The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1905-09-01
HorticEit!si9. Fast, Present and fu-
fure.
Continued from last 'ceek.)

lines or 1Tull growing tlSlC navy "Aso
come scores Of destructive insect pests
and diseases, which have been con-
slant menace TO the industry, but
with these there has also come the eX-
pertinent station, giving both state
and national aid 70 the growers in de-
termining the best methods of con-
trolling or destroying them.
Here in Van Buren, county there is
another special line of fruit growing
which has developed in a district
known as the Lawton grape district
and one that a days drive through
the fine vineyards would make anyone
well proud Of. From a few acres the
area has broadened ont into an ever
widening circle until now we have
thousands of acres under cultivation
and the fruit has gained a national
reputation.
With the different stages and growth
of this industry many Of you are bet
ter posted than myself, but with this
as with other kinds of fruit there
must have been the dark days bring
ing with them conditions and prob
lens to be solved, which, Judging
from the present prosperous condi-
tons, were solved without serious loss
and made the future prospects the
brighter.
Enough has been said of the past.
Mistakes have been made in plenty,
but the present and the future are
what interest Us the most. Who can
foretell the future? I do not claim TO
do so. can simply give it viewed
from my standpoint. Thomas Car
Isle said I'VE can only judge the
future by the past" Must this be
true? Must severe losses be sustained
in order that we be awakened to our
danger? Think Of the magnitude Of
the fruit industry and the prosperity
it means TO the state, andi especially
this part Of the state. I would say
"NO!' Let us profit by the mistakes
made in the past. be ever on the watch
and fight that which threatens our
fruits.
Let MS look TO the future. Large
paintings Of fruit are going ont and
plans for more are being made. Do
we want more acres of fruit? Iwould
say not unless we can have better
acres Of fruit. I say that we must
have higher cultural methods which
will produce finer grades of fruit for
the future or the industry will deter
iorate and value will decrease. With
no other kinds Of fruit is there so
much needed reform as with the Mich
igan apple and peach. ! have been
on scores of fruit farms on which, If
the owners had half the acreage OF
fruit and had given it all the atten-
ton which the whole had received,
there would have been more profit at
the end Of the season and far less
strain.
With the largest peach cropin sight
that Michigan has ever had, there are
hundreds of orchards which were not
pruned at all and were thinned but
very little, and l will guarantee that
in the near future there will be many
a forlorn face the owner Of which will
wish he had thinned and pruned
more.
There will be hundreds Of thousands
of bushels of poorly packed culls
thrown onto the market, which Will
add another black mark TO Michigan ;
fair name and which might better
have been kept at home and fed to
the hogs. This may seem like severe
criticism, but the fact remains and
the statement will prove out, and
there will be some lessons learned in
the near future.
1t is generally conceded that an ex-
ira effort has been made TO get the
peaches th;uned N view Of the large
crop on HAND, but from my observa-
ton there was great room for more
severe work in this line. There are
some things favorable for the peach
that the apple and pear crop is very
light and very soon Michigan will
have the markets surrounding her to
herself. Conditions have vastly
changed in the last few years. While
the demand for fruit has been great,
the paintings of every kind of fruit
grown have also been great in al
parts of the United States.
Injurious insects and diseases have
increased, making fruit growing eX'
pensive. so that in the future only
well packed fine fruit will be profit
able. and one cannot keep on hand
expensive spraying machinery and do
expensive spraying unless other cul'
tural methods are applied which viii
produce the very best. There can be
no half way measures in profitable
future fruit growing.
Hundreds of times I am asked The