FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
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put in two acres Jesse Kerr, two acres Alexander, two acres 
General Lee, and four acres Elberta. 
As a money producer, there is no peach so far tried in West 
Florida equal to the Elberta. It ripens July 5th to 20th. 
The earlier varieties occasionally get very fancy prices, but 
there is none of them that have the quantity or quality of the 
Elberta, and it can be got to the most distant market in good 
condition. There may be many other varieties, even of the 
oldest, that are as good, or better than those mentioned, but 
these we have found by experience to be good. 
Good authority asserts that the Persian varieties will not 
do well in Eastern and South Florida. I would very much 
like to see them fairly tried on the clay hills of the central 
peninsula—say in Marion, Sumter and Polk counties. 
PLUM CULTURE. 
Of plum culture our experience in the western portion of 
the State is not sufficient to warrant any fixed opinions as to 
which is the best varieties. All that we are testing ot the 
old, and the Japan or Chinese varLtie*, are good wood- 
makers. The best of the orientals so far as we have gone, is 
the Burbank or Abundance, or bosh, if they are distinct 
varieties as many claim. 
NECESSITY FOR SPRAYING. 
Of one thing I am satisfied about plum culture, it cannot 
be made a success without careful, continuous and regular 
spraying. Insect life appears to luxuriate on the plum. In 
addition to the regular lot there has appeared with us one, if 
not two new varieties of scale insect, and the plums appear 
to suffer most, though they are attacking the peaches as well. 
I conclude that the future of plum culture—and possibly 
peach culture—dep nds on the efficiency and cost of spraying. 
It pays well to raise good peaches. It is possible to get 
from $500 to $700 per acre from a crop from trees four years 
old. A very fair return may bo had the second year after 
planting one-year-old trees. 
FORCING EARLY GROWTH. 
Nothing assures good trees more surely than forcing all 
the growth possible the first year. I consider this so im¬ 
portant that I think trees are almost worthless that have not 
made a good strong growth the first year. No after work or 
fertilizing can make them the same they would have been if 
properly led and worked the first year. 
Of course, the first year or two, they need a fertilizer strong 
in nitrogen. I suppose the cheapest source of nitrogen for us 
is cottonseed meal. 
COTTONSEED FOR FERTILIZER. 
The very best three hundred peach trees I have ever seen at 
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