70 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



dismautled entirely aud doing nothing. Otherwise, every society holds 

 meetings through the winter at least, and more or less in the summer 

 time. Some of them, notably the old ones at Adrian and Grand Rapids, 

 have kept up regular meetings at least once every mouth the year around, 

 with an effectiveness that must do a great deal for horticulture in those 

 vicinities. There have been two or three new societies established dur- 

 ing the year, and one in my own count} , at Laketown. 



With the general horticultural conditions of the state the past year, 

 I think you are well acquainted. We had large crops of small fruits, 

 and, although they sold at low prices, they were profitable in localities 

 where there were not great quantities for shipment. I believe as a rule 

 most of the small fruit raised in the fruit belt in the western part of 

 the state proved rather unprofitable, although the quantit}' was exceed- 

 ingly great. The output was enormous and the returns were not satis- 

 factory on the whole, yet in certain localities the results were quite 

 the contrary, and so far as I have learned were entirely satisfactory. 

 The same rule obtained throughout the state in relation to the small 

 fruits. 



The apple crop of Michigan was nothing aud scarcely deserves men- 

 tion. There was one peculiarity in the western part of the state, that 

 the Northern Spies, which bore heavily one year ago, were this season 

 scarcely worth}' the name of apple, except in a few instances where men 

 sprayed faithfully and kept it up. I do not know how general this was, 

 but I know several instances of it, and undoubtedly they were wise men 

 and thorough. 



The peach crop was. limited to the extreme western ])art of the state 

 almost entirely, where it figured as about one third of an average crop; 

 and of course, under such circumstances, sold at satisfactory prices, 

 the fruit being very large and fine, because it sparsely covered the trees. 



The matter of the observance of certain horticultural laws also will 

 come up in connection with a topic on the programme, and Mr. Graham is 

 here, familiar with the enactment of those laws and the nature of them, 

 and especially with regard to the spraying of orchards for insects, or 

 the better regulation of baskets, in marketing, etc. 



