STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 113 



Question — Does the borer tronljle your Ijushes? 



Answer — Yes; it often destroys theui. 



S. M. Slacle — Is the Long Bunch Holland more exempt than 

 other varieties? 



Samuel Edwards — I have found it exceedingly healthy, and 

 that may be the reason. 



Question — Where do you market your currants? 



Answer — I generally ship to Chicago, l)ut have not always 

 found it profitable. Once I shipped forty-five bushels and got only 

 §14.00 in return. Was cheated, I suppose. Think local markets 

 the best usually. 



Dr. Schrceder — Years ago I put out a large plantation, but did 

 not make anything from them. This season they have sold for 

 twelve and a half cents per quart, Avliich will pay well. Every man 

 should grow them for the use of his family. 



Dr. Small was called upon for his report on 



PLUMS. 



For a few years past, in my nursery business, having made the 

 growing of plum trees a specialty, and being thus led by pecuniary 

 interest to seek, from all accessible sources, information on the sub- 

 ject of plum culture, I am probably better qualified to report on 

 this than on the other fruit referred to this committee: Mr. Clayson 

 and myself. 



I shall therefore confine ni}^ remarks to plums, and say nothing 

 about cherries. 



The condition of ])lum culture in our State at the present time 

 is not encouraging. As every novice in fruit culture knows, the 

 almost universal destruction of the fruit by the curculio has had a 

 decidedly discouraging effect upon the ]danting of ])lum orchards. 

 Although I have traveled over much of Illinois, and made many 

 inquiries, I have found, or heard of, but one region of country in 

 the State where the cultivation of the plum is thought to be profit- 

 able, and that is the extreme south end. There I found ])arties 

 growing the fruit for market quite extensively, and with very satis- 

 factory results. 



Plum trees live and grow luxuriantly all over the State, and but 

 for tlie ravages of insect enemies, would be, next to the a])])le and 

 peach, our most valuable fruit-bearing trees; and for the northern 

 section, more valuable than the peach, because more hardy. 



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