June, 1891. 
109 
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Fostering a Love for the Beautiful. 
On another page Mr. Mead tells our read- 
ers about the praiseworthy action of the 
Hampden County (Mass) Horticultural So- 
ciety in distributing six hundred Chrysan- 
themums among the school children of 
Springfield on the condition that they will 
carefully grow them and exhibit them in 
the autumn. We are glad to learn from 
The American Florist that this is not the 
only instance of the kind. The Village Im- 
provement Society of the town of Winches- 
ter, a suburb of Boston, has inaugurated 
the very commendable practice of distribut- 
ing to the school children flower seeds and 
bulbs, with the offer of certain premiums 
to those who excel in the culture of the 
same. The children have entered into the 
scheme with great enthusiasm, and the gen- 
eral introduction of the plan throughout 
the country would undoubtedly result in 
great benefit. We cannot too earnestly 
commend this excellent practice to horti- 
cultural societies, school boards, and others, 
who are interested in stimulating and en- 
grafting in the hearts of the young, a love 
of the beautiful in nature. 
Make a Note of It. 
June is the month of strawberries and 
roses, the beginning of the harvest of fruit, 
flowers and vegetables. There are few 
habits more commendable, and with such 
useful results, than that of carrying a pock- 
et note book and jotting down accurately 
the results of our observation at this season. 
Not only does it lead to an admirable habit 
of observation and enquiry, but the work 
itself is generally of considerable value. We 
hope our readers will not keep these results 
to themselves but impart them freely to us 
for publication in Orchard and Garden 
for the benefit of tbeir fellow readers. In 
this way mucfc real, practical information 
may be exchanged among them to the ulti- 
mate good of all. 
The Earliest of All. 
The first strawberry to ripen on our 
grounds this season is Lovett’s Early, of 
which we picked ripe berries on May 22nd — 
an earlier date than we have ever before 
picked ripe strawberries at this place. 
The Strawberry Leaf Beetle. 
Mr. F. M. Webster writes, in Insect Life, 
concerning this destructive pest in Indiana. 
He had not been able to secure information 
in regard to the occurrence of these beetles 
early in the season, and they seemed to dis- 
appear from the fields about the 1st of Sep- 
tember. At any rate, so far as reported, 
July and August are the months during 
which they are the most destructive. The 
burning over of the strawberry fields after 
the crop of fruit has been removed, has be- 
come very popular among strawberry grow- 
ers, and it is upon the young plants or fol- 
iage which appear after this that the beetle 
is most destructive. However, even where 
no burning has been done, portions of fields 
have been attacked and the plants destroy- 
ed. From what is now known, it would 
seem that arsenical poisons might be used 
to destroy the beetles after the fruit has 
been removed, but whether this will prove 
an efficient preventive or not yet remains 
to be learned. One thing is certain, the 
insect is too important to ignore, and the 
sooner we can learn its life history, and 
what remedies to apply, the better it will 
be for the strawberry grower. 
The Canning Industry. 
I wish to start a canning factory in connection with 
ray fruit farm. There is no factory anywhere near 
here and we need one. I shall be very much obliged 
to you if you will give me any information on the sub- 
ject, and it would probably interest many readers be- 
sides myself.— C. Dunham, Mich. 
When one takes into consideration the 
multitude of minor products that find their 
way to markets in hermetically sealed pack- 
ages, the result is simply marvelous. It is 
estimated that 350 varieties of fruit, veget- 
ables, fish and meat are packed during 
their seasons. There is almost no limit to 
the possibilities of canned food if it is right- 
ly packed and placed before the people. 
We are so accustomed to having this easi- 
ly digested, healthful food, that we look 
upon it as a matter of course, and often 
forget what a privilege we enjoy. While 
the housekeeper of the last generation had 
to spend the most of her time searching the 
stalls of the butcher and vegetable dealer 
and the shop of the grocer for her daily 
supplies, and seeing to it that they were 
properly prepared for the table, the house- 
keeper of to-day can get all of these of the 
first quality, fine flavor, requiring little or 
no preparation, and in quantities sufficient 
to last her any required length of time, so 
that she need not bother herself again for 
days or weeks. A truly great industry! 
And yet how much greater will it be when 
the whole world welcomes it with open 
arms, thus granting its untold millions the 
privileges which we so greatly enjoy. At 
the present time the question is interesting 
to those who can see a handsome margin of 
profit on each can of the various goods 
packed. 
To bring the subject home it is worth 
while enquiring whether we have sufficient 
raw material to supply more factories of 
the kind referred to. It is known to be a 
fact, that with an average crop, the quan- 
tity of fruit and vegetables that are allowed 
to waste, is enormous, and a large amount 
of money would undoubtedly be saved to 
our farmers if there were more canning 
factories in operation, that would consume 
the surplus fruit which gro« s so abundantly 
in many sections of our country. 
What has been true of former years is 
liable to keep on in the same way for the 
next half century, unless the hand of man 
comes to the rescue. An investment of this 
kind is said to pay large profits upon the 
capital invested, besides doing much to 
benefit the town or county where the fac- 
tory is located. The machinery for con- 
ducting this industry is not so very expen- 
sive. A factory with a capacity of 2500 
three pounds, or 3200 two pounds cans of 
this food per day is not beyond the reach of 
very many farmers and fruitgrowers. 
There are manufacturers, we believe, 
who furnish complete canning outfits, with 
full instructions for putting up and operat- 
ing one’s own factor}’, without the aid of 
skilled labor; this includes the processes of 
all the various goods. The process kettles 
can be set in brick work or attached to a 
steam boiler as desired. Some of the more 
profitable products to pack are Corn, To- 
matoes, Peaches and Apples, but there are 
many other eligible products that may be 
profitably canned . Can any of our readers 
give us practical information derived from 
their experience upon this subject? 
The appointment of Mr. W. S. Maxwell 
for Chief of the Horticultural Department at 
the Columbian Exposition, has brought out 
so many protests that a committee has been 
appointed to examine into his fitness for 
the position. The appointment will not be 
confirmed until the committee report. 
American Pomological Society. 
The next session (Twenty-third) of the 
American Pomological Society will be held 
in Washington, D. C., during the last week 
of September. There is every indication 
that this coming meeting will be an unus- 
ually successful one both in attendence and 
results. A valuable programme is being 
prepared and the officers of the Society are 
sparing no efforts to make it a good meet- 
ing. The usual concessions will be made 
by the railroads and hotels, and our readers 
should embrace the opportunity thus afford- 
ed of attending a meeting of the society 
and at the same time visiting the national 
capital. Make your plans to go, and we 
may safely predict that you will return 
refreshed and enlightened from the trip. 
All particulars may be obtained from the 
Secretary, G. B. Brackett, of Ames, Iowa, 
or from President P. J. Berckmans, Augus- 
ta, Georgia. 
American Association of Nurseryman. 
The sixteenth annual meeting of the 
American Association of Nurserymen will 
be held at Minneapolis, Minn., June 3 to 5. 
An excellent programme has been prepared 
and the speakers are limited to ten minutes 
time which will allow opportunity for full 
discussion of the various topics presented. 
A reduced rate of one and one-third fare 
for the round trip will he allowed those at- 
tending the meeting. Further information 
may be obtained from the secretary, C. A. 
Green, Rochester, N. Y. 
Missouri State Horticultural Society. 
The semi-annual meeting of this society 
will be held at St. Joseph, Mo., on June 2, 
3, and 4, 1891. An interesting programme 
is provided. All desired information con- 
cerning the meeting will be furnished upon 
application to the secretary, Mr. L. A. 
Goodman, Westport, Mo. 
