Extension Work in Horticulture. 199 



fornia have been repeated failures. Again, the production of grapes 

 on the large scale now demanded, has greatly modified the entire 

 farm economy. As we have said, the grape has become a farm crop. 

 We can with as equal propriety speak of grape farms, as we say 

 dairy farms, stock farms or grain farms, and the question of board- 

 ing houses, packing houses, machinery, spraying apparatus, etc., be- 

 comes a legitimate and necessary branch of our farm study. 



The development of modern methods in grape growing has not 

 been carried forward independently of the principles involved. The 

 men who first began extensive vineyard planting were men who had 

 already had, many of them, years of experience as fruit growers and 

 market gardeners. They had long been members of farmers' clubs 

 and leaders in its discussions. August 28, 1886, the present Horti- 

 cultural Society was formed. This society had in its beginning a 

 membership from the best fruit growers. Its first president, Ira 

 Porter, deceased, had for years been the president of the Pomfret 

 Farmers' Club. Lincoln Fay, originator of the Fay currant, was a 

 charter member. This society has persistently, and as we think, 

 wisely, adhered to its original mission as stated in section second of 

 article first : " Its object shall be the advancement of its members 

 in a knowledge of the theory and practice of horticulture." From 

 the first, we have kept to the original mission, ''talking it out 

 winters and working it out summers," along the line of advance- 

 ment in the knowledge of the theory and practice of horticulture. 

 We have held our meetings, discussing old questions, and, as fast 

 as they came to the front, new questions, eagerly sending for and 

 reading all the bulletins of the experiment stations, reports of the 

 department at Washington, transactions of horticultural societies, 

 and standard fruit journals. In twenty years there has been rapid 

 progress, here and in other fruit growing centers, not only in 

 making history but in the development of the fundamental 

 principles of scientific management. It has become a broad field. 

 The Chautauqua grape belt has to-day 26,000 acres of vines, and the 

 crop for 1894 was 3,600 cars, or 10,800,000 nine pound baskets. 

 The special papers brought before the class for to-day's study will 

 be one on *' Topographical formation and its relation to climate " 

 (reprint), " Conditions of climate favoring the grape " (reprint), 



Why I sow rye in the vineyard " (rejDriut), " Pruning," by Mr. 



i( 



