362 STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



believed that people made the mistake of planting -without reference to the 

 future more often than any other; many times patting out trees wlierc in after 

 years they uerc very undesirable. This very often occurred in planting 

 evergreens. 



W. H. Ilurlbut said that a yard leveled and kept by pigs, and fdlcd with 

 Fumac for ornamental trees, was the best he ever expected to have. Still he 

 thought we miglit do better by trying, and if the attention of the people could 

 be drawn in this direction it would be for the benefit of the locality. 



Monday Evening, April 30. 



W. H. Hurlbut opened the talk on the question for the evening by stating 

 his first mistake was in not commencing soon enough at the business. He 

 spent a good part of his life on a farm, yet did but little in fruit growing until 

 he came to South Haven. Tlien he began without knowing what he wanted to 

 do or how to do it, bought trees of agents and dealers, and obtained varieties 

 not desirable, although avoiding tiie common mistake of having too many 

 kinds. Thinks he made a great mistake by carrying too far the theory of head- 

 ing in, both on the apple and pcacii, allowing forks to grow which caused the 

 heads to become too thick and spoiled the fruit. The peach was very liable to 

 do this. He believes in heading back, but it must be done in a judicious man- 

 ner. Thinks he damaged his trees for several years by cultivating one year too 

 late in the fall ; also destroyed a large part of an orchard of young budded trees 

 by plowing away from them very early in the spring, Avhen there came a hard 

 freeze afterwards. He hoped, through the aid of this society, to avoid any 

 more such errors. 



K. Haigh thought ho had lost one crop by cultivating too much, but his 

 greatest failure had been caused by not having his land drained enough. 



The Secretary stated that a good deal of his experience in fruit growing had 

 been in trving to rectify the mistakes, in planting and cultivating, of others, 

 but by putting off draining one season had lost in value more trees than the 

 draining afterwards cost, besides the loss of one year's time. His greater mis- 

 take had been in the nursery instead of the orchard. 



J. G. Ivamsdell believed his greatest error, and one committed by many otli- 

 ers, was in trying to do too mucli, — trying to cultivate too much land with lim- 

 ited means, thereby not doing it well. Thought that even now he had too 

 much land. Did not think it paid to try to do a little farming along with fruit 

 growing with land worth as mucli as it is in this vicinity. Had made the mis- 

 take of })lanting too many varieties and wrong kinds. Tliought it an error to 

 plant only one kind of fruit. Had pruned in June, and although not always a 

 mistake, did not deem it advisable. 



N. Phillijis said when he came here lie liought rough land because it was 

 cheap, ratlier than pay ^^00 per acre for tliat ready to plant. He thought this 

 the greatest mistake he ever made. The highest price land would be the cheap- 

 est in the end. 



0. M. ShelTer began fruit growing by buying out an old nursery very cheap, 

 then j)lanted out everything without regard to variety and did not do it well. 

 Tiien afterwards grew some peaches and put out seedlings as well as budded 

 varieties because they were good looking trees. His greatest mistake was in not 

 putting out 500 of al)out five good varieties. They would now be worth a for- 

 tune. He also waited too long before putting out a good peacli orchard. Was 



