318 STATE HOKTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



should be supplied with a suitable wagon that will carry produce without injury. 

 He should arrange his produce on his wagon so as to be attractive and pleasing 

 to the eye of the purchaser. Much time is saved sometimes by having a variety, 

 as often one man will buy your entire load, when, by having a big load of one 

 kind of vegetable or fruit, you are often obliged to drive all over the city. 

 Much more could be said upon this great subject of market gardening; but I 

 trust that the experience which we have obtained from our past success and 

 failures will aid us more in prospering in the future than anything that I could 

 write. Market gardeners let us get to the front in this buisness, we should not 

 be satisfied in simply supplying the market of this city. Let us advance by 

 raising more produce to the acre, and more acres, a larger variety and a better 

 quality. Let us also improve our land, enrich the soil and build up our homes, 

 and I believe success will attend us. 



Orman Baxter led the discussion, referring particularly to the advantages of 

 a sandy soil to needs of market gardening. 



C. L. Whitney followed, speaking of the lack of information throughout the 

 State of the fact that a sandy soil in the vicinity of a large lake had advan- 

 tages over a heavy soil in the interior. He mentioned the fact that the market 

 garden localities of New York, Boston and Albany and most of the great cities 

 of the country were started on what were originally worthless sandy plains. He 

 said, too, that we should see to it that when the next census was taken fuller 

 statistics be obtained in regard to market gardening. 



Mr. Holt spoke of the advantages enjoyed by those engaged in market 

 gardening over the ordinary farmer, in the fact that the variety of crops of the 

 latter is so small that if one or more of them failed in product or price, he 

 finds himself in a bad condition, while the gardener has an endless number to 

 rely upon. Speaking of men in the vicinity of Muskegon who are annually 

 realizing a greater net profit from ten and twenty acres than is realized from 

 many of the large farms of the interior of the State, he stated that the time 

 is not far distant when this locality will become the garden of Michigan, and 

 that the prosperous day for Muskegon is when less attention is paid to sawing 

 and shipping green lumber and more to the cultivation of the soil. 



Mr. Collier spoke of the advantages of thorough cultivation of whatever 

 ground is planted. 



Mr. Cobb also made a few remarks upon the subject. 



The society adjourned until September 18, when the annual fall exhibition 

 of fruits and flowers will take place. 



The society made a very fine exhibition on the 18th of September, particu- 

 larly of grapes; and it will be remembered that a collection of grapes shown at 

 this fair were taken to the Western fair at Grand Rapids a few days afterwards, 

 and there received the first premium. 



October Meeting. 



No paper was read at this meeting, and the time was occupied in a general 

 discussion of various subjects pertaining to horticulture. 



