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The Seed Beds, 



With a view to giving a supply of young trees for future planting, and to afford at 

 the same time instruction in the raising of forest trees from seed, a number of beds were 

 prepared and sown with tree seeds. As was to be expected some of these seeds failed to 

 germinate the first season, and after lying dormant in the ground for a whole year, came 

 up in the second spring. From these beds a goodly number of some varieties of trees 

 and shrubs will be obtained. Some of the kinds sown have apparently failed altogether, 

 thus affording lessons to the students from failure as well as success. 



Future Operations. 



We have made arrangements with the Professor of Agriculture for a half acre 

 block in the Experimental Field, which it is our intention to surround with a hedge 

 formed from a variety of hedge plants, for the purpose of showing a sample of hedge 

 formed from each. This will afford both students and visitors an opportunity of seeing 

 the results produced by each plant when trimmed close and grown as a hedge, and test 

 the adaptability of each for hedging purposes. The enclosed plot will be devoted to 

 nursery beds for the growing of young trees taken from the seed beds or procured by 

 purchase, until they have attained sufficient size to be removed to permanent situations. 

 It is also intended to set out in the spring two or three additional clumps of forest trees, 

 one of White Ash, one of American Elm, one of Mixed Evergreens, also to complete the 

 group of European Larch, and extend that of Sugar Maple. 



In the orchard all vacancies will be filled up, and the acre of ground recently 

 purchased planted out so as to complete that portion ; and such other varieties added as 

 may be desirable for the purpose of testing their adaptation to our climate. Some 

 additions will also be made to the plantation of gooseberries, currants, raspberries, and 

 strawberries, in order to furnish a sufficient supply of these fruits for the use of the 

 College, a large part of which will be taken from the existing plantations, particularly of 

 raspberry and strawberry. Some new varieties of these fruits and of grapes will also be 

 set out in the spring together with a few mulberries, so that the work of testing these may 

 keep pace with the progress of horticulture elsewhere. 



In conclusion, your Committee would say that such progress has been made in the 

 department of fruit culture and forestry during the short time that has elapsed since you 

 confided these to our direction as we trust will be satisfactory to you, both in the amount 

 of work done and in the economical manner in which it has been accomplished. In a work 

 of this kind great results cannot be acheived in a single season, yet, even now some fruit 

 is being gathered, some improvements we think are to be seen, and these, we believe, will 

 increase in progressive ratio as the years roll by until the results shall be seen in an 

 abundant supply of fruits, of all kinds suited to the climate, sufficient to meet all the 

 wants of the College, both for consumption and comparison ; and groves of trees, and 

 groups of specimens of every variety of tree and shrub shall give beauty to the landscape, 

 and afford means of instruction in all that a well informed yeoman can wish to know of 

 the character and uses of the forest products of his native land. 



On behalf of the Committee, 



D. W. Beadle, Secretary. 



