1788 



TEXAS 



TEXAS 



also the Honey and Peen-to types, succeed well. Japan- 

 ese plums, persimmons, and various American and for- 

 eign grapes also succeed, the latter requiring to be 

 grafted on phylloxera-resistant roots, which are found 

 in the numerous wild vines of the state. 



Ornamental horticulture, in all its branches, is here 

 characterized by a profusion and luxury of growth in 

 foliage and flower of a semi-tropical nature. Ever- 

 blooming roses continue to flower most of the winter. 

 Broad-leaved evergreen trees and shrubs, known in 

 the North only in conservatories, are here seen in all 

 well-appointed private grounds and in parks and ceme- 

 teries. Cape jasmine hedges, with their dark glossy 

 green foliage and pearly white, camellia-like, sweet 

 perpetual flowers, are very popular. Commercial plant- 

 and cut-flower growers do a good business in the cities 

 of Galveston and Houston. During the winter holidays 

 they collect from the woods great quantities of long 

 (''Spanish") moss, holly, magnolia, mistletoe, palmetto, 

 smilax, etc , and ship to northern cities for decoration 

 purposes. In May and June they send to northern 

 florists great numbers of cape jasmine and magnolia 

 flowers. 



2. The Great East Texas Forest Region lies just north 

 of the eastern end of the Coastal Plain, the city of 

 Beaumont being situated in its southern extremity. 

 Extending westward from the Sabine river on the east 

 to the Navasota river on the west, over 150 miles, and 

 northward to Red river about 300 miles, narrowing 

 somewhat in its northern parts, is one of the grandest 

 and richest forests in America. Three species of fine 

 lumber pines are most abundant. Numerous oaks, hick- 

 ories, elms, maples, beeches, white and black walnuts, 

 gums, poplars, pecans, lindens, magnolias, holly, persim- 

 mons, sassafras, and numerous handsome shrubs and 

 perennial flowers are found almost everywhere, but 

 especially along the streams. The soil is generally very 

 sandy, underlaid with red and yellow clay, and well 

 adapted to fruits of almost all kinds. The altitude 

 varies from 100 to 600 feet. The rainfall is ample from 

 40 to 60 inches annually the climate is very mild, and 

 altogether it is an almost ideal land in which to live 

 easily and have a very paradise of a home, with a 

 moderate activity of mind and body. Owing to the 

 great lumber-mill interests, and lack of market facili- 

 ties, nearly all horticultural pursuits have been over- 

 shadowed until recently. But at Palestine, Tyler, 

 Troupe, Longview, Nacogdoches and some other points, 

 large commercial peach orchards, berry plantations 

 and canneries have been in very successful operation 

 for a number of years and these interests are rapidly 

 increasing. Railway facilities are growing, and alto- 

 gether East Texas has a very bright horticultural 

 future. Trucking of nearly all kinds, and fruit-growing, 

 with berries, peaches, plums, apples (especially in 

 northern parts), and pears, could hardly ask for better 

 natural conditions. Until recently the settlers of this 

 region were almost entirely from the older southern 

 states and not very enterprising, yet very sociable, and 

 their houses, yards and gardens are of the southern 

 type. They earnestly desire enterprising, intelligent 

 people from the North and East to take up their excel- 

 lent, though cheap lands, and improve them. 



3. The Red River Valley is a long extension to the 

 westward some 250 miles of the soil, climatic and 

 forest conditions of East Texas, excepting the pines, 

 gums, and some other trees in its western parts. 



But, as the Red river runs eastward in a broad, deep, 

 heavily timbered valley, its southern bluffs, some 5 to 

 10 miles wide, enjoy peculiar immunity from late frosts. 

 Here apples flourish about as well as in northern 

 Arkansas, and peaches have not failed entirely in fruit 

 during the twenty-five years of residence of the writer 

 at Denison, Texas. 



With the exception of a few of the tenderer shrubs, 

 everything is grown here as well as in East Texas, and 

 apples, grapes and some other fruits grow better arid 

 acquire higher color and flavor, owing to a less humid 

 atmosphere. In this belt belong the cosmopolitan little 

 cities of Texarkana, Paris, Sherman, Denison and 

 Gainesville, in which are found many beautiful resi- 

 dences and grounds, many orchards, vineyards, and 

 berry plantations. Railway facilities are excellent, and 



good markets lie in every direction. Trucking is also 

 extensive. Cut-flower and general nursery business 

 flourish in the places named. The people, coming from 

 everywhere, are not at all clannish, but sociable and 

 enterprising, with the northern types prevailing and 

 northern ideas generally appear in the architecture 

 and gardening, yet fine samples of the southern style 

 are not infrequent. 



Similar conditions prevail in some parts of the Trinity 

 River valley as along Red river, especially about Dallas 

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

 of the soiithern type. These three cities nestle in the 

 heart of the next great division. 



4. 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 150 to 100 miles of the Gulf, a broken 

 irregular arm of the East Texas region extending 

 southwestwardly 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, grasses and cotton, but not suitable for most 

 fruits. The stone fruits and blackberries do best. 

 Onions are largely grown 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. Nowhere is this more ap- 

 parent than in the Black Waxy Lands, the home being 

 generally surrounded by corn-cribs, stock-pens, cotton- 

 bins, and exposed farm machinery. There are splendid 

 exceptions to these, demonstrating that very beautiful 

 homes can be made even in the black lands of the state, 

 where the richest general farming region exists. 



5. The Brown, or Chocolate Plains Region of Texas, 

 devoted principally to grazing and small grains, lies to 

 the westward of the Black Land Region, is about 200 

 miles wide by 600 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 without 

 irrigation. Yet many wealthy stockmen there have 

 beautiful grounds surrounding their homes, and grow 

 their home supplies of very fine fruits. Of commercial 

 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 3,500 to 4,500 

 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 only commercial occupation. Five 

 or six counties northwest from Austin, in the central 

 parts of the Chocolate Belt, are very broken, hilly and 

 picturesque, well adapted to fruits. Nearly every home 

 there is supplied with fruits, but stock-grazing is the 

 chief occupation. 



6. The Pecos Valley lies just west of the Staked 

 Plains, and east of a spur of the Rocky Mountains. In 

 places it is irrigated, as at Roswell and Carlsbad, 

 N. M., and Pecos City, Texas. Commercial fruit-grow- 

 ing is considerable in this valley, especially at Roswell 

 and Pecos City. At the latter place is a vineyard of 40 

 acres of the vinifera varieties, planted 8 or 10 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. 



A vast mountainous and dry plains region extends 

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

 sheep and cattle, yet at Ft. 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- 



