TWENTY FIFTH ANNUAL MEETING. 155 



by the very liberal use of wood ashes. We would not ignore the value 

 of barn-yard manure, but for most fruits it seems to us rather too stimu- 

 lating and inclined to promote a soft, unripened wood; hence, a fruit bud 

 ill-calculated to withstand a very severe winter. No nurseryman can 

 grow the best trees on lands that he has highly stimulated with rich barn- 

 yard manure. As often as tried, it has been a failure — too much nitrogen 

 and too little potash and phosphoric acid. 



In summing up this case, I would suggest that we have been expecting 

 too much from our fruit plantations without such reciprocal attention 

 upon our part as they have deserved. The same parsimony and neglect 

 in the management of other interests would bankrupt the parties 

 engaged. A man who makes this, as well as any other business, profit- 

 able, must keep thoroughly abreast of the times. Indeed, if a little in 

 advance of his more conservative neighbors, he is not likely to make any 

 mistake. The fashion and demand for varieties of fruit change as well as 

 that for anything else, and to keep in close touch with all requires con- 

 stant study and thoughtfulness. Some old sorts are wanted, and probably 

 ever will be, while others are being superseded by those of more recent 

 introduction of great merit. It is not always safe for a commercial 

 orchardist to place too high an estimate on quality. While this is a 

 factor that should not be disregarded, style and productiveness should 

 be given precedence in anticipating future profits. The Ben Davis apple, 

 while quite low in the scale of quality, usually sells at higher prices than 

 many others of far greater excellence, the cost of producing which would 

 be accompanied with loss. 



Profitable fruitgrowing is, however, not confined to the larger tree 

 fruits. The very great improvements made in the smaller fruits, and the 

 enhanced interest in their culture shown in every section during the last 

 decade, are but conclusive proof of the fact that some men have learned 

 that they can be produced with profit. Currants by the ton, gooseberries 

 by the bushel, blackberries and strawberries by the car-load! Who 

 would have anticipated all this a quarter of a century ago? All things 

 being equal, most of the above named crops, grown with reference to mar- 

 kets easily reached, should pay the producer from |100 to |150 per acre 

 net per annum. Some of them thrive and continue to produce well for 

 many years after planting, and, being well adapted to long-distance ship- 

 ments, they are our choice; hence, we pin our faith to the currant and 

 gooseberry. While not affording the large profits frequently attached 

 to the strawberry, they do afford a fair remuneration for labor bestowed, 

 with but slight variation in price from year to year. The largest profits 

 are confined to a very few sorts, while the others we can not afford to 

 grow at any price for which they can be sold. 



In conclusion, we believe in the future of the wise apple-grower. Other 

 varieties of fruit are being largely planted, but little attention is given 

 this king of fruits. Not one acre is planted where there were 100 ten 

 years ago, while thousands of trees are going to decay and death. They 

 have outlived their usefulness, and all this in the face of an annual 

 increase of consumption both at home and abroad. What are the proba- 

 bilities, what the possibilities, for the skillful fruitgrower of Michi- 

 gan, directing his energies with all the intelligence and appliances at his 

 command? He is blest with a soil, climate, and other required condi- 

 tions unexcelled for the production of the greatest variety of the choic- 



