The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1883-01-06
FRUITS AND FLOWERS,
coNr1NuEp ERoM rHE FIRsr PAGE.

some younger member, thinking perhaps
to relieve the society from listening to
any lengthy document upon these most
ennObling arts.
L shall endeavOr to make my remarks
brief, and give you only a few scattered
thoughts upon the subject OF Horticul-
ture: .... .aH u
The Creator of all things having FORM
ed the earth, anu developed it into con-
ditiOn TO sustain vegetable and animal
life, saw fit, for some mysterious reason,
to create man from the dust of the earth.
This man, with magnificent garden
provided gratuitOusly, "a way in which
we don't get gardens in modern days, ,)WaS
commanded to cultivate it, and admOn-
ished, we presume, to profit thereby. For
some reason OF other Adam fell into dis
repute as a gardener, and was cOnsu-
quently driven from this most delight
full paradise. .. ....
Perhaps Adams failure as gardener
might be accounted for from the fact
that there was not an active demand for
his surplus products at fair or profitable
prices. He undoubtedly did not receive
twenty-five cents per quart for his straw
berries, OF one dollar and quarter per
bushel for his large red apples, as hOrti-
culturists of later day do. say lar9e
red apples. because it is highly probable
in that early day of horticulture, that
little was known of names as applied to
the apple; and that if there was mar
ket for any, it is conclusive to my mind
that the red ones we're the first sought
for. This has been demonstrated to me
in the following way. | am located on
farm having an orchard of upwards of
two hundred apple trees, some Of which
are of the very best varieties, and repre-
senting all the cOlOTs known to this
most excellent fruit; and have noticed
when a customer makes his selection OF
apples, he is more likely to choose those
varieties that are red than those Of any
other color.
We have, however. no means Of deter
mining the state of horticulture in the
centuries previous to the flood. There
is no doubt that prior to this destructive
visitation from heaven, the products Of
the hOrticultuTist were nearly the same
as they are to day. That the earth con-
tanned all the elements necessary to
their production in that period Is not
doubted by chemists of this modern age,
consequently, we are induced to believe
that the inhabitants of the earth in that
remote period enjoyed the same pleas
ures, the same privileges, that we do to-
day. Apples, peaches, pears, strawber-
ries, plums, &C., appeased their hun
ger and supplied their most delicate
prOpriately apply Lord ByrOn's gloomy
picture of the rise and fall Of nations:
Here Is tho moral of all human tales;
'Tisjbut the same rehearsal OF the past.
First freedom, and then glOry-when that falls.
Wealth. vice, corruption, barbarism at last;
Aud history with all her volumes vast
Hath but one pager
Gardens for useful purposes were
probably made soon after the waters OF
the flood had subsidized, and the state
ment in Scripture, that Noah planted
vineyard" may perhaps be regarded
as sufficient evidence to establish it as a
fact. If this be true, the art doubtless
continued progressive among those de-
scendants Of Noah who did not sink into
a state of barbarism after the confusion
of tongues.
Among uncivilized nations one Of the
first indications of advancement toward
| civilization, is the cultivation Of little
portion of land for the growing OF veg
etables; and the degree OF refinement
| among the inhabitSnts of any neighbOr-
hood may be determined with consider
| able certainty, by their enterprise dis
DIayeS IN the art of hOrticrp51fe.
NE have been told by essayists In the
past that it was impossible to draw a
/ distinct line between horticulture and
agriculture, since so many articles Of
| cultivation are common to both, and
\ from the fact that we'll regulated farm
very nearly approaches to garden.
This we believe to be true, knowing
that one acre well cultivated as the gar
den of the ordinary agrieulturist is,will
produce more than five acres titled in a
shiftless or haphaZaTd manner, as we
lite frequently see. This rem Linds me
OF a circumstance that occurred several
years ago. A farmer, in speaking OF the
cOrn-crOp he had grown the previous
year, remarked that he had planted a
field containing eight acres, in corn, and
was unfortunate in not having 1t culti-
waited quite once, but that said field
yielded one hundred and fifty bushels
of ears per acre. This fortunate wind
fall encouraged him so much that he
never cultivated his corn any after that.
We deem 1t almost useless to state that
that man does not own the farm to-day,
which had been left him as a heritage.
The question Is not: "How many acres
Of wheat did you sOwp" but 1t is, "how
many bushels Of wheat did you succeed
in growing2"
This matter Of acres is of very little
consideration, when we take into ac-
count the manner in which the crop Is
cultivated. We have some farmers In
Stark county who will raise as many
Dubublb VI Oh Ibu dCE65 hS Ills less
fortunate neighbOr will on twice that
number of acres of land. This, we may
say, is wholly due to the manner of un-
derdraining, if necessary, the cultiVa-
tiOn and amount of fertilizers used.
Much advancement has been made In
these arts in the last decade in this
country; and much of this is due no
doubt to Farmers meetings, HOrtieul-
tural societies, and from the knowledge
obtained by reading works upon these
subjects, in connection with that zeal
and enterprise 80 greatly identified
with the American people.
Let us, then, not allow this never end
ing work to lag, but always endeavOr to
advance in the calling we have chosen,
and compel this year of our Lord, one
thousand eight hundred and eighty
three, which we have but commenced,
to sound loud praise OF the advancement
in horticulture.
JACKSON w. PoNTIUs.
January Sd, 1888.
A. j. Hershey, from the Committee on
Apples, Pears and Ounces, read the fol- |
lowing report:
REPORT OF APPLE COMMITTEE.
We find on examination the follow
in g varieties, and by the exhibitors as
follows:
BY william Nsese, one specimen Of
Smith Cider, not very good specimen;