THE GENESEE FARMER. 



251 



CONDUCTED BY JOSEPH FEOST. 



HORTICULTURAL EXHIBITIONS, &c., IN 

 CAYUGA AND TOMPiilNS COUNTIES. 



On the 21st of June the members of the Cayufra 

 County Horticultural Society held au exhibition in 

 Auburn, which we had the pleasure of attending. 

 The operations of this Society are quite in their in- 

 fancy, as this is the second year of its existence — 

 having been instituted in 1853 by the appointment 

 of Harrison T. Dickinson, Esq., of Auburn, as its 

 President, with the usual number of other oflieei's. 



This exhibition was held in a very fine and spacious 

 hall, in the central part of the city, which was beau- 

 tifully ornamented with varieties of evergreens and 

 flowers. Extending nearly around tlie room were 

 tiers of shelves, rising one above the other, pre- 

 senting in the most favorable light the articles upon 

 exhibition. This was protected by a slight guard, 

 formed by small round poles. In the center there 

 was placed a long table, containing the boquets and 

 most of the pot plants; thus making the arrangement 

 quite complete and simple, and evincing good taste. 



The articles presented were very choice, and of 

 great variety ; and most of the plants showed good 

 culture, which was quite noticeable and deserving of 

 much praise, considering that the Society has been so 

 recently formed. 



P. R. Frekoff, a florist and nurseryman, has been 

 able to supply much that has been wanted in that 

 vicinity, by keeping choice and good thinga A por- 

 tion of the citizens manifested much zeal and spirit ; 

 but with a large part there was displayed much want 

 of appreciation of that which is good and beautiful, 

 as those in attendance were fewer than we expected 

 to see. The contributions were not only by the peo- 

 ple of Auburn and vicinity, but we noticed them 

 trom a distance. 



. Mrs. Henry Morgan, and Dr. A. Thompson, from 

 that charming little spot, Aurora, situated on the 

 east bank of Cayuga Lake, presented some very nice 

 things ; the latter contributing a great variety of 

 Roses, Verbenas and Fuchsias, as well as a quantity 

 of well-grown strawberries. 



A. Frost & Co., of the Genesee Valley Nurseries, 

 Rochester, had about two hundred varieties of Roses, 

 besides a large collection of Verbenas, and twenty 

 pots of superior herbaceous Calceolarias. 



As we were anxious to witness the first show of 

 the Tompkins County Horticultural Society, which 

 was recently organized, we visited Ithaca, at the 

 head of Cayuga Lake, on the 22d of June. The 

 premiums to be awarded were truly grand, which 

 was quite a new feature in exhibitions of this sort. 

 Among flowers and fruit nearly $200 were offered, 

 distributed among thirty-one prizes. There were no- 

 ticed five prizes at $1.5 each, one at SlO, three at 

 $7 each, and others at a diminished rate. Owing 

 almost wholly to the liberality displayed in the pre- 

 mium hst, and not a little to the novelty of the exhi- 

 bition for the town, the large hall in which it wa-; 

 held was completely packed, so that it was quite dit- 



ficult to find standing room, without reference to an 

 examination of the articles. 



The interest manifested did not abate till late in 

 the evening, when the articles were disposed of at 

 auction. The substantials, as strawberries and cher- 

 ries, brought good prices, but the flowers were quite 

 behind. The fruits of the season were very abun- 

 dant, and in great variety upon the tables. The 

 strawberries were as fine as we ever saw ; the size 

 and weight of some of the bprries and bunches were 

 truly astonishing ; but it will be seen that nature has 

 done not a little to aid this. 



Mr. James M. Mattison, of Jacksonville, as well 

 as James Welch, gardener to James McLallen, 

 Esq., of Trumansburgh, were awarded some valuable 

 prizes upon articles deserving of much credit. Mr, 

 John Given, gardener to the President of the So- 

 ciety, Herman Camp, Esq., of Trumansburgh, received 

 a good share; a helmet and sash composed of flowers, 

 brought in by him, attracted much attention. An 

 honorable mention was given Mrs. Dr. Thomson, 

 and Mi-s. Henry Morgan, of Aurora, for their con- 

 tributions. The former presented, besides a large 

 collection of Roses, Verbenas, Fuchsias, and other 

 cut flowers, an exquisite basket of flowei-s, of the 

 most delicate arrangement ; but as they were out of 

 the limits, they could not compete. 



It is to be hoped that their future displays may 

 not meet with less success than this their first attempt; 

 but to make them interesting, instructive and beneficial 

 to the parties interested, as well as to the whole com- 

 munity, which we believe to be the object of these 

 shows, they mnst be broad in their application, to 

 include the whole country, and not be confined to the 

 sole operations of a town or hamlet. We were sorry 

 to see that this course was not adopted, but a narrow 

 pohcy introduced by the management, allowing only 

 those to compete who were residents of the county. 

 We have since been assured that for the future a 

 more liberal plan is to be pursued, which can not 

 fail to insure a better result. 



The soil in and around Ithaca has been formed 

 wholly by seven or eight streams, which have brought 

 immense quantities of loam and vegetable earth, 

 in seasons of freshets and at other times, from the 

 hills and rising land about, and deposited it in the 

 valley below, which has made the soil twelve to fif- 

 teen feet deep, and account's somewhat for the large 

 size of strawberries when grown in such soil. 



Peach trees seemed not to have suffered any by 

 the curi, and we are assured that they produce large 

 and regular crops. 



Strawberries. — At the recent fair of the Genesee 

 Valley Horticultural Society, we were much pleased 

 with the marked improvement of the strawberry, as 

 compared with the exhibitions but a few years since. 

 The mammoth Alpines, Jennet's Seedlings and Py- 

 ramidal Chilians of Mr. Newland, of Palmyra, 

 deserve a notice for the uniformity of size in the ap- 

 pearance of the fruit, and the skill manifested by the 

 intelligent cultivator. We understood Mr. W. to say, 

 that after nine years experimenting he had reduced 

 the growing of the fruit in question to a certainty 

 with that of any crop cultivated ; and judging by the 

 specimens exhibited, we aie inclined to think the same. 



