The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1894-04-13
Crop Report.
LANSING. April 9, 1894.


pernure modera o account of pre-.
cipifatio Reports ar not yet at hand
from all sectio in tie ate, but at the
Tie records show | to have been the
warmest Mar,h in sixteen years. The
mean empera IRE of hs month was 40.4S
gre, S, ~ 8 deerees above tue normal.
The mean temperature of the frs twen-
ty-four d. US wss about 44y65 degree or ID
degrees above he norual. The highest
temperature &c rd d Mas IA degrees on
the 18th. A cold wave passed over the
State IL the 25th, md the weather from
that date to the end of the month was
severely cold The mean temperature of
the last week of the month was below 28
degrees. On the 18th the temperature
dropped 10 degrees. This was the
lowest pom, touched dui the month.
Since April he tempera ure has gone
below ne fire, zing point ON all except
two day.. On the first it d opped to 81
degrees, on !, second to % aid on the
highs of the 7th and 9Th to 25. This
morning April 9th, there is strong,
cold wind f,om he east.
The average precipi alton in March
Was l.26 inches. three inches Of snow
fell IN h. 18th.
As usual heat on he snmmii and
@e,, side of hills. and on clay and I'm
drained ,ands, has been som-w hat in
jured, pu do a whole thu crop has win
t, red wei. he averas es of The estimates
of correspond are for the sontherD
counties 80 PEI cent: centra C 'unties 81
per cent northern counties, "a Per cent I;
and STATE 80 per cent, comparison being
WI aveiag- years. Correspou dents in
their remarks report the crop IN good
condltl",,, mech better than usual at the
end of an 'open" March. La 1893 the
av, rae condition April 1, in the south
ern counties was 81 central 81, 5 ale 81;
in 1892, southern coun les 80, central 49,
State 80; liz 1891, southern 81, central 92,
state SO. The average condition this
year, in The southern counties is eight
points better, and in the Sta,e six points
better han on April l, 1898.
The total number of bu-hels of wheat
rep ,rted marketed b farmers In March
is l ,l3S. 557, and in eight months, August
March, l,426, 500, wnich Is l06674
bushels less than reported marketed in
the same months lat year. At 81 ele-
vators and mills from which reports have
been r, celved, there Was no wheat mar
keted during the month.
The average condition Of clover mea-
dows aud astuies is as follows: South
ern counties 70 per cent, central 81,
northern 95 and State 80 per cent.
Farm animals are in good condition.
During the warm weather that pre-
vailed previous to the 25sh of March,
fruit buds developed to some consider
able extent, and grave fears we're felt
thai the cold wave of that date would
work great harm If not ruin t. the crop.
A large number of letters, which will be
published in full in the final report. have
been received from fruit Specialists since
April l, but at the time they we're writ
ten The growers themselves were not en-
tirely sati fed as to the amount of m
age. The Grand River Valley Horticul-
ture Society, March q; believed no harm
had ieeD done, but one of its members a
few days later found peaches and pairs
badly injured. Ionia growers think
their crop injured but trihe. A st.
Joseph correspondent thinks peaches all
killed. At South Haven fair crop Of
all kinds Of fruit is expected. In Wash
tenaw peach buds had started to bloom"
in some cases showing color. All such
on low ground are killed, while those on
higher ground are not injured. Apples
and other fruits on high lands have es-
capped.
A fair conclusion from these letters is
that the early and tender varieties of
fruit, especially peaches and pears have
been injured, but the later and harder
kinds are yet safe. This is particularly
true of apples. There is no reason why
full crop of this fruit should not be ex-
pected