ILLINOIS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 223 



AUGUST MEETING. 



The Alton-Southern Illinois Horticultural Society met at E. A. 

 Riehl's on Saturday Aug. 10th. The muddy roads caused by late 

 rains kept many from coming in vehicles, but the trains from Al- 

 ton and Jerseyville brought many passengers, and the attendance 

 was unusually large. It was a nice cool day, and many seemed 

 to prefer walking about admiring the views, boating, etc., to at- 

 tending the business session. 



ORCHARDS. 

 Col. Miles— I shook all my early apples and fed to the hogs. 

 Late ones do not promise very well. Apples have never paid me 

 and I intend to grub out all my trees, and convert them to the 

 wood pile. 



Mr. O. A. Snedeker — I cut down an old orchard, and then 

 found that I could not sell the wood, but finally I found a brick 

 burner, whom, with hard begging, I persuaded to come and haul 

 it off. So if the Colonel expects to get rich off his old trees he 

 will probably get left instead. 



Col. Miles — Thanks, Brother Snedeker, for your kindly 

 warning, but if I were a young man again, I should plant apple 

 trees. There have been none planted in this region for many 

 years, and the old trees are all dying out and in a few years there 

 will be a lack of this good old king fruit. 



Mr. Riehl — Showed and passed around specimens of the Jef- 

 f eries apple, now just in season. This is the best late summer ap- 

 ple we have. It is a mild sub acid, very agreeable to taste, 

 apples always fair size and perfect in shape. Always bears full. 

 A splendid apple for market or family use. The condition of 

 apples generally as regards insects, I think, depends much on cul- 

 tivation. Where well cultivated the fruit is pretty good, where 

 the ground was not stirred and the bugs remained undisturbed 

 fruit is very poor. Pears are very nice. 



Question — What is the proper mode of cultivation for pears, 

 and what varieties are most profitable? 



Answer by Mr. Riehl — I would cultivate for about four years 

 after planting, then seed down and leave it so, only mowing off 

 the grass once or twice a season. Cultivation encourages blight, 



