ANNUAL MEETING, WIS. HORT. SOCIETY. 95 
that was strictly new to well posted orchardists, but the subject 
was handled in a broad manner that would furnish food for thought 
and from which special plans might be worked out. Like Prof. 
Fernow, who visited our society some years ago, he has a gift of 
tongues that is not commonly found in the man whose hands show 
the callus of the pruning hook. 
I looked to find the man of one idea, one “best thing on earth” 
and that in his own exclusive possession, the man who never opens 
his mouth but to pronounce it, but,strange to say, he was not there, 
and, stranger yet, they seem to get on and run a horticultural soci- 
ety without him. And then the man who bobs up and spends a long 
time saying nothing on every subject that comes up seemed to have 
been detained at home by an attack of the grip or some other merci- 
ful disease. 
The show of apples was superb for the time of year, Waupaca Co. 
making a particularly strong exhibit. It was the pleasure of your 
delegate to act as judge, and he made liberal use of his prerogative 
to discover the fine flavor of Wisconsin apples. The old American 
varieties, like Fameuse, Seek-No-Further, Tallman, &c., with the ad- 
dition of Northwestern Greening, McMahon and Wolf River, seem 
to be enjoying the popular favor just now. When I wascalled upon 
to give my ideas on “Planting and Caring for an Orchard,” I felt 
like a boy before a board of examination. I sawin a moment thatit 
would never do to talk Hibernal to that audience, or the idea of 
planting an orchard on the narrow gauge plan. I could not, like 
Philips, tell stories or, like Underwood, sing a song, and all my set 
phrases and stock ideas seemed to be out of place. HowI managed 
to cover up my utter confusion and find my seat amidst applause is 
all due to the patience and good nature of that amiable society. 
The Wisconsin people do so much of their routine business in 
open society that, even with a short program, there was scarcely 
time to do full justice to the real horticultural topics, and we dis- 
covered that there is a distinct “advantage” in the Minnesota plan 
of using the society for horticulture and the executive board for 
business. 
We append a few short notes: 
J. C, Plumb, of Milton, is preparing a history of Wisconsin horti- 
culture. 
Jonathan Perriam, of Illinois, says that the American plum 
brings a higher price on the market than the California. 
Mr. Hardin finds the Whitney as a stock for top-working gener- 
ally outgrown, and varieties seem more inclined to blight on this 
stock. 
The Yellow Transparent is strongly recommended as a profitable 
early market apple. , 
J. C. Ferris, the Iowa delegate, has found that soils will makea 
difference of two weeks in the ripening of apples. 
F, H. Chappel, of Oregon, Wis., would whitewash fruit trees quite 
generally to promote hardiness; apply in the fall. 
Mr. Richardson reported that in his section not less than 10,000 
crates of strawberries rotted on the ground for lack of market, 
