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FORTY-SECOND ANNUAL REPORT. 113 



this is a question that confronts many of these young men who are 

 planning to start out for themselves in the fruit business. This is a 

 problem which no one can answer except the one who is solving it. 

 I can answer it for myself, but 1 cannot do so for these young men — 

 they must answer it for themselves. But before they answer it, let 

 them study the question carefully, let them get all the good advice from 

 experienced growers, and then, when they act it will be with their 

 eyes open, and the probabilities are that they will make the right move. 



A gentleman a little while spoke of an orchard being planted on 

 high land. That won't do in this north country. Cherries may stand 

 it, and perhaps apples, in these locations, but it would be better to get 

 on the slopes out of the way of these winds. Just over the hill, no 

 farther than the length of this church, may make a difference between 

 success and failure. It is on the slopes that we have the frosts most 

 apt to stay off the land, more than on the tops of hills or in the valley. 

 We know by experience. The cold weather in some way or other runs 

 down aud the warmer air goes around — just how it happens I am not 

 prepared to say, but I know it does happen, and that is all there is to 

 it, and that is what we want to recognize. 



The soil has everything to do with the location of an orchard. These 

 gentlemen have exhausted this part of the subject, the climatic condi- 

 tions necessary for a successful orchard have been quite thoroughly 

 discussed. Mr. Sessions, who has had crops of peaches for over twenty 

 years on the same land, thinks his climatic condition is just what it 

 should be, but you could not do what he does here at Grand Rapids. 

 This question of atmospheric drainage and climatic condition, is a ques- 

 tion that is not as thoroughly understood nor are we able to tell all 

 about it as we would like. 



A Voice: Could you pick these out? 



Answer — I could in our own country, I think, but I could not go 

 out around here in a livery rig and pick them out. 



A Member — I am going through a new section, could you before you 

 knew that these climatic conditions existed there — have you any in- 

 formation that would enable you to tell just what they would be from 

 looking over the location? 



Mr. Rose — You must take into consideration where you are. The 

 climatic conditions that obtain in the West are not the same as here. 

 In Michigan they are just about the same a certain distance from Lake 

 Michigan. You cannot go far inland from Lake Michigan, and find 

 land that will not be very much different from here. So you could not 

 depend with absolute certainty that certain conditions would be sure 

 to obtain. But where we are, three miles from Lake Michigan, we 

 have not had a failure for twenty years. We had an enormous crop of 

 Crawfords this year, larger than any other year before. 



Now another point that must be considered, and that a man must 

 know about, is the shipping facilities. Don't go away back so that 

 you have to haul your fruit too far. The price of land does not cut so 

 much of a figure as does the location — getting out your fruit — getting 

 help in to assist in picking it — these are vital questions. 



A Member — But suppose that such a place was the only one you 

 could go to, to get a location, such as you wanted? 

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