Chapter M: H. Hegerle, Supt., St. Bonifacius

On May 18th we had several inches of snow accompanied by a fierce northwest wind, and orchards without any shelter suffered seriously, and both apples and plums in such orchards were scarce and of a rather inferior quality. A few orchards had a fair crop, while a couple of others with a natural windbreak had a fairly good crop, but on an average it was the lightest apple and plum crop we have had for some time.

Mr. Beiersdorf and Mr. Swichtenberg report a good crop of Wealthy and Peter. Their orchards are close to a lake and are well protected on the north and west by a natural grove.

Of the twenty-four report blanks sent out, eleven were returned properly filled in, and they all report conditions about as above outlined.

Cherries and grapes suffered even more from the cold than the apples, and that crop was very light. My Homer cherry trees look healthy and are growing fine, but the past two years had not enough fruit to supply the birds.

Raspberries and strawberries were a good crop and of exceptional fine quality, but the currants and gooseberries were a total failure in my garden as well as elsewhere, according to all reports received.

There were not many fruit trees planted in this district the past year. For instance, at this station the deliveries last spring consisted principally of bundles containing one-half dozen or a dozen trees each, and the total number delivered in that way did not exceed 200 trees and, according to all information, the planting throughout this district was very light.

I know of only one new orchard started with 700 four and five year old trees. About 500 are Wealthys and the balance Patten Greenings. The trees made a good start but were somewhat neglected during the summer, the field being planted to corn and some to barley, and all was handled rather rough.

There was very little blight in this district the past year. I noticed just a little on two or three Transcendents, and Mr. Jos. Boll, who has about 1,500 bearing trees, reports no blight at all.

I did no spraying this year, did not consider it worth while, as there was no fruit, and most others felt the same way. Other years though a lot of spraying is done, and the more progressive ones spray two and three times.

There is plenty of moisture in the soil, and the trees are going into winter quarters in good shape, therefore prospects for apple and plum crop the coming season are excellent.

Probably a hundred or more different kinds of apple and plum trees and berries of all kinds are grown here. Farmers in the past usually bought what the salesman recommended, just to get rid of him; lately though they are taking more interest in the selection, and the Wealthy, Patten's or Northwestern Greenings, Okabena, Peter and perhaps a few Duchess are about the only apple trees planted now. Surprise plums, Dunlap and everbearing strawberries are the leaders.

Ornamental shrubs are found here of all names and descriptions and colors, and they all seem to do well.

* * * * *

HONEY VINEGAR.--Vinegar made from honey has an exceptionally fine flavor and is not expensive. A small amount of honey furnishes a large amount of vinegar. Follow these directions: Dissolve thoroughly in two gallons of warm, soft water one quart jar of extracted honey. Give it air and keep it in a warm place, where it will ferment and make excellent vinegar.--Missouri College of Agriculture.

Thirty Years in Raspberries.

GUST JOHNSON, RETIRED FRUIT GROWER, MINNEAPOLIS.

Of the growing of fruit, it may well be said, "Experience is a good teacher, but a dear school."

When I began fruit growing, some thirty years ago, I did not begin it merely as an experiment. I was interested in every branch of the work and, being very much in earnest about it, I felt confident of success.

Thinking that the failures and drawbacks sometimes experienced could be easily overcome by a thorough understanding of the work at hand, I began by getting all the information possible. I found that great books such as by Downing, Thomas, etc., were more suitable for the advanced fruit grower, but I studied all the pamphlets and books obtainable during the winter months and put this knowledge into practice during the summer. Of course I could not put into practice all I had obtained from this reading, but I remembered distinctly the advice to all amateur fruit growers to start out slowly. This was particularly suited to my case, for the land was covered with timber, some of which I grubbed each summer, gradually adding acres as I cleared the land.

My first venture was in planting raspberries, planting potatoes between the rows the first year. One delusion I had was in planting as many different and untested varieties as I could afford to buy and not confining myself to those that had been tried and had proven satisfactory. Fortunately for me, the high cost of plants at this time did not warrant my buying as many different varieties as I desired, and I had to be contented with fewer plants. From the most promising of these, I saved all the plants possible.

I had an idea that I could do better by sending to some of the Eastern states for my plants, but here again I was mistaken, for the plants often did not arrive until late in May, and by the time they had reached their destination were practically all dried out. The warm weather then coming on, I lost the greater part of them, although I had carefully hoed and tended them in the hope that they would finally revive. Here I might also mention that the express charges added considerably to the cost of these already expensive plants.

As a beginner I put much unnecessary labor on these plants. While I do not wish to leave the impression that hoeing and caring for them is not all right, still there should be a happy medium which I later learned as I became more experienced along this line. I must admit, however, that this rich, new land thus cultivated certainly yielded some wonderful fruit.

As time went by, I kept adding to my plantation, and owing to the large yield and the good demand for the black caps I took a fancy to raising them. When the Palmer variety was first introduced, I planted quite a field of them. I shall never forget the way these berries ripened, and such a lot of them as there were. Practically every one by this time having planted black caps, their great yield soon overstocked the market, and berries finally dropped as low as 65c or 70c a crate.

Having decided to dig up these black caps, I began paying closer attention to the red raspberry. I noticed that the raspberries growing wild on my place grew mostly in places where big trees had been cut down and young trees had grown up, thus partly shading the plants. Having this fact in mind, I planted the raspberries as follows: I planted an orchard, having the trees in parallel rows, and between the trees in these same rows I planted the raspberries. By planting in this manner, the cultivation would benefit the trees as well as the smaller plants. Of course after the trees began bearing heavily, the plants nearest the trees had to be removed, and later the other plants likewise were removed.

As a beginner it was a puzzle to me which varieties I should plant. All varieties listed in the numerous catalogs were so highly recommended as being hardy, large yielders, good shippers, etc., that the selection of plants was not an easy matter.

The speed with which a new variety of raspberry is sent out over the country and discarded is surprising. The most popular sort at this time was the "Turner" variety. I did not, however, fancy this variety, for it suckered so immensely that it required continual hoeing to keep the new plants cut down. The berries were unusually soft and settled down in the boxes, which greatly detracted from their appearance in the crates. There were also at this time a few of the "Philadelphia" variety being planted. They are a dark, soft variety and somewhat similar to the Turner.

Just at this time there was being sent out a new variety, known as the Cuthbert, or Queen of the Market, and queen it was indeed. This was a large, firm berry, and after ripening it would remain on the plant a long time without falling off. These plants grew up in remarkably long canes, but not knowing how to head them back they would often topple over during a heavy storm. This added another valuable lesson to my increasing experience, which resulted in my pinching of the new canes as soon as they had attained a height of from three to four feet. This made the plants more stocky and more able to support their load of berries without the aid of wire or stakes.

Next came the Marlboro, plants of which sold at as much as a dollar apiece in the east. I then set out a bed of Marlboro, which proved to be even better than the Cuthbert, previously mentioned. They could be picked while still quite light in color, thus reaching the market while still firm and not over-ripe. There was only one possible drawback, and that was the fact that I had planted them on a southern exposure, while they were more adapted to a colder or northern exposure. This variety on a new field, as it was, practically bore itself to death.

About this time, there originated in Wisconsin a berry known as the Loudon. A committee of nurserymen having gone to see this variety returned with the report that the half had not been told concerning this great berry. Wanting to keep up with the times, I decided to plant some of this variety in the spring. The yield from these plants was immense, and the berries large, but unlike the Marlboro already mentioned they could not be picked until very dark and real ripe. This variety was more subject to anthracnose than any I had seen, and served to give me a thorough understanding of the various raspberry diseases, which I had heretofore blamed to the drouth. The leaves would dry up and the berries become small and crumbly when affected by anthracnose. It might be said of this variety as regards public favor, that it went up like a rocket and came down equally fast.

I next tried the Thompson Early as an experiment, but this variety proved a failure, or at least a disappointment. These berries ripened very slowly, just a few at a time, and did not compare favorably with either the Marlboro or the Loudon.

A party close by had at this time planted out a large field of a variety of raspberry which I had not seen before. These plants produced a large berry, more like a blackberry in appearance. Having by this time had experience with so many kinds of raspberries, I examined this new variety carefully, and all in all decided that this was the coming berry. Here, too, I also noticed the first signs of disease. The plants had only begun to bear fruit, however, and judging from the strong, tall canes, they looked good for at least fifteen years. This disease, however, practically destroyed the entire field within two years. Before too badly diseased, I had obtained and planted out a couple of acres of these plants and immediately began spraying them. The following spring I sprayed them again, and although the plants became perfectly healthy, I sprayed them once or twice during the summer, and it is needless to say the result was a berry which, considering all its good points, was certainly deserving of the name it bore, which was "King." In fact, I do not hope to see anything better in the raspberry line during the next thirty years, that is, any seedling having all its merits: a strong growth, hardiness of cane, an immense bearer and a good shipper. It's only fault is that the berries will drop from the plants when real ripe, but if you are on the job this can easily be averted.

As far as anthracnose is concerned, I have found that there is not a variety of raspberry standing out in an open field, unsprayed or partly shaded, that will stand up under a heavy crop without being affected by this disease.

After increasing my plantation, as I had by this time, I found I required more help. Ability in managing my helpers was a necessity. My experience with them in the field was that when I set them to hoeing a newly set raspberry field if not watched they would destroy half the roots, loosening the little hold the struggling plants had, by cutting close and hoeing the soil away from the roots. I have seen supposedly intelligent men plowing alongside of the plants, thinking they were doing their work so much more thoroughly, but if they would dig up one plant before plowing and another after, they would readily see the results of their plowing.

A born farmer assumes that everybody knows how to handle a hoe or a plow, but why should they, not having had practical experience? When put to work such as hoeing, they would make the most outlandish motions with the hoe, often destroying valuable plants, not being able to distinguish them from the weeds. Though they may labor just as hard, they cannot possibly accomplish as much as the expert who can skillfully whirl a hoe around a plant in such a manner as to remove every weed and yet not injure the plant in the least. In other words, the best efforts of the novice cannot possibly bring the results so easily accomplished by the more skillful laborer. Except in a few cases, I have found inexperienced help a discouragement.

In hiring pickers who had to come quite far each morning, I found that if the morning had been wet and rainy, but had later turned out to be a nice day, they would not come at all. The sun coming out after these showers would cause the berries to become over-ripe and to drop from the bushes, or if still on the bush would be too ripe for shipping. These same pickers, when berries were scarce, would rush through the rows, merely picking the biggest and those most easily acquired.

Having tried pickers as mentioned, I decided that to get pickers from the city and board them would be the better plan. While they seemed to work more for the pleasure connected with life on the farm than with the idea of making money, yet after a little training and a few rules, most of them would make splendid pickers, and my berries being carefully picked and in first class condition, would readily sell to the best trade.

Leaving the subject of berries and berry picking, I will dwell briefly on my experience with the winter covering of the plants. At first I would cover the canes in an arch-like manner, which would require more than 18 inches of soil to cover them, and it was necessary to shovel much by hand. In the spring I found it quite a task to remove all this soil and get it back in place between the rows. After I learned to cover them properly, that is flat on the ground, I found it required but a small amount of soil to cover them, and in the spring it was only necessary to use a fork to remove the covering, and with a little lift they were ready to start growth again.

After getting more and more fruit, I found I could not dispose of it in the home market, and tending to the picking and packing of the fruit did not leave enough time to warrant my peddling it. I had been advised to ship my berries to two or three different commission houses in order to see where I could obtain the best results. I frequently divided my shipments into three parts: consequently some of my fruit would meet in competition with another lot of my fruit, and not only would one concern ask a higher or lower price than the other, but they would not know when to expect my shipments, which they would receive on alternate days. I finally came to the conclusion that I would send all my fruit to one party, and I found that it was not only more of an object to them, but people would come every day to buy some, knowing they were getting the same quality each time.

Although it has been my experience that the raspberry is never a failure, still I have found that it is a good policy not to depend entirely on the raspberry, but to extend the plantation in such a way as to have a continuous supply of fruits and vegetables in season, from the asparagus and pie plant of the early spring to the very latest variety of the grape and apple ripening just before the heavy frost of fall, when it is again time to tuck them all away for the winter.

Mr. Ludlow: Do I understand that you have to lay down and cover up those red raspberries?

Mr. Johnson: Yes, sir; otherwise you only get a few berries right at the top of the cane, and if you cover them the berries will be all along down the cane.

The President: Do you break off many canes by covering them?

Mr. Johnson: No, it is the way you bend them. When you bend them down, make a kind of a twist and hold your hand right near them. You can bend them down as quick as a couple of men can shovel them down.

Mr. Anderson: Do you bend them north or south or any way?

Mr. Johnson: I generally bend one row one way and the other the other way. Where you want to cultivate, it is easier for cultivation; you don't have to go against the bend of those plants. That bend will never be straight again, and when you come to cultivate you are liable to rub them.

Mr. Anderson: How far have you got yours planted apart?

Mr. Johnson: About five feet.

Mr. Sauter: What is your best raspberry?

Mr. Johnson: I haven't seen anything better than the King.

Mr. Sauter: Do you cover the King?

Mr. Johnson: Yes.

Mr. Sauter: We don't do it on the experimental station. I never covered mine, and I think I had the best all around berry last summer.

Mr. Johnson: That might be all right when they are young, but I find it pays me.

A Member: Don't they form new branches on the sides when you pinch off the ends?

Mr. Johnson: Yes, sir; then you pinch them off.

A Member: Don't they break right off from the main stalk in laying down?

Mr. Johnson: No, no.

A Member: We have a great deal of trouble with that. How do you get these bushy bushes to lie down?

Mr. Johnson: I take three or four canes, and kind of twist them, give them a little twist, and lay them flat on the ground.

Mr. Anderson: Don't you take out any dirt on the sides?

Mr. Johnson: No, sir; sometimes I might put a shovel of ground against them to bend the canes over.

Mr. Rogers: Do you plant in the hedge row or in the hill system?

Mr. Johnson: In the hedge row. I think it is better because they protect one another.

Mr. Ludlow: How far do you put them apart in the hedge row?

Mr. Johnson: Four feet. That is the trouble with the King, if you don't keep them down, your rows will get too wide.

A Member: I heard you say a while ago you covered these. Do you plow them after you get them down or do you cover them with a shovel?

Mr. Johnson: I cover mostly with a shovel. Sometimes I take a small plow through.

A Member: Don't you think in covering them with a plow you might disturb the roots?

Mr. Johnson: That is the danger.

A Member: I saw a fellow covering up twelve acres of black caps and he plowed them shut. After I heard what you said I thought maybe that he was injuring his roots.

Mr. Johnson: You know the black cap has a different root system from the reds. The roots of the reds will run out all over the road.

Mr. Willard: How thick do you leave those canes set apart in the row, how many in a foot?

Mr. Johnson: I generally try to leave them in hills four feet apart, not let them come in any between. About three or four in a hill. I generally try to cut out the weak ones.

Mr. Willard: You pinch the end of the tops, I think?

Mr. Johnson: Yes, sir.

A Member: When do you cut those sucker canes?

Mr. Johnson: I generally hoe them just before picking time and loosen the ground in the row. That is very important, to give them a hoeing, not hoe down deep, but just loosen that hard crust there and cut all the plants that you don't want, and then generally, after the berries commence to ripen, your suckers don't come so fast, and you keep on cultivating once in a while.

Mr. Brackett: I have some King raspberries, and I never covered them up in ten years. I will change that. The first year I did cover a part of my patch, at least one-half of them, and that left the other half standing, and I couldn't see any difference. Around Excelsior there are very few people that cover up the King raspberry. But the King raspberry has run out; all of the old varieties have run out. We have at our experiment station the No. 4--you can get double the amount of fruit from the No. 4 than from the King. The best way to grow the King raspberry or any other raspberry is to set them four feet apart and cultivate them. If you grow a matted row you are bound to get weeds and grass in there, you are bound to get them ridged up, but by planting in hills and cultivating each way you can keep your ground perfectly level. As far as clipping them back my experience has been it is very hard to handle them--they will spread out. It is a big job to cover the plants and then to uncover them again. I know it is not necessary with the No. 4; that is hardy. That is what we want. Hardiness is what we want in a berry, and you have it in the No. 4.

Mr. Hall: I would like to ask you what you spray with and when you spray?

Mr. Johnson: The bordeaux mixture. I spray them early in the spring and just before they start to ripen.

Mr. Wick: With us the Loudon raspberry seems to be the coming raspberry.

Mr. Johnson: Is it doing well now?

Mr. Wick: Yes, it is doing well.

Mr. Ludlow: How many years is the planting of the King raspberry good for?

Mr. Johnson: I think it would be good for fifteen years or more if they are handled as I do it. Keep at the plant, hoeing and spraying them twice a year; trim out the old wood and keep them healthy.

The President: You take out all the old wood every year?

Mr. Johnson: Yes, sir.

Mr. Ludlow: When do you do that?

Mr. Johnson: In the fall. I figure this way, every extra cane that you grow on the plant is a waste. If I see a cane a little higher than the others I just stop it, and it throws the sap back.

Mr. Berry: Do you fertilize and how and when?

Mr. Johnson: I found I didn't need much fertilizer. I put on wood ashes and such things when I burn the trimming of the berries and such things.

A Member: When do you spray?

Mr. Johnson: I generally spray in the spring after they get started and just before they are starting to ripen. I spray them sometimes when they are starting to ripen, and the berries would pick up in one day.

A Member: You mean to say you could grow them for fifteen years without fertilizing?

Mr. Johnson: Yes, sir.

* * * * *

KNOWLEDGE of the temperature of the pantry and cellar is important, in order that one may make improvements in conditions. Putrefaction will start at 50°, so that a pantry or closet where food is kept should have a temperature at least as low as that. Cellars where canned goods are stored should have a temperature of 32° or over. Apples are frequently stored in outside cellars, where the temperature should be kept at 31° or 32°; but apples may be kept satisfactorily at 34° or 36°. When stored at the higher temperatures, the fruit should be placed there soon after being picked.

Annual Report, 1915, Nevis Trial Station.

JAS. ARROWOOD, SUPT., NEVIS.

We would say that the station is in good condition; all trees and shrubbery have done well; no complaint as far as growth is concerned. This being an off year for fruit in this section, the fruit crop in general was light, the late frost and heavy rains destroying most all, both wild and tame fruits.

The strawberries, raspberries and currants were fairly good; plums and apples were very light, except some seedlings, both apples and plums, which seemed to hold their fruit. Most all the large apples were destroyed by the freeze, such as Duchess, Wealthy, Greening and Hibernal. There were some of the Duchess seedlings that seemed to stand all kinds of freezing.

Now in regard to the fruits that were sent here from Central station. The majority are doing fairly well, especially in regard to strawberry No. 3, which is doing splendidly and points to be the coming strawberry of northern Minnesota. It is a good runner and has a large, dark foliage. Plants that we left out last winter without covering came through in splendid condition and made a heavy crop. In regard to the fruit, it is of the best quality, large and firm and a good keeper. In regard to raspberries, Nos. 1, 4 and 7 did very well, and stood the winter without laying down, and bore a good crop.

In regard to the eighteen plum trees I received three years ago, Nos. 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 12 have done very well and have made a good growth, but have had no fruit so far.

The sand cherry that was received the same year, No. 2, has done very well and bore some fruit this last year of a fair quality.

Hansen cherries are doing fairly well and bore some fruit this year.

Now in regard to plums that were received in 1914 Nos. 2, 3, 8, 10, 13, 20, have all made a good growth. What was received in 1915 have all grown.

The grapes that we received two years ago have made but little growth. There were no grapes in this section this year; they all froze off about twice.

I received at the county fair about sixteen first prizes on apples and plums this year. We did considerable top-working, mostly on Hibernals and native seedlings, which are doing very well. Some of our seedling cherries are commencing to bear and show to be perfectly hardy. They are of the Oregon strain of sweet cherry.

In regard to gardens, they were fairly good throughout the section. Corn crop a failure.

In regard to the condition of the trees and shrubbery, this are going into their winter quarters with lots of moisture and with a large amount of fruit buds, with a good prospect for fruit next year.

* * * * *

DESTROYING PLANT LICE.--According to the results of experiments a 10 per cent kerosene emulsion should prove effective against the green apple aphis. The kerosene emulsion made either with 66 per cent stock, 10 per cent, or with naphtha soap and cold water, seemed to kill all the green apple aphides. The 40 per cent nicotine solution, with a dilution up to 1 to 2,000 combined with soap, were likewise effective aphidicides. The kerosene emulsions under 10 per cent were not satisfactory, neither were the soaps at the strengths tested, except that fish-oil soap, 5 to 50, killed 90 per cent of the aphides. Laundry soap, 3 to 50, was effective against the young aphides only. Arsenate of lead alone, as was to be expected, had little or no effect upon the aphides. The combination of arsenate of calcium with kerosene emulsions is not a desirable one, since an insoluble calcium soap is formed, thereby releasing some free kerosene.--U.S. Dpt. of Agri.

New Fruits Originated at Minnesota Fruit-Breeding Farm.

CHAS. HARALSON, SUPT., EXCELSIOR.

The subject on which I am to talk is rather difficult to present at this time, but I will mention a few of the most promising new varieties.

We have developed several hundred new varieties of fruit since we started fruit-breeding at the State Fruit Farm. Many of them are very promising, but it probably will take several years before we really know what we have that will be of value to the public.

We have been growing thousands of seedlings of apples, plums, grapes, raspberries, strawberries, gooseberries and currants, from which valuable varieties have been selected. All of them have been put under propagation in a small way for testing at the Fruit Farm, trial stations and many other places. Some very favorable reports from several places have been received during the last year from parties who have fruited these new creations. We also have some hybrid peach and apricot seedlings which have stood the test of the last two winters. Some of them blossomed very freely last spring, but on account of the hard freeze in May they did not set any fruit. I hope to be able to report on these another year.

The results of breeding strawberries have given us one everbearing and one June-bearing variety, which have been tested in many places throughout the state. The June-bearing variety has been introduced as Minnesota No. 3. The berries are almost identical with Senator Dunlap in color and shape, but somewhat larger and, I think, more productive. The plants are equal to Dunlap in hardiness, or more so, a stronger plant, and a good plant-maker. The fruiting season is about a week earlier than Dunlap. It is a firm berry and stands shipping a long distance. My belief is that this variety will make one of the best commercial berries for the Northwest.

The everbearing variety is known as No. 1017. It is a large, round berry, dark red color, and is of the best quality. This variety is strong and vigorous and a good plant-maker when blossoms are picked off early in the season. It is also very productive. The blossoms and berries on a number of plants were counted in October, and we found all the way from 200 to 345 berries and blossoms on single plants. This is, of course, a little more than the average, but it shows what it will do under ordinary conditions. This variety has been growing next to Progressive, on the same soil, with the same cultivation, and I think that persons who have seen it this summer will agree with me that it is far ahead of Progressive in size and productiveness. I will say right here, if you expect to have a good crop of fruit in the fall, keep the most of the runners off. If you encourage them to make runners, or plants, you will have less fruit.

The raspberries sent out as Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, are all worthy of trial. The No. 4 has fruited several years and gave the best showing so far. The fruit resembles the Marlboro somewhat, but the color is darker. It is not one of very high quality, but the size of the berry and its appearance will more then make up for this. The canes and foliage are generally healthy and very hardy. This variety will be planted very extensively just as soon as enough stock can be supplied to fruit growers.

The Burbank crossed with Wolf, hybrid plums. There have been several of these sent out to trial stations, and as premiums to members of the Horticultural Society. I will mention them in order as to size of fruit. No. 5, 12, 4, and 6 will measure 1-3/4 inch in diameter. Nos. 21, 10, 17, 9, and No. 1 are nearly as large. The kinds which have given best all around satisfaction up to the present time, are Nos. 1, 6, 9, 10, 12, 17, 21 and 25. One or two years more trial should give us an idea which ones will be worthy of general propagation.

There are also several varieties of Abundance and Wolf crosses which have fruited for several years. The quality of the fruit of these hybrids is probably somewhat better than the Burbank and Wolf hybrids, but the fruit in most cases runs smaller. No. 35 is probably one of the best; its fruit is about 1-1/2 inch in diameter, colors up all over before it is ripe, and will stand shipping a long distance, as they can be picked quite green and still are colored up all over. There are several numbers equally, or nearly, as promising as No. 35.

Sand cherry X Satsuma plum No. 145 is in the same class as Sapa. The color of the fruit is bluish black when ripe, the flesh purple, pit small and nearly freestone; fruit ripens first part of August. This tree is a strong grower and makes a large tree. We also have another plum, Compass cherry X Climax, about the only variety which fruited this year. The color of the skin is almost blue when fully ripe; the meat is green and of a very pleasant flavor. The pit is small and clingstone; size of fruit is about 1-1/2 inches in diameter. The tree is a strong, upright grower. This variety has been propagated this summer. I will not try to describe any more as there are some 2,000 hybrid plums on the place and only a small per cent have fruited.

In grapes we have several varieties worthy of propagation, but I will just mention two varieties. One is a red grape about the size of Wyoming Red. The bunches are large and very compact; the season for ripening is about with Moore's Early; the quality is good enough to make it a table grape. The vine is just as hardy as Beta grape, of which it is a seedling. It has good foliage and the vine is a rank grower. The other variety is black when ripe, nearly as large as Moore's Early. The fruit is ripe first part of August; the vine is vigorous and hardy.

Strawberries and raspberries were a good crop this year, but all other fruit was a total failure on account of the killing frost and snowstorm on May 18th. Apples were in full bloom at the time, and a good crop of plums had set on the trees, but all fell off a few days later. There were no currants or gooseberries and only a few grapes.

Mr. Waldron: What do you think the male parent was of the red grape?

Mr. Haralson: I couldn't say. We don't know what the cross is.

Mr. Waldron: Did you have any red grapes growing there?

Mr. Haralson: I presume there were quite a number of varieties growing near by. In the Beta seedlings we find a number of grapes that ripen green and also some black and a number red, but not a great many, I would say from five to seven per cent of the seedlings.

Mr. Wellington: Have you been able to cross the European plum with the Japanese?

Mr. Haralson: We have one or two varieties, but the fruit is very small, the fruit isn't very much larger than the Compass cherry. The tree is a very strong grower and makes a large tree, but the fruit is not up to what it should be.

Mr. Cook: What number do you hold that red grape under?

Mr. Haralson: The red grape is No. 1.

Mr. Sauter: Which is the next best raspberry besides the No. 4?

Mr. Haralson: I couldn't tell you at present. I thought the No. 2, but from reports I have had from several places some think No. 1 is better. No. 4 is the best of them all so far.

A Member: I would like to ask which of those raspberries is the best quality.

Mr. Haralson: They run very much the same, very little difference in the quality. The quality I should say compares very favorably with the King.

The President: Those of you who know of the wonderful work done by Mr. Haralson can not help but say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." He has surely accomplished wonderful results out there, and the people of this state and adjoining states will all in time enjoy the fruits of his labor. (Applause.)

* * * * *

KILL WILD ONIONS IN NOVEMBER.--The secret of the vitality of the wild onion lies in the two sorts of underground bulbs. Each plant produces one large bulb, which germinates in the fall, and four or five small ones, which start growth in the spring.

Late fall plowing, followed by early spring plowing and planting the infested land to some clean cultivated crop destroys the wild onion pest by killing both sorts of bulbs as the growth from them appears and before they have a chance to multiply. The fall plowing should be deep, and care should be taken to completely bury all green tops of the onion. If very much top growth has been made, a harrow run before the plow will facilitate the thorough covering of the tops.

Another interesting and valuable point about the wild onion is that the spring bulbs rarely produce heads; consequently, if the infested land is plowed in the fall, a spring oat crop practically free of onions can always be secured. But for complete eradication of the onion, both fall and spring plowing is necessary, and November is the best time to do the fall work.

Annual Meeting, 1915, Wisconsin Horticultural Society.

CHAS. HARALSON, EXCELSIOR, MINN., DELEGATE.

The meeting was held January 5, 6 and 7, 1915, in the Assembly Room of the State Capitol in Madison, Wis. Your delegate was present in time for the opening session and given a chance with other delegates to deliver the greetings of their societies.

The opening address by Governor Phillip was very interesting. He told of the possibilities the State of Wisconsin offered fruit growers in a commercial way with markets all around them. He advocated honest grading and packing to obtain the top prices for the fruit. He also urged every farmer to have a small orchard and fruit garden for home consumption.

Spraying and spray mixtures, illustrated, was ably presented by Professor Geo. F. Potter, University of Wisconsin.

A speaking contest by ten students from University of Wisconsin competed for prizes of $25.00, $15.00 and $10.00. This brought out almost every phase of horticulture and was one of the most interesting sessions.

Commercial orcharding in the middle west was shown with moving pictures and explanations by Sen. Dunlap, Savoy, Ill. These pictures illustrated spraying, cultivating, harvesting, grading, packing, caring for the fruit and marketing the same, and several other operations in connection with uptodate commercial orcharding. He also gave a talk on spraying and spraying materials. He said lime-sulphur is preferred in his locality.

A half hour question and answer session was led by Professor J.G. Moore, University of Wisconsin, on pruning. This brought out a very lively discussion about how to prune young orchards and what age of trees to plant for commercial orchards. This question was not settled, as some preferred one year old trees, while others would plant nothing but two year old trees.

M. S. Kellogg, Janesville, Wis., spoke of nurserymen's troubles. His paper was very interesting from a nurseryman's standpoint with all their troubles and what they have to go up against.