S6 



THE POMOLOGIST. 



April and May 



tt^lZi: 



Professor of Pomology. 



Nothing gives us more satisfaction tlian tlie 

 announcement of Hon. James Mathews' ap- 

 pointment to the Professorship of Pomology in 

 the Iowa State Agricultural College. This ap- 

 pointmeut, we regard as an earnest of tlie good 

 sense of the Board of C'outroll in calling into the 

 service of this State Institution, the assistance 

 of a gentleman so eminently qualified for the 

 position assigned to Mr. Matliews. We need not 

 speak of his .ability to perform well and satis- 

 factorily the duties he assumes in accepting 

 this appointment. It is sufBcient to say, that 

 no man either at home or abroad, is better quali- 

 fied for the Professorship of Pomology. 



We have never been very entliusiastic on the 

 practicability of such institutions. Some fif- 

 teen .years ago an Agricultural College was ini- 

 tiated in Pennsylvania. The State made largo 

 appropriations from the State Treasury to 

 put tlie institution into opperation and to sus- 

 tain it. But so far as we know (or we think any 

 body else) its managers never published a sen- 

 tence iu reg.ard to its workings to the value of 

 one brass farthing to a single farmer iu the 

 State. In fact, the school and farm proved a 

 total failure after having received State aid to 

 the amount of nearly $400,000. 



A few years later another enterprise of the 

 kind was attempted in the State of New York. 

 A fine tract of laud consisting of some three 

 hundred acres was purchased jointly, by State 

 aid and donations from individuals. Costly 

 buildings were devised and ijut in course of 

 construction, but its days were few— the build- 

 ings even, were never finished. The advan- 

 tages of both these Institutions combined, 

 after the expenditure of a half million of dol- 

 lars or more, to the agricultural interest of 

 their respective States, or to that of the country 

 at large, were never wortli the ink and paper 

 used in the publication of their doings. 



After all, we think good may result from such 

 institutions of learning if properly managed. 

 This can be done only by placing them under 

 the management of practical, working men. 

 To be useful agricultural education iniist be 

 practical, and to make it so, schools for such 

 purpose, must be to some considerable extent, 

 under the supervision and management of in- 

 telligent, practical farmers and pomologists. 

 And, when we see such men as Mr. Mathews 

 called from the field to take an important 

 position in the State Agricultural College, we 

 have hopes of its success and usefulness. Let 

 us have u school that shall teach practice with 

 science, and thusqualify the studtnt to go from 

 the college to the farm and tlie orchard, and 

 there put into successful operation the practi- 

 cal knowledge acquired in the school of arts. 

 That's what we want, and nothing short of it 

 if we would have our Iowa Farmers' College 

 what it should be— an honor to the State and a 

 benefit to the farmer. 



GiiAPES FOR Minnesota. — The Farmers Union, 

 says the three best varieties of grapes toeultivate 

 in this State as far as wo know, are the Concord, 

 Doleware, and Clinton. Of course there are 

 numerous other varieties good, but taking all 

 things into consideration probably the three we 

 mention will suffice. The Doleware is the best 

 fruit, and the Clinton the poorest. 



Apeii^ and May.— We feel constrained to let 

 this nil in tier of tlie 'Pomologist, which in tlie 

 regular order of publication would be the April 

 number, pass for both April and May. Since 

 the latter part of March, and before the April 

 number could be completed, business in the 

 field has imperatively demanded our entire 

 time for weeks. The current volume of the 

 paper, however, will contain its full com- 

 plement of pages— 193. We shall add 10 pages 

 to one or more future numbers before the close 

 of the volume to make up the omission of an 

 independent number for May or April ; and, in 

 the meantime, so gauge our out-door business 

 as not to necessitate another omission of the 

 kind, or tardiness iu publication. 



State FAihS. — So far os ascertained State Fairs for 

 1870 will be held as follows : 



Illinois Decatur Sept. 



Iowa Keokuk Sept. 13-lr> 



Kansas Fort Scott- Sept. 27-30 



Minnesota Winonii .Sept. 20-23 



Nebraska Brownsville Sept. 20-2.S 



New YorK Utica Sept. 27-30 



Ohio Spiingfield Sept. 18-16 



Ontario (Provincial) Toronto Oct. 3-7 



St. Louis Association St. Iiouia Oct. 3-7 



Wisconsin .'....Milwaukee Sept. '27-30 



New England Machester, N. H...Sept. 6-9 



JMINNKSOTA HORTICtlLTUEAL SOCIETY. 



Ed. Western Pomologist :— I send you by 

 to-day's mail a copy of the Minneapolis Weekly 

 Tribu7ie which contains a report of the proceed- 

 ings of our State Horticultural Society. The 

 officers for the present year are: Pres't S. J, 

 Harris, La Crescent ; VIce-Pres't, Chas. P. Cook, 

 Garden City; Recording Sec'y, H. Lowater, 

 Red Wing; Cor, Sec'y, J. W. Harkney, Fari- 

 bault ; Treas., Wyman Elliott, Minneapolis. 

 J. W, Hakkness, Cor. Sec'y. 



Faribault, Minn. 



Remarks.— We are sorry to say the "Tribune " 

 failed to reach us. 



Wisconsin Horticultdeal Society.— The 

 Wisconsin State Horticultural Society will hold 

 a summer exhibition sometime during the 

 strawberry season and when as many as possi- 

 ble of the summer flowers are in bloom. 



Michigan Pomological Society.— At a re- 

 cent meeting at Grand Rapids, Michigan, a 

 State Pomological Society was organized. S. L. 

 Fuller, Grand Rapids, was elected President 

 A. T. Liuderman, Secretary. 



Illinois Horticultural Society. — The 

 next annual meeting of the Illinois State Hor- 

 ticultural Society will be held at Galesburg 

 December next, 13th to ICith inclusive. The 

 entire available means of the Society for the 

 current year is $2,S50.58. 



Alton (III.) Horticultural Society.- The 

 officers of this Society are.' Pres't, J. Hoggins, 

 Woodburn ; Vice-Pres'ts, E. A. Riehl, S. B. 

 Johnson; Sec'y, D, L. Hall; Treas., Capt. E. 

 Ilollister ; Librarian, W. C. Flagg. 



Minnesota Horticultural Society. — At 

 the last annual meeting of the Minnesota State 

 Horticultural Society, the opinion was ex- 

 pressed by members that not less than 15.000 

 bushels of apples were produced in the State in 

 1869. The Secretary was directed to prepare a 

 circular to be sent to each member of the Socie- 

 ty to ascertain their opinion as to the varieties 

 of apples best adapted for cultivation in the 

 .State. The Society decided to meet in connec- 

 tion with the Summer Exhlliition of the Hen- 

 nepin County Society, to be held at Minneapo- 

 lis, July 4.| 



Kentucky Horticultural Society. —The 

 foIk»\\'iug gentlomon arc ofiicers of the Ken- 

 tucky Horticultural Society for the current 

 year: 



President— Lawrence Young, Louisville. 



Vice-President-s— S-'am'l Haycraft, Elizabeth- 

 town ; J. L. Downer, Fairview ; A. D. Webb, 

 Bowling Green. 



Corresponding Secretary— Dr. L. Stallard, 

 Bowling Green. 



Recording Secretary — Isaac P. Woodson, 

 Woodsonville. 



Treasurer — Jos. I. Youngdove, Bowling 

 Green. 



Protecton to Fkuit-Growers.— The Legis- 

 lature of Missouri has enacted a law for the 

 protection of fruit-growers. The first section 

 provides that any; person who shall enter the 

 orchard, vineyard, or garden of another, and 

 maliciously mutilate the vines or plants, or 

 take .away therefrom tree, plant, or fruit, shall 

 be liable to a fine not less than $10 or more 

 than 8100, or by imprisonment in the county 

 Jail for a period of not less than fifteen days, or 

 by both such tine and imprisonment. 



5 ICalifornia Horticultuee.-A statistical re- 

 port upon agriculture and horticulture in Cali- 

 fornia, presents the following figures on the 

 horticultural condition of the State. 



Grape, 22,102,580 ; apple trees, 2,183,228 ; peach. 

 705,.39t; pear, 348,730 ; plum, 170,334; cherry, 96,- 

 034; nectarine, 25,T28; quince, ^44,350; :aprlcot, 

 61,114; flg, 40,819; lemon, 6,280; orange, 30,509; 

 olive, 18,946 ; prune, 8,569 ; mulberry, 374,125.- 

 (most of them silk mulberry) ; almond, 32,400; 

 English walnut, 25,888. 



*-*-*^ 



Horticultural Prizes.— The Ontario (Cau- 

 adiX) Fruit Growers' Association offer very 

 liberal prizes for new fruits. To the originator 

 of a new and valuable fruit a medal valued at 

 $50. For the best winter seedling 880, and 820 

 for the best autumn apple. 



Root Pruning Grapes.— P. R. Elliott says he 

 "has long had reason to believe that one reme- 

 dial agent toward excessive growth of wood, im- 

 perfect maturing bunches, and rot of the berry 

 may be found in an annual or biennial root 

 pruning. He would dig away the soil, and with 

 a sharp spade cut the one, two orthree main lead- 

 ing tap or vertical roots at about sixteen to 

 eighteen inches below the surface." 



Medical Properties or the Celbby. — A cor- 

 respondent of the Farmer says : — I have known 

 many men, and women too, who from various 

 causes had become so much affected with 

 nervousness, that^when they stretched out their 

 hands they shook like an aspen leaf on a windy 

 day — -and by a daily moderate use of the blanched 

 foot-stalks of celery leaves as a salad they became 

 as strong and steady in the limbs as other people. 



Growing the Qoince. — An Ohio quince 

 grower has been very successful for two years 

 past with this fruit. His treatment of the trees 

 is very simple: He spades the ground of 

 his orchard every spring, and scatters a peck of 

 coal ashes around each tree. Ho finds salt the 

 best manure on the quince, and applies about 

 one quart to the ground under each tree after 

 the soil has been spaded, and another quart when 

 the quinces are about half grown. Last year 

 he sold about three hundred bushels of quinces 

 from his own orchard of three-Quarters of an 

 acre. 



