i888. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



31 



pound, an average of four hundred dollars 

 per acre, from a six year old orchard that 

 has born four consecutive crops, for each of 

 which the trees were loaded to their utmost. 

 I have a four year old Plum orchard that 

 has its second crop. The Quince, Prunes, 

 and Greening Apples are bearing heavily, 

 just as they did a year ago. I would advise 

 the use of any kind of manure that contains 

 enriching properties, as rich land can be 

 controlled more easily than poor, or any that 

 will aid in keeping the land moist; but de- 

 pend more on early plowing, and continu- 

 ous or frequent cultivating. 



On Conducting Horticultural Fairs. 



BY T. L. BRUNK, BRAZOS CO., TEXAS. 



A criticism, that is made with sincerity and 

 unbias, is always productive of good results. 

 I will come immediately to some points ob- 

 served to be detrimental and unjust to ex- 

 hibitors at many of the horticultural fairs. 

 All entries sent from foreign districts of the 

 State to a local fair should receive prompt 

 attention and some mention. This sectional 

 competition is what we need. 



The wording and clearness in stating a 

 premium is very important, to obviate mis- 

 understandings. Brevity in statement 

 should not outweigh accuracy, clearness, 

 and explicitness. A few cases to illustrate, 

 are: "Best display cut wild flowers, with 

 botanical names;" "Finest display of 

 Grasses;" "Finest collection of fruits." As 

 I understand the above premiums, they 

 should not be offered at all. A display of 

 an herbarium of either general or special 

 flora is all right, but no benefit can be de- 

 rived from gathering a few wild flowers in 

 bloom, for a premium. There is nothing 

 educative in a stack of hay, but it is other- 

 wise with a elassifled and named list of the 

 different kinds of Grasses, which enter iuto 

 the composition of that stack. 



What is meant by "Finest general collec- 

 tion of fruits?" What lesson does such a 

 collection teach, without mimes and limita- 

 tion of quantity? We can never expect the 

 best results from any exhibition, where the 

 tendency is to amaze people by showing 

 them proiligies, picked quantities and exag- 

 gerated forms, and especially, will the good 

 results be less, if anything is allowed to enter 

 such a schoolroom without its proper name, 

 in many cases with only its common syno- 

 nyms. The premium is generally so large 

 that it would do much more good if divided 

 into smaller premiums of definite character. 



Such premiums as "Best collection of 

 Grapes, or Peaches, etc., with names," are 

 to be specially encouraged. This brings 

 together a large variety of all kinds of fruit, 

 forming interesting and profitable lessons 

 to those interested in their growth; but 

 premiums like "Best plate of Peaches," 

 "Best plate of Apples," "Finest display of 

 Irish Potatoes," "Finest Geraniums in 

 pots," etc., should not be offered. A com- 

 mittee will always give the premium to the 

 largest variety of Peach or Apple; but that 

 is not giving due consideration to varieties 

 whose natural size is smaller. 



The offering of such premiums as "Finest 

 di-splay of Irish Potatoes," "Best display of 

 Begonias," and the like, are so very indefi- 

 nite in their language, that the person who 

 displays a bushel of the same variety of 

 Potatoes, in the same condition, size, etc., 

 will take the premium from a person that 

 displays only a peck. The same would be 

 true with flowers, seeds, berries, and in fact 

 everything. We must learn that it is quality 

 and specified names, and not quantity, that 

 we must have to properly educate a people 

 in the way of horticulture. 



All the entries in each cla.ss should be 

 known by numbers, and all be placed each 

 together; not scattered over a large rack or 



table, to be hunted down by the judges. 

 Premiums should be limited strictly to hor- 

 ticultural products. There is a great abun- 

 dance of material to work on, that properly 

 comes within the bounds of horticulture, 

 and it is this that should be the .'sole aim and 

 object of horticultural societies to bring out 

 at their fairs. Let us see new plants; fruits 

 of introduced varieties that have been tried 

 successfully; new productions, as seedlings 

 and hybrids, sports, and examples of varia- 

 tion on different soils.localities and altitudes. 

 The arrangement of the entries has much 

 to do with the educative results of a fair, 

 and the ease and facility for an awarding 

 committee to work. The department super- 

 intendents should see that the division 

 superintendents have their entries arranged 

 according to their premium numbers, and 

 where several plates are entered as a collec- 

 tion, there should be the same premium 

 number placed on every plate.— Texas Jour- 

 nal of Horticulture. 



Increasing the Profits. 



N. Y. G. 



This is what we all want to do. If we 

 think together, for ten minutes, we will be 

 able to reach some means of increasing 

 profits; and surer, safer means than new 

 varieties, new fertilizers, etc., about which 

 we are continually troubling ourselves, 

 although we should always be wide-awake 

 and not wed ourselves to old things among 

 varieties, or in manuring, or planting. I 

 don't claim that I have discovered anything; 

 I hope only to impress some things upon 

 you, to stir you up a little. 



If you could get just twice the land you 

 now have, without any additional cost, 

 equally fertile and well drained, could 

 you not increase your net income? Well, you 

 may do practically the same thing by grow- 

 ing on the land two crops in a season in- 

 stead of one. It is as easy to do this as to 

 talloff alog. Somecropswill require the land 

 so long that another crop cannot be grown 

 on the land the same season; but to offset 

 this, of certain crops three, aud sometimes 

 four, may be grown on the same ground in 

 one season, The second crop can be 

 planted between the rows as soon as culti- 

 vation of the first season, and will be grow- 

 ing and will have enough room while the 

 first crop is maturiut;. We all know that 

 this can be done; it doesn't need arguing- 

 If you nill sit down and think hard for half 

 an hour, you can plan to average two crops 

 of what you are growing on the land in one 

 season. Perhaps you are already doing 

 this. Well, drive fifty miles among the 

 premises of other market gardeners 

 and you will see that you are an exception. 

 The vacant ground will show plainly enough 

 that many, unlike you, have not considered 

 that they might double their present pro- 

 duction without paying more rent or buying 

 more land , and then gone to work and done it. 



Now, if without any more e.xpense for 

 land we could double our production again; 

 making it four times what it is, we would 

 be on the fair road to riches, wouldn't we? 

 Some of us, perhaps, couldn't stand pros- 

 perity; it we got rich we would be proud; 

 but we can't know about this until we get 

 there, so I propose that we risk the effect 

 of riches on our modesty and humility. 

 You have read of not a few in your business 

 — market gardening, small fruit growing, 

 or whatever it is — who are getting twice 

 the yields we arc. We can't dodge around 

 this by saying that these yields are excep- 

 tional, due to an unusually favorably sea- 

 son, etc.; for we know of quite a number 

 who are getting these big yields year after 

 year. Their average yield is twice our aver- 

 age yield; and the natural features of their 

 situations are not nuire favorable than they 

 are of ours. We can't dispute about the 



why and the wherefore of these big yields; 

 the matter is settled. The secret— an open 

 one— is better cultivation and higher ma- 

 nuring. And the point is that it cannot be 

 longer disputed that a bushel, or a pound, 

 grown by this method costs as much as 

 when grown by our methods. The way to 

 get cheap pounds or bushels is to get big 

 crops; and the way to get big crops is to 

 manure more and cultivate more; and that's 

 another way to double production without 

 and additional expense for land. 



Did you ever notice that these fellows 

 that get the big yields always sell at fat 

 prices? Of course you have. Until the fig- 

 ures were proved correct beyond question, I 

 often have heard them disputed. The whole 

 thing was figured too high — price, as well as 

 product. There is some trick about it; that 

 was more than you got for your berries or 

 vegetables. I believe it. Why? Because 

 what the other fellow had to sell was of 

 better quality and ready for market earlier. 

 Extra manuring and cultivating makes big- 

 ger yields, because it makes larger berries 

 or vegetables; and if you don't believe big 

 berries sell better just, stand for an hour in 

 the market. But the other fellow's product 

 was of better quality in other directions. 

 For example, the extra manure and culti- 

 tivation made quick growth; quick growth 

 make firm, juicy Radishes; it makes plump, 

 juicy Peas; and soon. And it brings pro- 

 ducts to market earlier, when long prices 

 prevail, as they do when the products are 

 first on the market. 



Perhaps we are now willing to concede, 

 since we've thought about the matter, that 

 the other fellow got the price claimed. 

 There will be no doubt left in our minds 

 if we see how he fixes for market the things 

 he has to sell. They look fresh and neat; 

 they are tempting; nothing stale and unpa- 

 latable about them. All this has required 

 some thought, trouble, and care; but it is 

 one of the things that increases profit. Every 

 one of us ought to spend at least one day in 

 a large city market, studying intently; and 

 another day about a commission house. It 

 would cost something, but it would pay. 

 Likely you would'nt learn much that you 

 didn't know before, as in the reading of 

 this; but unless you are a hopeless case you 

 would have impressed upon you some things 

 that increase profits. 



W". Apple Trees Dying. The insect referred 

 to is jM-obably the Pear blight beetle, Xuktxirjis 

 pyrus (Peck), an insect that is sufficiently numer- 

 ous to do much damai^e. The only' remedy 

 known is to cut off and burn the blighted limbs 

 below the injured part, before the beetle has 

 escaped.— E. S. G. 



892. Bose Bugs, Try spraying the bushes with 

 thin whitewash. This has l)een used upon Grape 

 \'ines with marked .success.— E. S. G. 



0!'t. The Blue or Sour Gum Tree. The Sour 



Gum Tree,( Eucalyiit iw ghihuliin,] is considered one- 

 of the most valuable timber trees of the southern 

 hemisphere. It is a very rapidly growing tree, 

 sometimes attaininc: in its native clime a height 

 of three hundred feet, but is not hardy except 

 in warm countries. It is used to some extent in 

 sub-tropicul gardening, for which purpose the 

 seeds are sown in August: the young plants 

 grown through the winter under glass to be 

 bedded out the following spring.— E. S. G. 



ss<). Passion Tine and Wistaria over Winter- 

 If the Wistaria is not hardy with you. it ean he 

 easily protected by jdacing it on the ground, and 

 eovering with tl\-c or six inches of earth. This 

 to be done Just as the ground commences to 

 freeze hard. Uncoxer gradually in the spring. 

 The Passion Vine can Ik? cut back as soon as the 

 frost has destroyed it.s foliage, taken up and 

 potted, and wintered in a frost proof cellar. The 

 Moon Klower shoulil he taken up, cut back, and 

 pottetl before cold weather sets in. For the win- 

 ter it should be given a light, sunny situation 

 and an average temperature of from 50 to 55 

 degrees. The Passion Vine and Moon Flower 

 can also be employecl to good ad\-antage during 

 the winter season in the window garden by train- 

 ing them up and aroinid its sides and arches. In 

 this case, however, ciirv should be taken to keep 

 thera in a growing eondition and free from all 

 insect pests.— Chas. E. 1'aknell. 



