40 NEBRASKA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



Before taking up the first paper on the program, the society listened 

 to two very enjoyable numbers by the Falls City orchestra. 



The President: The first regular paper on the pragram this after- 

 noon will be on the subject, "Opportunities for Horticulture in South 

 East Nebraska," by Mr. Christy. 



Opportunities for Horticulture in Southeast Nebraska. 



G. S. Christy, Johnson. 



There are at the present time many young men, who feeling that they 

 cannot invest twelve to twenty thousand in a 160 acre farm and ever 

 expect to pay for it, and believing that a farm of less dimensions is too 

 small for a bread winner are drifting to the cities to become street car 

 conductors, clerks, or street ipavers at a living salary. But their pay 

 checks are seldom large enough to leave any surplus, after the necessary 

 and unnecessary month's expenses are paid. And the rule is to be in 

 debt about half the amount of the check at the end of the month. The 

 results are they seldom own a home. They soon learn to labor to put in 

 time. And their highest ambition is to draw a pay check, already half 

 spent. Every young man, with either brains or energy, should be at 

 work for himself, if it is only to run a peanut stand. There are but few 

 men who have lead honest, industrious lives than cannot obtain credit 

 enough to get a hold on ten acres of land. And ten acres of land near 

 some good shipping point in Southeast Nebraska, scientifically cared for, 

 will support and keep busy an ideal Roosevelt family. 



On ten acres one can not have a big apple orchard, in fact, I would 

 not incumber so valuable land with apples, peaches, or pears. But for the 

 surest crops and greatest retui'ns per acre plant the small fruit. It always 

 proves the big money maker. 



Four acres of a ten acre farm should be planted to strawberries. 

 Sen. Dunlap, Warfield, and a few other standard varieties are the ones 

 to plant. Do not invest in the new and untried varieties that it requires 

 pages of catalogues to describe their many virtues, and that sell at eight 

 and ten times the price of the standard varieties. Then, too, buy from 

 some responsible firm that will stand back of their guarantee if anything 

 proves untrue to name. There is many a gold brick handed out in Ne- 

 braska in the form of nursery stock, but with so many reliable fii'ms in 

 the state it is the purchaser's own fault when he gets swindled. There is 

 no more excuse for buying nursery stock from some transient salesman 

 that comes along than there would be for depositing your money with 

 every harvest hand that comes to town instead of putting it in a bank, 

 backed and guaranteed by financially responsible citizens. 



Four acres of strawberries will guarantee an income of better than 

 four hundred dollars ($400.00) per year, if the records of the last twelve 

 years are to be relied upon. 



