THE MINNESOTA 



HORTICULTURIST. 



VOL. 30. OCTOBER, 1902. No. 10. 



HORTICULTURE AT THE MINNESOTA STATE FAIR, 



1902. 



A. W. LATHAM, SEC'Y. 



The display of fruit in this department was larger in quantity 

 than that of last year, and also surpassed it in size of fruit and gen- 

 eral appearance. When the character of the season is considered 

 the results may be called extraordinary. The summer of 1902 will 

 long be known for the severity and frequency of its storms, the ef- 

 fects of which are very marked, especially in the orchards. Very 

 few orchards have escaped their devastations, and hail marks are 

 common on most orchard fruits. Even fruit selected with great 

 care for exhibition was in many cases too plainly marked from this 

 cause. The lateness of the season also was another drawback. If 

 the exhibit could have been made ten days later the show would 

 have been much more brilliant in yellows and reds, which that 

 much more time would have given to Minnesota apples. As it was, 

 with the exception of the Duchess and a few other early varieties, 

 the uniform tint was a crude green. Notwithstanding these me- 

 teorological drawbacks the show was a magnificent one, and re- 

 ceived only compliments, and no criticisms. 



The total number of plates of fruit shown in the hall was 3,761, 

 divided as follows : apples, 300 ; plums, 295 ; grapes, 454 ; compass 

 cherries, three; peaches, one, and pears, six. There were four ex- 

 hibitors in the sweepstakes apple class, aggregating in all 250 

 plates, ranging from forty-one to seventy-five, the latter being the 

 maximum number allowed. In the class of professional collections of 

 apples, there were five exhibits, aggregating 290 plates, the highest 

 number shown by any one competitor being ninety-one. In ama- 

 teur apple collections there were seven exhibitors, aggregating 270 

 plates, ranging from eighty-three to thirteen. The grape exhibit 

 this year was comparatively light on account of the lateness of the 

 season, exhibitors disliking to show green fruit, and also because of 

 the devastation by hail, which was quite general throughout the 



