2180 NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



crops. Indianapolis, the capital and center of the state, 

 is within 50 miles of the center of population of the 

 United States. It is the geographical center of the terri- 

 tory stretching from Maine to Colorado, which em- 

 braces 92 }/% per cent of the total population of the 

 nation. A circle with a 300-mile radius, having Indian- 

 apolis as its center, includes over one-quarter of the 

 population of the country. 



Another factor of no Little importance to the horti- 

 cultural interests of the state is the low price of lands 

 suited to the various horticultural crops. Excellent 

 land for orchard and truck crops can be purchased 

 from $25 to $50 an acre. 



Many horticultural crops are now grown in Indiana, 

 but the apple easily stands first. The state ranks 

 seventh in the ten-year average production of this fruit, 

 so far as quantity is concerned. The present apple- 

 growing sections are found in the northern counties, the 

 valleys of the Wabash, White-water, White and Ohio 

 rivers and the south-central hill counties. Large com- 

 mercial plantings are being made in these regions. In 

 the northern sections, the Baldwin, Spy, and Greenings 

 predominate. In the central and southern sections the 

 new plantings are being made of Grimes, Rome, Wine- 

 sap, Stayman, and Ben Davis. The early sorts are not 

 being planted so extensively as the market seems to 

 warrant. Several large plantations, however, have 

 used Yellow Transparent, Wealthy, Duchess, and 

 Wagener as fillers. The larger part of commercial 

 orchards are well sprayed. The very abundance of 

 pests makes this a necessity. Unsprayed trees in 

 Indiana live in the shadow of a signed death warrant. 

 The San Jose scale, blotch, bitter-rot and blight soon 

 remove the unfit. These pests are the best friends of 

 the commercial grower for they clear his markets of 

 undesirable bulk stock. Lime-sulfur is generally used 

 as a winter spray for San Jos6 scale and general sanati- 

 cide. Bordeaux has been replaced in the northern sec- 

 tions by dilute lime-sulfur. In the central and southern 

 regions, however, where blotch and bitter-rot are ever 

 present, the old tried and true bordeaux is still used. 

 Dry arsenate is almost universally accepted as the 

 standard insecticide for chewing insects. The bulk of 

 the Indiana apple crop is marketed in the barrel. The 

 box is receiving attention in some sections but is not 

 yet a common package. The fancy and choice grades 

 are generally stored in commercial cold-storage rooms. 

 The state is well equipped with storage facilities. Excel- 

 lent houses are found in Indianapolis, Vincennes, Wash- 

 ington, Seymour, Martinsville, Terre Haute, Brazil, 

 South Bend and Ft. Wayne. 



The Indiana orchardist is now making the most of 

 his long neglected opportunities. Old orchards are 

 being leased and new ones planted on every side. 

 Neglected orchards are being pruned, cultivated, 

 sprayed, and fertilized as never before. 



Indiana has given one hundred varieties of apples to 

 the pomology of the country. The most important of 

 these are: Banana, Clayton, Indian, Indiana Favorite, 

 Pound Sweet, Ragan, Ronk, and Wilson. Other 

 Indiana varieties are the Hoosier Cling peach, Wilder 

 currant, Gregg raspberry, and the Taylor and Snyder 

 blackberries. 



The peach, plum, and cherry thrive in every part of 

 the state and are always found in the home orchard. 

 They are of commercial importance, however, only in 

 exceptionally favored locations, along the southern 

 shore of Lake Michigan, the lower Wabash Valley, the 

 central hill counties, and the old Ohio Valley peach 

 region. Orchards in these locations do remarkably well 

 and the industry is being extended each year. Commer- 

 cial peach plantings are largely limited to the Elberta. 

 This variety does exceedingly well in the southern 

 sections. Cherry orchards are planted only of Early 

 Richmond and Montmorency. Plums are planted very 

 little in a commercial way. 



Small-fruit plantations are found around every city 

 of importance. Sections of Floyd and Clark counties 

 (southeastern part of Indiana) are devoted almost 

 entirely to the production of early berries for northern 

 markets. The fruit from this region strikes a free mar- 

 ket and finds a very ready sale. The northern tier of 

 counties also produce berries of high quality and at a 

 time of free and brisk markets. 



Several wild fruits and nuts grow to perfection in 

 Indiana and have assumed commercial importance in 

 some localities. The cranberry and blueberry are found 

 in the muck, swampy soil regions, the persimmon and 

 pawpaw in all parts of the state and the pecan in the 

 southern river-bottoms. 



The trucking interests are especially strong in 

 Indiana. Thousands of acres along the Kankakee River 

 are of a muck formation. When properly drained, this 

 soil is excellent for the large number of vegetable crops. 



Onions are the most important crop grown in this 

 region. The land is drained by county ditches and 

 intricate systems of tile drains. Large areas are 

 generally held by one owner who leases the land to 

 foreign labor. The Southport Globes, yellow and red, 

 are almost exclusively grown. Yields of 800 to 900 

 bushels to the acre on this rich soil are not at all uncom- 

 mon. Celery is also a favorite crop for this soil. Golden 

 Self-blanching, Winter Queen, and Giant Pascal are 

 grown for the Chicago market. Large areas of cabbage 

 are planted mainly for the kraut factories. The varie- 

 ties most generally grown are Flat Dutch, All Seasons, 

 and similar sorts. Potatoes are grown for the early 

 and late markets. The main planting is of the late 

 varieties, generally Rural New Yorker. Large fields 

 of peppermint are grown for the oil-stills. Excellent 

 yields are secured and handsome profits made. 



The central area or corn-belt is a large producer of 

 the canning crops. Tomatoes and corn are the principal 

 crops. The sandy soils of Knox (in the southwestern 

 part of the state) and surrounding counties produce 

 cantaloupes and watermelons which supply the mar- 

 kets of the country by train-loads. Sugar-beets are 

 grown in several sections of the state but reach their 

 highest state of excellence in Adams, Well, and Jay 

 counties, in the eastern part of the state. The truck 

 industry of Indiana is of great importance and is very 

 diversified. 



No sketch of the early history of Indiana horticul- 

 ture, however fragmentary and incomplete, can omit the 

 names of some of the pioneer horticulturists of the state. 

 The names of the Ragans, of Teas, and Fletcher, and 

 Warder, and a dozen of their fellows, will always be 

 remembered in connection with the early founding, the 

 rapid spread, and the abundant success of pioneer 

 Indiana horticulture. 



The nursery business in Indiana has kept pace with 

 the ever-growing demand for horticultural stock. There 

 are now 150 regularly inspected nurseries in the state. 

 The largest cherry nursery in the country is located at 

 Vincennes. Several nurseries catering only to the orna- 

 mental trade are found near Indianapolis. The larger 

 number of firms, however, deal in general stock and 

 cater especially to the general farm orchard. 



Indiana floriculture is well developed and in a thriv- 

 ing condition. Large ranges of commercial houses are 

 found around the more important cities, such as Ft. 

 Wayne, South Bend, Indianapolis, Terre Haute, and 

 Evansville. These ranges are devoted primarily to the 

 wholesale and retail trade. The plant-breeder and 

 introducer seems to favor the smaller towns. Some of 

 the most important varieties of roses, carnations, and 

 chrysanthemums have been produced in small Indiana 

 plants. The Newcastle roses are justly famous the 

 world over. The Sunburst and Ophelia roses, as well 

 as many others, were produced at Richmond. One of 

 the largest breeders and introducers of carnations in 

 the United States is located at LaFayette. 



