102 ' STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



of exceeding value to those fruitgrowers wise enough to identify themselves 

 with them. 



No further development of the plan of co-operation between this society 

 and the national department of agriculture can be reported. The good 

 intentions of Secretary Willits seem to have been checked by some 

 fungus of unprogressiveness or bacterial disease of finance, or simply dry 

 rot of innocuous desuetude. However this "may be, I have received noth- 

 ing from the department, for distribution, since the arrival of the first and 

 only bag of old reports and bulletins. It was a good plan, but as the 

 present secretary seems bent upon showing how much money he has not 

 spent, rather than the results he has accomplished, I do not expect to learn 

 of any advancement of the scheme. 



The Reports of this society continue to be in great favor and demand, not 

 only in this country, but far abroad. I have during the year sent volumes 

 to New Zealand and Germany, while applications for them come from all 

 .portions of the United States. Particularly is this the case from the 

 northern Pacific slope, the horticultural conditions of which are sufiiciently 

 like our own to make our transactions of great practical value. I am sure 

 it would cause renewed interest and pride in our work, on the part of every 

 member, had he read the words of commendation which were sent in 

 response to my circular of last winter, to societies throughout the country, 

 offering exchange of reports or gifts of them to experiment stations, 

 libraries, etc. In every case was the offer accepted with apparent keen 

 pleasure. 



Your secretary has some very decided opinions about what was miscalled 

 the Michigan fruit exhibit at the World's Fair, but as this subject is to 

 be handled by those more intimately concerned, remarks upon it here are 

 quite needless. Perhaps it is true that the less we say about it the better 

 we will feel, and it would have been as well to have omitted the subject 

 enterely from the programme, but for the poor satisfaction we weak 

 mortals get from saying " Didn't we tell you so?" 



The year 1893 was a season of mainly satisfactory fruit yield, except as 

 "to apples. What little we produced of this fruit was to be found in the 

 northern part of the western " fruit belt," even as it was last year. The 

 crop of peaches was abundant everywhere, and sold at satisfactory prices. 

 The yield of grapes was unprecedented, and of excellent quality. The 

 fruit sold at very low prices, and in many cases, no doubt, the crop was 

 unremunerative, though its vast amount secured a margin, greater or less 

 in most cases. The strawberry crop was somewhat short on the whole, 

 and the prices good on that account as well as because of the partial fail- 

 ure in regions further south. Other small fruits in the state, as a whole, 

 were not in full supply. It is the general belief among apple-growers, as 

 well as the earnest hope, that the coming season will be productive of an 

 old-time crop of this staple fuit. The trees did not suffer from the fungus 

 which devastated them the preceding two years, but made a healthy 

 growth of foliage, and have gone into the winter in excellent order. 

 Details of these conditions have already been given you in the reports 

 from many localities of the state. • 



While there have been most gratifying advances in means and methods 

 of combating most diseases and fungi, absolutely nothing can be reported 

 as to success in repressing yellows. While there have been seasons 

 when development of this disease has been more startling than in 1898, 

 «till, its march has been steady, and it has invaded localities where 



