NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



NORTH AMERICAN STATES 2253 



heavily tiiubered valley, its soutlu'iii hhilTs, some 5 to 

 10 miles wide, enjoy peculiar immimity from late frosts. 

 Here ajiples fioiirish about as well ;xs in northern 

 Arkansas, and jieaehes have not failed entirely in fruit 

 in almost forty years. 



^^■ith the exce|)tion of a few of the tenderer shrubs, 

 evcrj'thinft is growii here as well as in east Texas, and 

 apples, grapes and some other fniits grow better and 

 acquire higher color and flavor, owing to a less hvnnid 

 atmosphere. In this belt belong the cosmopolitan little 

 cities of Texarkana, Paris, Shcnnan, Denison and 

 Gainesville, in which are found many beautiful resi- 

 dences and grounds, many orchartls, vineyards, and 

 berrv' jilantations. Railway facilities are excellent, and 

 good markets lie in eveiy direction. Trucking also is 

 extensive. Cut-flower and general nursery business 

 flourish in the places named. 



Similar conilitions prevail in some parts of the Trinity 

 River Valley as along Red River, especially about Dalhxs 

 and Fort Worth; also on the Brazos at Waco, but more 

 of the southern t>-pe. These three cities nestle in the 

 heart of the next great division. 



The Black Waxy Prairie region of Texas lies next 

 to east Texas on the west and to the Red River Valley 

 on the south, extending west to about 98° and south 

 to within 1.50 to 100 miles of the Gulf, a broken irregu- 

 lar arm of the east Texas region extending south- 

 westwardly between it and the Coastal Plain. This 

 region has an altitude in its southern parts of 400 to 

 500 feet and rises in the northwest to 1,000 feet or more. 

 The rainfall varies from 50 inches or more in its eastern 

 parts to 30 inches in the western parts. The foundation 

 is white chalky lime-rock, the soil very black, sticky 

 and exceedingly rich, highly adapted to grains, gra.sses 

 and cotton, but not suitable for most fruits. The stone- 

 fruits and blackberries do best. Onions are largely 

 gro^\-n in Collin County of which McKinney is county- 

 seat. Most shrubbery does well. The Bermuda-grass 

 flourishes in Texas wherever grass can grow and is the 

 almost exclusive lawn-grass. Very handsome yards 

 are made by some of the farmers and many who live 

 in the towns and cities; but most farmers in Texas 

 have done little or nothing to beautify their homes 

 horticulturally. 



The Brown, or Chocolate Plains region of Texas, 

 devoted principally to grazing and small grains, lies to 

 the westward of the Black Land Region, Ls about 200 

 miles wide by (JOO long, extending from Oklahoma on 

 the north to the Rio Grande on the south, running 

 from 1,000 feet altitude on the south and east to 3,000 

 feet on the west, where it ends suddenly against the 

 cliffs of the still higher Staked Plains region. 



Horticulture is in its infancy in all this vast semi- 

 arid, high, rolling prairie country, and can do little with- 

 out irrigation. Yet many wealthy stockmen there have 

 beautiful grounds surrounding their homes, and grow 

 ♦heir home supjilies of very fine fruits. Of commerical 

 horticulture there yet is none. The same may be said 

 of the Staked Plains region, but its soil is dark rich 

 loam, the country almost a dead level, except where 

 canons have cut into it, its altitude from 3,.iOO to 4,.'j00 

 feet, its climate dry and very salubrious. Irrigation- 

 horticulture in a small way is sustained from driven 

 wells, which strike plenty of water at 10 to 30 feet. 

 Stock-grazing is the chief commercial occupation, small 

 grain coming next. Five or six counties northw-est from 

 Austin, in the central i)arts of the Chocolate Belt, arc 

 ven,- broken, hilly and picturesque, well adaj)ted to 

 fruits. Nearly every home there is supplied with fruits. 



The Pecos Valley lies just west of the Staked Plains, 

 and east of a spur of the Rocky Mountains. In jilaces 

 it is irrigated, as at Ro.swell an<l Carlsbad, New Mexico, 

 and Pecos City and Stockton, Texas. Commercial 

 fruit-growing is considerable in this valley, especially 

 at Roswcll and Pecos City. .\t the latter place is a 

 vineyard of 40 acres of the vinifcra varieties, planted 



twenty years, doing finely on their own roots and very 

 profitable, as the fruit goes to market in northern cities 

 before any grapes are ripe in California. The Stockton 

 region is largely irrigating and planting vinifera grape, 

 pears, alfalfa and so on. 



The Rio Grande Valley is much wanner in the 

 same latitude than the Pecos Valley, otherwise the horti- 

 cultural conditions are much the same. At El Paso and 

 Ysleta, a Uttle way south on the Texas side, considerable 

 quantities of vinifera grapes of table varieties are grown 

 un<ler irrigation and slii])ped to other parts of Texas and 

 to northern cities in ,\ugust and September. Pears and 

 plums are also grown to some extent. Farther down on 

 the Rio Grande, at Del Rio, Eagle Pass and Laredo, 

 grapes, figs and onions are considerably grown and 

 shipped to the larger Texas cities and the North. The 

 grapes are of the Old World varieties, and ripen in June; 

 consequently they have no competition and bring fine 

 prices. The conditions are such that immense quan- 

 tities of as fine grapes of this class can be grown in this 

 part of Texas as in the best regions of California, and 

 the cost of getting to market is not more than half as 

 much. Undoubtedly the triangular region between San 

 Antonio, Laredo and Del Rio will in the near future 

 have extensive commercial vineyards of vinifera 

 graiies. 



A vast mountainous and dry-plains region extends 

 from the Pecos to the Rio Grande, devoted to goats, 

 sheep and cattle; yet at Fort Davis, on a beautiful 

 mesa, some 5,000 feet altitude, among mountains 2,000 

 to 4,000 feet higher, are a good many very beautiful 

 homes, and fruits do finely, as there is sufficient rain- 

 fall and the air is very pure, so that diseases are almost 

 unknown. 



The Spanish taste in home grounds among the 

 wealthy of southwestern Texas, who are chiefly stock- 

 growers and merchants, is sometimes seen. It consists 

 of a plaza, or open square in the center of the residence, 

 having foimtains (where water is to be had abundantly), 

 and borders, beds and vases of rare tropical and sub- 

 tropical flowers, shrubs and fruits. Around this highly 

 artistic garden the hou.se is built, often of adobe, some- 

 times of stone, cut and carved, in large rooms adjoining 

 and opening into each other, all on the ground-floor 

 and one large door opening out to the street or small 

 front yard from a big hall, sometimes having grand 

 arches and marble columns. No windows are in the 

 outside walls, excejit perhajis in the front, the rooms 

 all being lighted from within the plaza. Thus great 

 seclusion is secured and a perpetual conservatory scene 

 is had from every room. Paved walks, usually covered, 

 run around the plaza next the rooms and similar walks 

 cross through the plaza. This style has given way to 

 American styles. The plaza-park prevails also in the 

 finer hotels, as seen in some at San Antonio; and these, 

 on an enlarged scale at various places in the denser 

 parts of the city, give a vci-y refreshing appearance. 

 In the central and western parts of the state the north- 

 em and eastern style of park, cemetery and private 

 grounds decoration is mostly copied, as is also the 

 architecture. Some very creditable examples are seen 

 in Dallas, Waco, Austin, Paris, Sherman, Gainesville, 

 Fort Worth and other places. 



There are numerous small, and a few fair-sized 

 nurseries scattered over the state. Plant and cut-flower 

 business is developing rapidly in the larger cities. 



Seed business is almost entirel}' commercial or job- 

 bing, few being engaged in growing seeds of any kind 

 as a business, and the supply comes from northern and 

 eastern growers excejit the grains. 



The following persons, now deceased, have occupied 

 a prominent place in the development of Texas horti- 

 culture: T. V. Mun.son, Deni.son; H. M. Stringfellow; 

 Win. Watson; A. M. Ramsey, Austin; C. Falkner, 

 Waco; E. IL .\daras, Bonham; J. C. Newberry, Pilot 

 Point; J. T. Whitaker, Tyler. 



