VOL. LVH.
INDIANAPOLIS, DEC. 13, 1902.—TWENTY PAGES.
NO. 50
itorticttltuvje.
CONTRACTING WITH SPRAY0R8.
If our readers could have heard the papers and discussions on spraying fruit
trees, at our State Horticultural Society's
meeting last week, we think many of
them would reason something like this,
on the subject of contracting with experts
to have their orchards sprayed:
"According to these horticultural people
fruit growing is an easy and profitable industry, when carried on in a common
.sense and business like manner. Orchards, it appears, need on-ly fairly good
soil, but they require some attention in
the way of pruning, cultivation and spraying. These things we farmers have not
heretofore   attended   to.     We   have   not
g.M.,1 teal in it. At any rate, if such a
man comes along next spring we"ll let
him talk us iuto contracting to spray our
trees.
If he is going to make a business of
spraying trees he must make his work
successful. He will expect our testimony
to heip him in making contra i next
j ear. lf he has gumption enough io run
ihe business successfully he will study
it thoroughly, will read all he ean find on
the subject, and he will fit himself out
with the best spraying apparatus, wagon,
pump, barrel, spraying mixtures for the
various diseases and insects, aod will
know what, when and how to use them
ull. The plan seems feasible, practicable
jnd worthy of trial.
We can and will prune, cultivate, and.
ANNUAL MEETING OF   THE   INDIANA
STATE HORTICULTURAL. SOCIETY.
The 47th Annual Meeting.
A very fair attendance listened to Presi-
dent Stevens' annual address, on Wednesday p. in., the 3d.
It was a somewhat lengthy and a very
interesting document.
Among other recommendations he urged
the importance of horticultural education in the country schools.
He insisted that Indiana can grow as
fine apples as are produced anywhere in
the country. The very fine display on
the table bears out this statement.
Secretary Flick's report for the year
ending October 31, 1902:
The report on Purdue University, read
by Sylvester Johnson, trustee, showed a
very flourishing condition of the institution. The attendance and the number
of graduates has been very large in recent years. The total attendance tbe
present year is 1,189.
Graduates in all the departments find
good paying employment, promptly on
graduation-, in positions in the line of
study they have been pursuing.
Joe A. Burton, in his report on the Experimental orchard, said that, in general,
the trees were doing well. There are about
1,000 pedigreed trees for experiment.
The Report of the State Entomologist,
Prof. J. Troop, showed that he had inspected 100 orchards in 58 counties. Only
one   orchard   was   found   to   be   infested
A  II*.p Ranch, in the   State  of  Washington.
pruned ami cultivated because we have
lost our fruit on account of blight, fun-
pous growths and Insects. These can be
checked only by spraying an*l that we du
not understand, ami if we did we hnve
not the time to do the work and carry on
our other business properly. But now
comes one of these theoretical fellows
and persuades the State Society to encourage young men to go into the business
of spraying, and shows how it would pay
them to rig up and prepare an- outfit for
the work, and make contracts with the
farmers, at so much a tree—only a few
cents each—to keep their orchards well
sprayed throughout the season, and in-
mre them, that so far as fungi and infects are concerned, they shall have fair
crops of perfect fruit. The society endorses the idea, anal we believe there is a
if need lie. Iliin mit the furit, for we plainly see that hv the aid of proper ami sutB-
i-ient spraying we may expect from our
orchards, small as they arc, 10 to 20 1m-
-hels of tine plums, twice as many pears.
snd from 500 to 800 bushels of apples >>f
good varieties, one year with another.
These crops of rnit will pay us more, at
the prices that have ruled the past 15 or
M years, than any other 40 acres on our
farms iu regular field crops. We can well
afford to make the contract with the
spraying man*, though at a pretty high
rate, at the start; he promises to reduce
the price after he gets the business well
established, and we see that he can afford
to do *<►, ns he will have so many more
orchards to care for, if he succeeds with
uurs. Yes. we'll patronize the spraying
man, one year anyhow.
From members $ 44.fn)
From   treasurer        50.15
Total $ 94.15
Balance due  Secretary....    18.25
Total  $112.G7
I'ostage. expressage.  etc. . .$112.07
W. B. Flick, Sec'y.
Treasurer's report:
Received from Secretary•$     66.-3
Legislative appropriation    1,000.00
Tula! $1,055.62
Expenditures:—
Expended as per vouchers $1,024.19
Balance in bank       31.43
Total.
  $1,055.02
Sylvester Johnson,, Treas.
with the San Jose scale. Only two orchards in Marion county had been known
to be infested, and these have been thoroughly treated, and the disease is believed to be eradicated. In a few other
counties a similar record was made.
Switzerland county is the most badly affected of all sections of the State.
The 17-year locust was reported as having done but little damage to fruit trees,
and but a very small per cent of injury
was done to nursery stock.
The Hessian- fly pest was reported in
75 per cent of the counties. The crop
will be cut short very considerably. The
total appropriation of $1,000, was consumed in the work of the entomologist,
excepting  $1.25.
Prof. W. Et. Freeman, State Forester,
next spoke on the subject of Forestry and