PROCKEDINGS OF THE ANNUAl. MEETING 75 



a few. Occasionally sonic will drixc onl from (he village, but IIh'V are 

 niostlv bi-ou^lil here lo the village and one of our grocerynien handles 

 thcni toi- nic. 



Ml'. .Monill: I !o rainicrs as a iiilc grow enough hcnics lor llicir own 

 use? 



Mr. .Maivin: Xo, sir, they go wilhoul. 



jMr. Morrill: They are missing a good thing, aren't they? 



Mr. .Mar\in: I think so. 



Mr. .Miurili: Mr. IJrook. can not yon give ns a geiiornl idea of tin' horti- 

 cultnial matlers in this county, to what extent fruit is cultivated, 

 whelhei- it is improving or otherwise, iuid w hat your i(h'as of it are. w hat 

 the chances are? 



Mv. Frank ^V. lirook: I think the cultivation of fruits generally is 

 increasing. However, this country is devoted almost wholly to general 

 agriculture, but I can remember a few years back, along in the SD's, when 

 you could scarcely buy a berry or vegetable in the open market. Today 

 you can buy everything in its season, and most of it is grown at home, 

 and in the last tive years especially the local product has much increased. 

 Until the present year the nmrket was rather below par. In fact, I have 

 k!U)wn berries that were sold for less than the cost of production. I 

 have in mind one man who told me his experience: That a merchant sent 

 to him for berries, and he sent back woi d that if he would come and [lick 

 the berries he might have them, but he did not feel like donating the time 

 for picking. 



Mr. Mori'ill: How are tree fruits in this county? 



Mr. Brook: Well, apples are more largely grown than any otlier tree 

 fruit. The other. fruits also are grown, es])ecially plums and berries. The 

 a)»i)les are not receiving ])i-oper care, but we liave, though, a very good 

 su}iply of fruit. We generally liave aii over-production of apples one year 

 and the next year we do not have any. Last year they were abundant. 

 You could have any quantity of them for i>icking them up. The gceat 

 fault with our a])i)le (uchards is that there are too many suuiuier an(t fall 

 varieties and not enough w inter apples. The price of winter apt)les in rhis 

 section is always high; on the contrarj', the price of fall and summer 

 i'.pples is always low when we have any. r>ut ai)i>le trees are ])eing 

 planted, and I think that tree fruit generall}' is being j)retty well planted 

 in this county. A good many trees are coming each spring, but not the 

 qinility 11'at sliould be. 



Q: How about peach trees? 



Mr. Brook: I think the ]teach tree is not adapted to this country. 



Q: Are tliere any orchards? 



Mr. Broolv: There are some small orchards. TluM-e may l>e localities 

 in the county that will produce peaclies; in fact I have had a few trees 

 myself that lune ]»rodn.ced. the last tlu'ee years, fair crops, l)ut this year 

 they weie failures. llow('\cr, 1 do not think the country is adapted to 

 growing peaclies, nor that they will ever be a success here. As I say, 

 there are some favored localities that may perhaps produce crops of 

 peaches here, but as a genei-al thing, as a paying connnercial crop. T think 

 th(\v are a failure. 



Mr. Pitt: I think this in regard to ])eaches. that while .Mi-. Ib-ook is on 

 the whole correct as to the larger jiortion of the county, still 1 think we 

 Tiave some land adapted to ])eaches — in fact. I know so. I live about 

 -seventeen miles from this i>lace, in the northwest corner of this county, 



