The Brownsville daily herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910, 1909-01-18


The first of the series of farmers
institutes to be held in the Lower Rio
Grande Valley was held at Browns
vile Saturday, Jan. 16, at the Com
mercial Club. Clement r. Kirby was
chosen president and r. n. Magill
secretary. State Land Commission
er o. B. KOne made the opening ad-
dress, stating in a few concise and
well chosen words the object of
these institutes. He endeavored to
impress upon his hearers the import
ance of holding these meetings reg
ularly. and suggested that institutes
be organized at every community in
the Valley, which should meet each
month, and all of the institutes
holding a joint session a least once
a year. Their object, he said, was
TO bring the farmers together, so
that they can discuss in a general
way methods for promoting their
mutual interests. He would also as
sist the Valley farmers in securing
some man who might be of special as
sistance to the peculiar needs Of this
section. which is not only operated
entirely by irrigation, but also being
sub-trOpical, naturally differs in
many respects from the remainder of
the state.
Prof. w. c. Melbourne of the State
Agricultural and Mechanical College
next made an interesting address The
professor said by way of indtrOduc-
ton, that he thought this Valley
must have about a thousand pound
high pressure advertising bureau.
The situation justified all that was
said about it, however, as the people
of the Valley not only capitalize the
land and money but the water and
the climate. Sugar-cane was the
first subject claiming his attention.
He had studied sugar-cane in the
tropics, and from what he had seen,
It was destined to become one of the
staple crops in the Valley The an
aIyses of cane that he had seen here
showed that it ranked higher than
any he had ever seen analysed in
either Hawaii or Java.
Don't devote your farms entirely
10 truck" he advised, but go in for
general farming"
1t would only be a short time be-
fore the live stock industry particu-
larly dairying and hog raising. would
form an important industry in the
Valley. He also believed that alfal-
ia. if property cultivated, would
prove a success here. Alfalfa, he
said. is very tender when young,
and he believed that the reason
number of persons have been unable
TO succeed with it was because they
did not understand raising it. After
a careful study of the situation, Prof
Melbourne was convinced that citrus
fruits should do as well in the Lower
Rio Grande Valley as in any other
part of the United States. He also
firmly believed that almost any kind
of feed stuff raised in East Texas or
Mississippi would make a riche-
yield here
George OnderdOnk, the well known
nurseryman of Victoria County, who
is probably one of the best known
authorities on peaches in the United
States, spoke next. There are five
distinct varieties of peaches, accord
ing to Mr.. OnderdOnk. 1t was a
number of years after he had made
the peach his life study that he dis
covered this fact and it was in
building standing where the Miller
Hotel now stands in Brownsville
that he made his first table of the
different races of peaches. Either
the Spanish or South Chinese peaches
would do well here, but he thought
il would be a waste of time to at
tempt to grow any of the other va
rieties. unless it might be a few of
the Pintos, as others were not adapt
ed to this climate. The South Chi
nese. he said. are a wonderfully
sweet peach. but they do not ship
well. For home use or for canning
they are excellent. These are fairly
early peach. The Spanish peaches
are also good, and ship fairly well.
They are fine for preserving and
ripen about July. This is a peach
country if the two varieties named
are planted, but they must not be
drowned by too much irrigation,
the speaker recommending a