STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 1()3 



I speak within bounds when I say, that of early and summer apples there was not one 

 in ten that ripened exempt from the attack of some insect ; the apple-worm and curcu- 

 lio were in legions. 



" Grapes, of most of the varieties raised here, were also rendered worthless by a 

 worm, and in large clusters not more than from one to three berries could be found 

 exempt from them. 



" To sum up in a few words : The season has been very discouraging to the fruit- 

 raiser, both in the crop and market. The business is overdone, and though every man 

 should have an orchard who has land to make it on, yet fruit-raising has ceased to he 

 remunerative, as in times past." 



John Balsiger, of Highland, Madison county, says: 



" The past season has, on the whole, not been a very favorable one to the horticul- 

 turist and fruit-grower in our part of the county. The mildness of the last winter, for a 

 long time, never quite stopped the flow of the sap in the trees and shrubs, and after that 

 we got some cold nights in the months of March and April, and heavy frosts, when 

 peach, plum, pear and cherry trees commenced to unfold iheir blossoms. When in 

 protected localities the apple bloomed, heavy rains partially prevented the fecundation 

 of the flowers. A very wet and stormy summer injured the little fruit there was, partic- 

 ularly grapes, to a considerable degree. 



" But I will take each class of fruits, one after the other, and speak of each 

 separately. 



" Apples. — Some apple orchards, probably such as in consequence of their position 

 bloomed rather late, produced abundantly, while others, as I have already said, showed 

 but little fruit. I attribute this to no other cause than this, that the last-mentioned came 

 into bloom earlier than the others, and the blossoms were injured by rains; and when 

 the flowering time of the later ones came on, the weather was more favorable. I think 

 that my supposition is right is proven by the fact that early blooming trees bore but 

 little fruit, even those which were quite white (or rosy ) with flowers, while late bloomers, 

 as for instance the Janet, bore well. In late summer and fall much of the fruit was 

 affected by dry or bitter rot, but not all varieties. Those most attacked were : White 

 June, Rambo, Pennock or big Romanite, CJreen Pippin, Golden .Seedling (worst of all i, 

 Red W^inter Pearmain (I do not know whether this is the true name of the variety), 

 Milam, Hermann, Penn. Redstreak, Jenneting (Janet) and small Romanite somewhat, 

 but not very much. Proved healthy: Red June, Early Harvest, Ben Davis, Limber 

 Twig, W' illow Twig, Newtown Pippin, Wine Sap, Rome Beauty (tree very young yet, 

 an early bearer), Tolman Sweet (fell off early). Yellow Bellflower, also Early Pennock, 

 Esopus Spitzenberg, and Red Astrachan. Many varieties fell off too early. The dif- 

 ferent Siberian Crabs were not bearing, in consequence of their early blooming. The 

 Northern Spy fell off early, and rotted on the ground. Priestly bore poorly and very- 

 scabby fruit. Hewe's Crab bore little with me, but well in other orchards. If we take 

 the average of our part of the county, the apple crop wiis about a medium one. 



" Not so the Pear crop. I'he blossoms opening earlier than those of the apple, 

 suffered from late frosts, and the trees from blight, and some from storms too. I got a 

 few Bartletts (blighted considerably) and Flemish Beauties. That was about all ; but I 

 have not many trees in full bearing. Pears were very scarce in this neighborhood. 



" Of Peaches, only seedling trees showed some fruit, but this was stung by the 

 curculio, got wormy and rotted, jeaches very scarce also. 



" Plums — None at all, except some wild ones. 



"A number of Portugal Quiuce trees, coming just into bearing, had some nice 

 fruit and bore well enough, while the Apple Quince, older trees, did not bear at all. 



" Of Cherries, only a few of the Early Richmond. The Bigarreaus had their 

 blossoms killed by frosts. 



" Of Grapes, nearly all varieties rotted more or less. Nearly all the fruit destroyed 

 by rot are: Concord, Telegraph, Rogers' No. 2, North Carolina, Black Defiance and 

 Triumph. Three-fourths of the crop destroyed : Alvey, Creveling, Golden Clinton, 

 Herbemont, Isabella and Martha. Half: Mary Ann, Maxatawney, North Muscadine, 



