STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCLETT. 285 



growth. Poplar is much used, but the tops are cut back so as to 

 present miles of neat, round topped trees even of the Lombardy 

 poplar. For a road tree the Morello cherries are extensively planted. 

 Lines of them may be seen on every hand which are lost in the far 

 distant view. Lines of cherry trees, fifty or more miles in lengthy 

 are said to exist on this great prairie along the road sides." 



CLIMATE OF SILESIA. 



In climate it approaches quite nearly our Iowa prairies. Its 

 summers are extremely variable in temperature and humidity of 

 air. When the winds are from the arid quarters they are exces- 

 sively hot and dry. Singularly enough, however, the south wind 

 of summer is cold and dry, and the northwest wind gives the most 

 moisture and rain. The winters are as cold as ours, but rather 

 more even in temperature. Some things are grown which fail with 

 us. In sheltered situations, the Box, Mahonia, Ligustrums, etc., 

 survive, while under the most favorable conditions the ordinary 

 mulberry of the south fails, as does the osage orange, the catalpa, 

 the Alianthus, etc." 



FRUITS OF SILESIA. 



" Pears are more grown than with us, but the varieties are hardier 

 than those we have failed with, and the foliage of these indicate 

 rougher usage than they would have in our climate. 



" In apple growing the climate and soil are far from favorable. 

 While favorable for most cereals and grass, the prairie is too wet 

 for best success in orcharding. With such varieties ps Jonathan 

 Dominie, Willow, or even Ben Davis and Walbridge, they would 

 utterly fail to grow apples here. The list resisting the climate 

 and doing well on this soil, is not an extensive one, and it contains 

 some of the varieties of the Russian steppes. The fight has been 

 at the school to exclude Irom the experimental orchards all varie- 

 ties low in quality. Hence it is an omnium gatherum of the varie- 

 ties of good quality known to the prairies of central Europe. Dr. 

 StoU, the Director, has given his life to experimental work here, 

 and his opinion of the relative worth and hardiness of varieties of 

 fruits, has much value. He has given us a list of about 25 varie- 

 ties of winter apples which have stood the test winters most per- 

 fectly in trying positions, all of which are worth trying in Iowa. 

 His select list of pears, cherries and plums, we also consider valu- 



