THE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK 



into which cold air may settle with its attendant dangers of late frosts. 

 Shipping facilities must also be considered, and proximity to a large city 

 plays an important part, and it is for these reasons that the country around 

 Spokane is especially valuable, for this city is the largest railroad center 

 west of the Mississippi. Irrigation is absolutely necessary for the best 

 results, as the rainfall rarely exceeds eighteen inches per year, and in some 

 sections is considerably less than this. The days in summer are long, with 

 almost uninterrupted sunshine during July and August when the fruit is 

 maturing. This, with the ability to irrigate at this critical time, gives this 

 section its reputation for highly colored apples of fine flavor, uniform 

 development, and large yield. 



The clearing of the sage-brush land is comparatively simple, for this 

 vegetation is readily eliminated, but the after irrigation of land of this 

 kind is a more serious problem for it requires much more water to pro- 

 duce results than is required in the timbered districts, the natural rainfall 

 being much less. The. clearing of land from which the timber has been 

 removed represents a much greater initial cost, but the very fact of the 

 timber growth indicates a greater annual rainfall, so that the after expense 

 of irrigation is not so heavy, a compensating advantage. The stumps are 

 shattered with dynamite, and the remains removed with stump-pullers. 

 Much of this timber land has a deep soil, rich in mineral elements, and is 

 what we would call in this country a sandy loam. It is made up largely of 

 volcanic ash and is very retentive of moisture. 



It is the irrigation feature, however, that is of especial interest to those 

 in the east, for this is something with which we are entirely unfamiliar. 

 It is this which makes for success or failure in many of the districts. In 

 unusually dry seasons it is especially a deciding financial factor. The 

 water supply is secured from rivers, lakes and wells, and is delivered upon 

 the land through extensive systems of pipes, flumes and ditches, some of 

 them miles in extent. The water supply may be at an altitude which will 

 permit of a gravity system of irrigation ; otherwise it is necessary to pump 

 the water to get it upon the land. 



Water, being such an important factor in the development of the coun- 

 try, is highly prized. The constitution and laws of Washington provide 

 that all navigable bodies of water are the property of the state, and that 

 she can do with them as she sees fit. The rights of riparian owners extend 

 only to high water mark. To make use of water it is necessary to file 

 upon the water of a given lake or river. This filing must be officially 

 recorded, and the first in time is the first in right, the future standing of 

 the filing depending upon the accomplishment of a certain specified amount 

 of work in the development of the project for which the water is required. 



Orcharding is a business there, and not a mere incident, and everything 

 is done in the very best manner. They are striving for perfect apples, 

 uniform in color and size, and to accomplish this great care is taken in 

 pruning the trees and in thinning the fruit. During the early summer 

 a large part of the apples, sometimes one half or more, is removed, that 



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