68 FLOWERS. 



the muscle and the hrain of man." Ripe grapes have cured epi- 

 demic dysentery. Families where fruit is most plentiful and used 

 as an article of food, are most free from disease of all kinds, and 

 more especially from fevers and bowel complaints. Most fruits aid 

 digestion, some directly, some indirectly, and lessen the desire for 

 alcoholic or stimulating drinks. 



With regard to the best soil for fruit trees generally, but more es- 

 pecially for the pear, much has been said and written ; and altho' 

 we can and do produce as fine apples and pears as are to be found 

 elsewhere, yet a pretty careful observation of several years has 

 convinced us that a liyld sandy loam, (a most common soil, of which 

 a great proportion of the fruit gardens in our county is composed) 

 is not the most proper. From the easy manner in which it is work- 

 ed, owing to its loose nature, and the quickness with which, from 

 its warmth, trees come into bearing, it is looked upon with almost 

 universal favor. On the contrary we believe that under the bright 

 skies of July and August, a fruit tree requires a soil which will re- 

 tain and afiford a moderate and continued supply of moisture, and 

 here the sandy soil fails. In consequence of this, the vigor of the 

 tree is checked, and it becomes feeble in its growth, and is com- 

 patively short lived, or at last unproductive. 



JOHN M. IVES, Chairman. 



FLOWERS. 



The Committee on Flowers having attended to their duty, re- 

 spectfully report : — That no former floral exhibition in this society 

 has been equal to the present. Their only regret is the want of 

 means to reward the generous and tasteful exhibitors of these beau- 

 tiful gems of nature, somewhat in proportion to their merits. 



Productions of the orchard, the vineyard and the field, also help 

 fill and crowd your halls. They all originate in flowers, and altho' 



