INDIANA HORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 401 



In eastern Indiana the plum and the cherry are grown more largely 

 than the peach, while the central portion of the State excels in pears. 

 Small fruits are abundant everywhere. 



IN THE SOUTHERN PART. 



Southern- Indiana has a mean annual temperature of from 8 to 10 de- 

 grees warmer than has the northern end. With other favorable condi- 

 tions in the way of soil, protection from severe winds and perfect atmos- 

 pheric drainage, owing to the fact that the country for the most part 

 is quite hilly, the peach and other tender fruits are successfully grown. 

 Here on the banks of the Ohio river was, until recently, one of the largest 

 peach orchards in the middle west, and even now orchards of from forty 

 to fifty thousand trees may be seen on the "Knobs" in Clark and Washing- 

 ton counties. Here, too, is the home of the "big red apple" (Ben Davis) 

 and the Keiffer pear. The largest Keiffer pear orchard may be seen near 

 the town of Salem, in Washington county. This orchard consists of 12,000 

 trees. The soil in southern Indiana for the most part is quite difEerent 

 from that found farther north. In a report of the United States geo- 

 logical survey, made some years ago, mention is made of the "white clay 

 lands" which cover a large portion of southern Indiana, Ohio and Illinois, 

 where most of the finest fruit is grown. In Indiana the northern boundary 

 of this peculiar formation, according to the description, begins near Terre 

 Haute on the west and passes more or less irregularly across the State, 

 passing into Ohio near Brookville, Franklin county. 



Thus the greater portion of the State south of this line is made up of 

 this white clay deposit. In many places this clay becomes almost a brick 

 red, but the characteristics are, in general, the same whatever the color. 

 An apple orchard consisting of such varieties as Ben Davis, Rome Beauty, 

 Winesap, Rail's Genet and Grimes' Golden, planted on these clays is cer- 

 tain to reward the owner who gives it intelligent attention. 



Here is also the home of the pawpaw (asimina triloba) and the native 

 persimmon (diospros virginiana). Excellent varieties of the latter are 

 cultivated to some extent for the large markets, but the industry is as yet 

 in its infancy. Both of these wild fruits offer a wide field for investigation. 



This section also includes the famous melon districts, where both musk 

 and watermelons are grown to perfection. Hundreds of acres are grown 

 annually, and the products shipped to the larger cities of the north and 

 west.— J. Troop, Purdue University. 



26— Agriculture. 



