INDIANA HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



503 



and Mr. Whitely, near Cambridge City, are examples. Tnere is much 

 land in the Sixth District that is brolien and hilly, well adapted to fruits 

 of almost any kind suitable to this climate. This land can be bought for 

 from thirty to fifry dollars per acre, inviting anyone with but little 

 capital who is willing to put his brains and hands to work in that direc- 

 tion, on the road to success. 



I cannot name all the horticultural societies in this district. It is their 

 duty to report individually to the state society. The Wayne County Horti- 

 cultural Society flourishes and sends in its annual report without fail. 



As to good roads and civic societies: Improvement in the way of good 

 roads has become a necessity in order to secure rural mail routes. There 

 has been much done in the way of grading and graveling, so that the 

 countiT roads in Wayne County may be considered from fair to good. 

 As to beautifying the roadsides by planting trees, shrubbery or otherwise, 

 very little, if any. is to be seen. We have a civic society organized within 

 the city of Richmond for the purpose of beautifying the city and country 

 around about, but its work has been mostly confined to talk and essays, 

 without any perceptible signs of improvement by the outside world. 

 There is a great need of work along this line. Mostly, country school 

 houses are neatly aiTanged. artistically built, with neat fences and shade 

 trees surrounding ihem; also supplied with libraries. It seems to me 

 one of the greatest needs of the farmer today is encouragement in the 

 way of planting fruits, especially small fruits for domestic purposes. A 

 majority of homes are without these delicacies only as they are bought 

 from the gardener. This should not be. I have answered inquiries as 

 I understand them, and filled my allotted space. 



CALEB W. KING, 

 Member of Committee. 



REPORT FROM THE SEVENTH DISTRICT. 

 (Composed of Marion County, Indiana.) 



There seems to be quite a diversity of opinion in this district on mat- 

 ters of horticulture. Some sections are decidedly of the opinion that 

 horticulture is a flat failure, that the farmer who plants trees, vines 

 and plants for fruit is entirely behind the times, because it is an estab- 

 lished fact that trees, vines and plants will not pay the owner anything 

 but work and worry and produce a place to spend his money. While in 

 other localities farmers are awake to the fact that there is money in 

 fruits, and lots of it where the right kinds are planted" and cared for. 



There are many farms in the district where there is not a half dozen 

 fruit trees to be found anywhere on the farm, and no raspberries or 

 blackberries only those growing wild along the fence or in the woods. 

 A grape vine can not be found. Why? A single vine costs fifty cents, 

 and who can afTord such extravagance as that? And. as to strawberries— 

 the idea! You might know there is nothing of that kind on the farm. 



