2168 NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



sixteen-twentieths between an elevation of 100 and 

 1,500 feet, while the mountainous regions of the 

 Adirondack^ and Catskills three-twentieths of the 

 total area rise above 1,500 feet, the maximum alti- 

 tude being above 5,000 feet in a few peaks in the 

 Adirondacks. Excepting a small area in the south- 

 western part, the surface of the whole state shows, in 

 a marked degree, the effects of the erosions, drifts and 

 moraines of the Ice Age. 



The state is drained by five water-systems. Excess 

 water in a small area in the southeast passes through 



2493. New York, showing the main 

 physical areas. 



the Delaware; the Hudson and the Mo- 

 hawk drain the eastern part of the state; 

 the waters of central and western New 

 York pass to the ocean through the Great 

 Lakes and the St. Lawrence; the drainage 

 of the southwestern part is through the Allegheny into 

 the Mississippi system; while the Susquehanna carries 

 the waters of south-central New York into Chesapeake 

 Bay. 



Through its physical features, the state is divided into 

 nine areas, which are somewhat distinct in natural 

 vegetation and more or less so in their agriculture and 

 horticulture. The nine regions are shown hi the 

 accompanying map. The great specialization to be 

 noted in the horticulture of New York is largely 

 accounted for by the differences in the soil and climate 

 of these natural divisions. They are outlined as fol- 

 lows: (1) The Long Island district, a lowland plain, for 

 most part, covered with a thick moraine deposit, in 

 which sand predominates; (2) the Hudson Valley 

 region, lying on both sides of the Hudson River from 

 its mouth north to Lake George a region of very 

 uneven topography and of several geological formations 

 so varied in soils and climate that in it several special 

 horticultural interests have developed; (3) the St. 

 Lawrence and Champlain region, consisting of high 

 and rolling lands and valleys, adjacent to the St. 

 Lawrence River and Lake Champlain, to which may be 

 added the tillable land in the Adirondack Mountains; 

 (4) the broad and fertile valley of the Mohawk from 

 Oneida Lake to the Hudson; (5) the eastern plateau, 

 consisting of the Catskills and the highlands to the 

 west, reaching to the basin of the Central Lakes; (6) 

 the great basin, in which lie the Central or Finger 

 Lakes, large and deep bodies of water having great 

 influence on the climate of the region; (7) the shore of 

 Lake Ontario, from the St. Lawrence to Niagara River, 

 extending from the lake inland several miles to and 



including a high escarpment; (8) the Erie shore, a nar- 

 row plain from the Niagara River to Pennsylvania, 

 bounded on the north by the lake and on the south by a 

 high escarpment; (9) the western plateau, comprising 

 the area west of the basin of the Central Lakes and south 

 of the Erie and Ontario shore regions. 



The rainfall in New York is exceedingly variable, 

 owing to the uneven surface of the land. It varies 

 greatly, in some cases, even within the limits of a 

 county, the annual precipitation being sufficient for 

 most crops in one part, and in another drought may 

 , yearly lie heavily on the land. Irrigation is 

 coming more and more into favor for vege- 

 tables, flowers and small-fruits, but, as yet, is in 

 use only in very limited areas and with intensive 

 cultivation. Specialization in horticulture de- 

 pends much upon the rainfall, both the total 

 amount and its distribution helping to decide the 

 crops that are grown in a region. 



Fruit-growing is chief of the several horti- 

 cultural industries in New York, and the apple 

 is the leading fruit. Apples are grown in all 

 parts of the state, but the great commercial 

 orchards that give New York first rank in the 

 value of this fruit are found in the Ontario shore, 

 the Central Lake and the Hudson Valley regions. 

 Baldwin is the leading variety, with Rhode 

 Island Greening a distant second. Other stand- 

 ard varieties are Northern Spy, King, Twenty 

 Ounce, Wealthy, Oldenburg, Ben Davis, and 

 Mclntosh. The apple industry is in a most 



Erosperous condition, with large demands at 

 ome and abrqad for boxed and barreled stock 

 and increasing demands for fruit at the many 

 evaporators and cider mills in the 

 state. Apple-culture in New York 

 has been greatly stimulated by the 

 general tuning up in agriculture 

 everywhere experienced during 

 the past quarter-century. Good 

 care is now the rule, while but 

 a short time ago it was the excep- 

 tion. 



The grape is second to the apple in importance in 

 New York. Exclusive of California, New York pro- 

 duces nearly half of the grapes grown in the United 

 States, and the yield in Chautauqua County alone is 

 many times more than that of any other state except- 

 ing California. The industry is centered in the Erie 

 shore, Central Lake and Hudson Valley regions. On 

 the Erie shore, several times as many Concords are 

 grown as all other varieties combined, the product going 

 to the general markets and for the manufacture of 

 grape-juice. About the Central Lakes, Catawba is the 

 leading variety, a large part of the crop being used in 

 the manufacture of wine and champagne. In the 

 Hudson Valley, Concord, Delaware and Niagara are 

 the leading varieties. The most striking feature in the 

 grape industry at present is the rapid development in 

 the manufacture of grape-juice, an industry which did 

 not exist in 1900, but in which it is estimated more 

 than 30,000 tons of grapes were used in 1915. Improve- 

 ments in grape-culture have not kept pace with 

 advances in growing other fruits, growers, in the main, 

 cultivating too many acres from which they skim 

 comparatively small returns. 



The peach takes third place in commercial impor- 

 tance among the fruits of New York. The industry is 

 most highly developed along the shores of Lake 

 Ontario, from Oswego west, but is also in very thriving 

 condition about the Central Lakes and in the valley 

 of the Hudson. Some peaches are grown on the grape 

 lands bordering Lake Erie. Elberta is the mainstay 

 in all commercial orchards in New York, with no close 

 second. Peach-growing is a fine art in the state, and 

 nowhere can finer orchards of this fruit be found. 



