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100 ANNUAL REPORT. * 
careful and attentive manner. In other words let everything of Minnesota ;- 
growth, offered for sale in our markets, be of vastly superior quality, i in addition © 
to being fresh and put up in the most attractive styles. Then in that case I 
think Minnesota horticulturists would not suffer so much as now from competi- 
tion with imported stocks. As Daniel Webster once said about lawyers, ‘there 
was plenty of room on the upper shelf;’’ no competition there; or words to that 
effect. I have always found that whoever had anything ior sale better than was 
to be found upon the market or in common channels of trade, always found 
plenty of customers when once known, at fair and firm prices. To illustrate 
my meaning, who does not know that at this time, with the millions of bushels of 
wheat in our State seeking a market, that if one man had any quantity of 
good, hard, clean wheat that would weigh 60 to 64 lbs to the measured bushel he 
would not want for customers, no matter how much he might have, at prices far 
above all market quotations, while the farmer having wheat that was 
unsound, dirty and only weighing 40 to 45 lbs. to the bushel would not find cus- 
tomers at any price. This is equally true of butter. I know of one farmer who 
sold butter in St. Paul market for 19 years at 40 cents per pound the year round 
and to one customer during the 19 years’ time at this price, and he never has 
wanted for customers at this price, while thousands of tons of butter seeks a 
market at 3 to 10 cents per pound, and the same holds good in regard to all 
farm produce. The best not only commands the best price but is of the readiest 
and quickest sale. And why is this not true to a greater extent in fruits, vege- 
tables, flowers, plants. trees, seeds, and all horticultural products, they as a general 
thing being much more perishable. Now we here certainly have this advantage, 
if we cannot grow any better fruits and vegetables (which I most emphatically 
deny) we can put them upon the market in a fresher state and in a more attractive 
manner, and thereby enhance the price and our own profits. Much might be 
said on this subject but one illustration will serve to convey my meaning, I last 
summer saw two farmers in St. Paul market with currants for sale; one had his 
currants in two bushel baskets, had brought them 12 or 14 miles. They were 
picked over ripe and in a careless manner, some stems &c., and were originally 
vevy fine currants, but looked rather dilapidated or worse for carriage. He 
offered them for 50 cents per bushel and could not find a purchaser on the mar- 
ket and had to leave without selling, while the other had extra fine currants 
carefully picked, just ripe, and neatly put up in quart baskets and sold readily 
for 10 to 1214 cents per quart or $3.00 to $3.50 per bushel. Now parties will 
tell me they are poor, they cannot afford to cultivate well and buy the best vari- 
eties, and what they;do grow they cannot afford to buy crates and baskets for, 
cannot afford to put up in good shape for market, Now I will attempt to say 
no man who grows fruit or berries for market can afford to do otherwise than 
put it up in the best and most attractive manner if he wishes or expects to get a 
living at his business. Now to sum up I would recommend and think this soci- 
ety will sustain my views or most of them, that in order to succeed as a Horti- 
culturist in Minnesota, requires, 
ist. That a man love and take pleasure and pride in horticulture. 
2d. That he should thoroughly understand or learn his business. 
3d. That he should understand his soil, location and market in order to know 
what to plant. 
4th. He should not attempt to raise more than he can cultivate in the very best 
manner, and harvest and market at the proper time and in the best and most 
attractive manner. Now, by observing these few simple rules, nearly all will 
succeed even here in Minnesota. 
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