DEPARTMENT REPORTS 35 



instruction in the various operations of the green-house. We were fortu- 

 nate during the continuance of the short course, to secure the assistance 

 of a number of the leading fruit growers of the State, who spent each 

 one day at the College, and delivered two lectures upon subjects relating 

 to fruit culture. These were largely attended, not only by the special 

 students in horticulture, but by the special students in stock and dairy 

 husbandry as well as the regular students. The lectures of Roland Mor- 

 rill, of Benton Harbor, upon "Commercial Peach Growing," and R. M. 

 Kellogg, of Three Rivers, upon ''Small Fruit Culture," were particularly 

 valuable. 



ORCHARDS AND GARDENS. 



During the year 1896 the conditions were quite favorable for the pro- 

 duction of fruit. The old apple orchard gave an extremely large crop, 

 but the fruit was only of medium quality, owing largely to the fact that 

 the trees were over-laden. About fifteen hundred bushels of the cider 

 apples were sold, besides five hundred barrels of first quality apples, but 

 owing to the large crop and small demand the price was quite low. They 

 were readily sold during the vC'inter and spring either at the College or 

 in Lansing. The pear crop also was a good one, as was the cherry and 

 grape crop. The small fruits were badly injured by the winter, and only 

 a small crop was secured, while most of the European plums failed to set 

 a crop. A large number of the American varieties gave large yields. In 

 the spring of 1897 the prospects were excellent for crops of all kinds, 

 except peaches, which were injured by the winter, although it was not 

 expected owing to the large crop in 1896. The old apple orchard, in 

 which nearly all of the trees are Northern Spy, blossomed profusely and 

 set a fair crop of fruit. Good results were also obtained from the pears 

 and plums, but the cherries did not give more than half a crop. The 

 small fruits came through the winter in good condition, and the season 

 v,i\s quite favorable for their growth, but at the time the fruit was 

 ripening the weather was so hot that many of the berries dried upon 

 the vines, although the ground was full of moisture. 



The weather of the early spring was quite favorable for the growth of 

 vegetables and good results were obtained with nearly all of them. Al- 

 though the season was quite moist, we found the irrigating plant of con- 

 siderable value in watering plants at time of transplanting and for fur- 

 nishing water for the preparation of insecticides and fungicides. The 

 aphides were quite troublesome during the spring, particularly upon the 

 plum trees, and the warm, moist weather was very favorable for the 

 growth of the fungi upon the fruits, but all yielded to the usual prepara- 

 tions. 



THE GROUNDS. 



The past season having been unusually favorable for the growth of 

 lawn grass, the results have been unusually good, and throughout the sum- 

 mer of 1896 and the spring of 1897 thev have, with few exceptions, been 

 uninjured by the dry weather. It will, however, be advisable to insure 

 against the effects of drought by providing an additional water supply 

 sufficient to furnish water for the grounds about the dormitories, labora- 



