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WINTER MEETING.
were found not to have been exaggerated, but the green trees and
lawns, the yellow cornfields dotted with golden pumpkins and the
freshness and civilization of Minnesota and Wisconsin seemed
very welcome to eyes wearied with western wonders.
THE SMALL FRUIT PLANTATION.
R. L. POST.
The conditions which determine the location, planning, and
management of a plantation for small fruits are so numerous
and varied that it will be possible to give only a few scattered
suggestions as to some of the factors which enter into the success-
ful management of such a plantation.
In presenting the following suggestions I shall consider mainly
the plantation which supplies a local market.
In this brief paper I shall make no attempt to define a sysem
of laying out the plantation, because that will depend to a greater
or less degree upon the extent and topography of the land, and
upon the character of the soil. Neither shall I give advice as to
the varieties that should be grown, since this depends even more
upon the peculiarities of soil and climate, also upon the methods
of culture and upon the kind of market.
The first suggestion which I wish to make is this-that as a
general rule a large number of fruits, together with other crops,
is preferable to an excess of any one fruit. By this I do not mean
to convey the idea that special emphasis should not be placed upon
a certain crop, or crops, but for reasons which are to follow there
should be a liberal sprinkling of other crops. Of course it cannot
be denied that decided advantages arise from specialization, but
I believe that for a retail market it is much more profitable to
adopt the plan which has been indicated.
In the first place it necessitates the proper handling of the
soil, or, in other words, it brings about the practice of rotation,
with all the benefits accruing therefrom. One of the most im-
portant things to consider in this connection is the combating of
insect and fungus pests, for by varying the crops on a given.
piece of land the life processes of these pests are seriously inter-
rupted, if not entirely suspended, thereby decreasing materially
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