360 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
not as a tree. When allowed to grow, especially in central 
and south Texas, it becomes a small tree, with hard wood, 
bare stems, a paucity of foliage and small clusters of flowers, 
but when it is cut back to the ground every year or two and 
thus kept as a shrub it has about all the good qualities that 
could be asked for. 
The altheas also deserve special mention. Just now, 
(Sept. 9th) our blocks of altheas are the showiest things in the 
shrubbery department. The shrub most extensively planted 
is the spirea Van Houttei. It is the best of the low growing 
shrubs and is extensively used as borders for beds or masses 
of other shrubs. Other shrubs that are standards and 
generally well known for their hardiness and adaptability to 
our climate are the buddleias, caryopteris, deutzias, forsy- 
thias, bush honeysuckles, Judas tree, lilacs, philadelphus, 
ligustrums and pomegranates. All of these have stood the 
drouth well, wherever cultivated. In our experiments this 
season with a number of kinds not generally planted in the 
South-west, we are pleased with the ceanothus Americanus, 
laurus tinus, hypericum moserianum, and sambucus, but 
the shrub that interested us most is a hardy shrubby salvia, 
producing a profusion of scarlet blossoms very similar to the 
salvia splendens. It is a neat growing plant, not quite so 
large as the spirea Van Houttei and will prove very valuable 
for bordering large beds. It has been blooming from the 
time we set it out in April until now, and will doubtless 
continue until frost. I am watching it with a great deal of 
interest. 
Planters generally in the Southwest,' have not learned to 
use shrubs to the best advantage. Occasionally an indivi¬ 
dual specimen may be planted by itself to good advantage, 
but as a rule they should be grown in beds or groups. Their 
best use is not so much to show the beauty of their flowers or 
foliage as such, but more for the general effect obtained by 
combining plants of different!heights, shapes and habits, as 
well as color of foliage and flowers. 
To the landscape architect, shrubs form^one of his most 
valuable assets. Without them he could not complete the 
beautiful effects produced by the proper blending of foliage 
and flowers. It is easy to find the reason why shrubs have 
not been more generally planted in Texas. They have often 
been sold by agents, who knew nothing of their habits and 
requirements and more than this, many of our park and 
other large plantings are being done by men wholly ignorant 
of the names and nature of shrubs. Too often they send 
away to North Carolina, Ohio or some other place for shrubs 
totally unsuited to our conditions and climate. This is 
disheartening and it is the duty and privilege of the nursery¬ 
men of the Southwest to disseminate accurate knowledge, 
that the public may understand what to plant in a dry 
climate and what in a wet, what will thrive best in the shade 
and what in the sunshine. 
RESOLUTIONS ON THE DEATH OF W. F. HEIKES 
Resolved, that we, the Nurserymen of Texas, learn with 
deep regret of the death of W. F. Heikes, of Huntsville, 
Alabama. We esteem Mr. Heikes to have been a most 
enterprising nurser3anan, one of the best in the South or in 
the United States, a fine business man, a true and high type 
of American citizenship, and a Christian gentleman. We feel 
in this dispensation that a great man has fallen, yet we 
appreciate that though he has gone from us, the impress of 
his character and good works remain with us. 
Resolved, that the Secretary tender to the bereaved 
family our sympathy, and a copy of these resolutions, also to 
the Huntsville Wholesale Nurseries. 
The State of Louisiana with many million acres of now 
uncultivated but highly productive soil, a mild climate which 
permits a series of crops to be grown on the same land each 
year, and a net work of navigable canals and streams which 
insures cheap transportation, will bid for the immigration 
Canada is now getting from the United States. In order 
to make the bid most effective, a Louisiana Agricultural 
Exhibit Commission has been appointed by the Governor, 
and supplied with funds by the Parishes, or Counties of the 
State, for the purpose of gathering exhibits and data concern¬ 
ing agricultural production, cost and profits, health and 
market conditions, character of soil and climate, etc., and 
thus equipped meet the people of the North and West face to 
face. 
The Commission will demonstrate that with only about 
5,000,000 acres in cultivation out of 27,000,000 acres com¬ 
prising the State, the people of Louisiana have prospered, her 
planters have enjoyed wealth and affluence, and her farmers 
have never known want. The plantation or overlord system, 
is now rapidly disappearing, and the great estates are being 
subdivided and cultivated by smaller independent farmers. 
The cutover forests are being cleared and opened up to 
settlement. The wet alluvial lands are being drained and 
made available to the plow. In this manner new tracts of 
virgin lands are being made available and the State in its 
official capacity is taking time by the forelock, and is going 
after farmer families to occupy these lands. 
The first exhibit the Louisiana Commission will give will 
be at the United States Land and Irrigation Exposition, at 
Chicago, November 18 to December 9. Others will follow 
later. The object of the Commission is to exhibit average 
rather than abnormal products, so that the farmer seeking 
accurate information may learn exactly what the soils of 
Louisiana produce under normal conditions. 
No land will be sold at these exhibits, no private enter¬ 
prise will be exploited and no information will be given out 
except such as has been carefully investigated and compiled 
by the Commission itself. The Chairman of the Commission, 
Dr. W. R. Dodson of Baton Rouge, is the Dean and Director 
of The State College of Agriculture and Agricultural Experi¬ 
ment Stations. 
Other members are: Robert Glenk, New Orleans, Curator 
Louisiana State Museum; Louis N. Brueggerhoff, Shreveport, 
the active head of the Louisiana State Fair Association; M. 
Leigh Alexander of Alexandria, who represents the Agricul¬ 
tural interests of North Louisiana, and A. B. Graves of New 
Orleans, who represents the Agricultural interests of South 
Louisiana. 
THE GRAPE CROP IN WESTERN NEW YORK 
Grapes began to move out of the'Chautauqua and Erie 
grape belt about the middle of August, which is the earliest 
shipping on record for twenty years. Concords were picked 
as early as the tenth of September. The outlook for prices 
is excellent. Large quantities will be used up in the manu¬ 
facture of grape juice by F. M. Randall and others in that 
business in the Ripley and Westfield district. It is estimated 
that the crop of 19 ii in the Chautauqua-Erie belt will 
approximate 6000 carloads. 
