What is known as the "stump" method of training and pruning is followed. This consists in staking the vine during the first two years, so as to form a straight, upright trunk. The first year the vine is allowed to grow as it will, when it is cut back to its strongest eye. The second year all the buds are rubbed off to the height of 15 or 18 inches, and at the next pruning the cane is cut back to 18 or 20 inches, leaving two or three buds as a basis for the future head. From now the "short spur" system of pruning is adopted; that is, the canes are all allowed to grow as they please during the summer, and at the regular pruning in March these canes are cut back to one or two eyes, from which spring the bearing canes. Of course as the vines get old too many spurs are made, and many of them too long, when some of them must be cut out altogether. Under this system most of the grapes seem to thrive very well, although there is a great deal of careless staking and training in the early life of the vines, resulting in difficult pruning later on, and many of the bunches get spoiled by the mud, owing to the want of good, straight, strong trunks to hold up the fruit.

There is considerable difference of opinion as to whether the grapevines need to be hilled up during the winter in this valley. The old custom among the natives has been to cover the vines with hills of earth in the month of November and not to uncover until the following March, when it is time to prune. The mounds of earth are raised sufficiently high to just cover the buds which are to be left for the coming year. No irrigation is given during the winter, or until after pruning.

The object of this hilling up is not to protect the vines so much from the winter cold as from the cold, drying winds, which cause the trunk to crack and the canes to winterkill. It is, however, claimed by those who have tried it in recent years that if the vineyards be irrigated during the winter these dry, cold winds do no harm and the vines thrive better. Pruning is usually done in March, but earlier grapes are produced when the vines are pruned in the fall.

Undoubtedly much better results would be obtained if the vines were wider apart, better trained, and the surface soil kept well pulverized throughout the year. People taking up this industry would be well repaid for the care given their vineyards in the sale of their grapes at good prices-soon becoming independent.

VEGETABLES.

Most every kind of vegetable can be raised in this Territory except, perhaps, the Irish potato in some localities. The potato is a native of the mountain country in its wild state, and in the central and western parts of Socorro County, along the northern line of Colfax County, and extending southward for 100 miles along the base of the mountains, the finest potatoes in the world are grown. The raising of this crop requires very little work, and the yield is very large.

Turnips, carrots, ruta-bagas, and cabbage all do well. Of the latter, it is no uncommon thing to see heads weighing from 20 to 30 pounds, and occasionally one that weighs several pounds more. Cabbages

are worth from 1 to 5 cents per pound, depending upon the season of the year when they are sold. Onions excel in size and flavor, and are a good paying crop.

FRUITS.

The fruit industry is coming to the front rapidly, and people coming to this Territory to settle learn that fine fruit can be produced here with much less trouble than in the States. There are many magnificent orchards in this Territory. The size and variety of the fruits raised would astonish and delight our Eastern orchardists. A large evaporator is now being built in Santa Fe.

Apples flourish luxuriantly. Pears, quinces, and plums appear to be in their native clime. The strawberry, currant, gooseberry, raspberry, and blackberry all thrive vigorously. The valley along the Rio Grande appears to be particularly adapted to all. kinds of fruits, although all sections of New Mexico susceptible of cultivation will produce the finest variety of fruits, and most abundantly.

CEREALS.

Wheat, in quality, size, and quantity, is not excelled anywhere in the United States. Corn does well, and oats grow luxuriantly, but are generally cut green and fed in the straw.

TIMBER.

Both hard and soft pine, spruce, oak, cedar, walnut, mountain ash, quaking asp, box elder, cottonwood, etc., are all found in great abundance.

LUMBER INDUSTRY.

Extensive pine forests in New Mexico make the lumber industry here an important one. All over the Territory individuals are erecting sawmills, whose product is demanded and utilized by the people who use lumber for building purposes in the place of the ancient adobe. The profits of lumbering are large.

HORTICULTURE.

The first annual report of the New Mexico Horticultural Society, covering the year 1897, has just been issued. It contains an account

of the fruit exhibit held last year in the city of Santa Fe and the efforts of the society to awaken an interest in horticulture and stimulate, by offering suitable prizes, the production of valuable varieties of fruit.

The exhibit referred to was highly successful. It brought together a display which in many respects was remarkable. It showed that New Mexico, in the variety of its fruit products, having regard to quality as well as species, stands in the foremost rank among fruitproducing parts of the United States. Some States may produce certain species of fruit of superior quality to any yet produced in New Mexico, but the same States may fall short in respect of certain other species in which New Mexico may excel; so that it is in the uniformly high grade of its fruits that New Mexico surpasses the other parts of the Union.

Horticulture is a business to which the people of New Mexico may well give great attention. It would be practicable for them to supply large quantities of excellent fruit to the markets of the Mississippi Valley and the lake region. The climate of their Territory will admit

of placing the products of their orchards and vineyards in the market at an earlier date than many competitive places, and care and experience in cultivation would in time enable them to produce varieties of a very superior grade.

Practically all the irrigated valleys of the Territory are adapted to fruit growing. The soil of the Rio Grande and Pecos valleys, for instance, is highly fertile, and irrigation has demonstrated its adaptability to both viticulture and horticulture. A good quality of wine could be produced by care in selecting the proper species of grapes. This has already been shown by what has been achieved in that direction. Altogether, the New Mexico Horticultural Society has an excellent opportunity for the accomplishment of a work of enormous value to the Territory.

Our horticultural fair was pronounced by all the most comprehensive and evenly balanced exhibition of fruits of all kinds ever seen, and it has stamped New Mexico as the most perfect fruit-growing section of the world, and while there are many exhibitions on a much larger scale and some which might excel in some particular fruit, there is none which includes such a splendid showing of fruits of all kinds. There is one very noticeable thing about the fruit of New Mexico, and that is it is entirely free from insects of all kinds, is firm, and of very fine flavor.

During the course of this fair it was visited by those familiar with the American Institute fairs in New York, with State fairs of the East, as well as those of Colorado and California, and all concurred that the fruit excelled anything seen before at similar fairs.

Among the exhibits were 246 entries of apples, 34 of crab apples, 125 of pears, 58 of peaches, 108 of plums, 13 of apricots, 37 of nectarines, 15 of quinces, 36 of grapes, 12 of nuts, etc.

When the premium list was published the criticism was made that the number of varieties of fruits required for the first premiums were so large that no entries of that character could be made. The schedule called for 40 varieties of apples, 40 of pears, 20 of plums, 5 of apricots, 5 of nectarines, etc. The result showed that our horticulturists are raising a much larger variety of fruits than was generally supposed, as in all the above cases the required number was actually exceeded.

Among the notable specimens were the following: Largest apple, weight, 23 ounces; circumference, 15 inches. Red Beitigheimer, weight, 184 ounces. Gravenstein, 14 ounces and 133 inches. Russet, 134 ounces and 134 inches, etc.

Among the pears a Bartlett weighing 18 ounces, and an Idaho weighing 18 ounces were noticed.

The Agricultural College (of New Mexico) exhibit showed a peach weighing 104 ounces, and a Pride of the Rio Grande weighed 105

ounces.

A bunch of Muscat grapes, grown as far north as Espanola, weighed 25 ounces, though not ripe; and Stanwick nectarines from the same locality reached 5 ounces in weight.

No premiums were offered for vegetables and no provision made for their exhibition, but so many excellent specimens were brought in voluntarily that it is evident that arrangements should be made to include them as well as floral displays at subsequent exhibitions.

The horticultural fair which has just closed here was a great success from every point.