606 ANNUAL KEPORTS OF DEPAETMENT OF AGRICULTUEE. 



disease-resistant stocks of certain seeds, either by cooperation with 

 seedsmen or by means of seed-increase plats at the college; and the 

 perfecting of plans for training farmers in the fundamentals of 

 plant-disease control. 



Throughout all of this work there has been a growing realization 

 of the necessity for cooperation with extension specialists in other 

 lines and for maintenance of close contact with research workers. 



HOKTICXILTUEE. 



Strawberry cliibs in Illinois. — In launching the boys' and girls' 

 strawberry clubs in Illinois, publicity regarding the organization of 

 the clubs was started through the Extension News Service and the 

 Farm Bureau News Letter. Local pa]Ders soon took up the matter, 

 and in a few weeks the whole State knew that strawberry clubs were 

 soon to be started. Boys and girls interested in the project were 

 directed to write to the club specialist or to the horticultural depart- 

 ment at Urbana for membership application forms. The forms 

 were filled out by the boys and girls and were returned to Urbana 

 with the money for the number of plants desired. Arrangements 

 were made with nurserymen to furnish all the plants at a low rate 

 and to mail each order direct to the club member. There were 739 

 club members engaged in this work, and 228,900 plants were used. 



Fruit fertilizer loorh in Michigan. — The State fruit specialist de- 

 cided that the greatest need in the fruit industry was that of feeding 

 the fruit trees, grapevines, and bush fruits. He therefore presented 

 his project to the county agents, 23 of whom entered enthusiastically 

 into the plan. With the aid of local committees and associations, 

 the county agent and the fruit specialist selected the demonstrators, 

 the orchards, berry patches, and vineyards to be used. The fruit 

 specialist advised the amounts of fertilizer needed, the demonstrator 

 bought it, and the county agent supervised its application. In some 

 of the counties there were as many as 20 fertilizer demonstrations, 

 and in two years the use of nitrogen fertilizer in the State increased 

 from 100 to 2,500 tons. 



FARM MANAGEMENT. 



In the farm management extension work there has been a broaden- 

 ing toward improved means and methods for using basic economic 

 material affecting the business side of farming. The work designed 

 to teach farmers how to keep simple farm accounts and make use 

 of these accounts in determining profitable changes in their business 

 has been materially strengthened through improved methods of 

 organizing and conducting the work. The farm-account summariz- 

 ing schools where groups of farmers get together and summarize 

 and analyze their annual accounts have passed the experimental 

 stage. Such schools are now recognized and recommended as a prac- 

 tical and effective means of assisting groups of farmers in improving 

 their business organization or practice. A total of 893 farm 

 management schools, with an attendance of 24,253, were conducted 

 during the past year. 



Several of the States have selected a limited number of important 

 types of farming areas in which the accounts kept by farmers from 

 not less than 20 farms will be summarized and analyzed for extension 



