatever, and the plants from last spring are not in real good shape; 

 they didn't start well and they have not made many runners and the old 

 beds, I think, unless they come out wonderfully in the spring, as they 

 sometimes do (but which we don't expect), are a failure. 



On the whole, we are quite enthusiastic yet. We think Illinois is still 

 along in the ranks of the fruit growing states, especially the apple inter- 

 ests from the south half of our state. 



We meet next week, and I want to say the same as my Kansas friend, 

 we would like to see you all there. We have a new agricultural building 

 now at Champagne, and I expect it is the largest known in the world, 

 and perhaps the finest ; it covers three acres of ground, and I think we 

 could accommodate all of you, and my friends from Kansas, and Bro. 

 Wilson might bring a few of them from Iowa, and we would still have 

 room ; I bid you a hearty welcome if you visit us. 



Mr. Marshall of Nebraska, President State Horticultural Society 

 of Nebraska. — Mr. Chairman: .We have a delegate here in Mr. Emer- 

 son, and I wish to say for fear I forget it, that I want you to appoint a 

 delegate to the Nebraska meeting. The other brothers gave their in- 

 vitation last, and I am going to give mine first. Our meeting will be 

 in Lincoln. The annual meeting is always in Lincoln. It will be the 

 14th, 15th and i6th of January, and we promise you a good time and 

 an interesting time, if you will come over during those three days. 



Now in taking up the past year's work, I will say that the drouth 

 cut our strawberry plants down considerably. We don't have large 

 plantations there like you do in parts of your state here, but we have some 

 men there who are growing quite extensively since there is a good home 

 market. They are not run as they should be and the result is there are 

 gaps in the rows, and we cannot expect more than a half of a crop next 

 year. The plants are in good shape and we look for a good quality of 

 fruit. The raspberries and blackberries bore a poor crop, hardly a third 

 of a crop. Blackberries would have been a good crop with us if it had 

 not been for the drouth. The drouth cut them down. The cherries were 

 a moderate crop of very good fruit. The cherry is something that grows 

 all over our state; they grow way up in the sand hills in the western 



