114 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICUI/rURAI. SOCIETY. 



known to the early Frenchman as ponime de terre, and to botanists 

 as Psoralia esculenta. 



At about ten o'clock a belated snow-bound train broui^^ht Prof. 

 Hansen, and the applause which followed testified to the honor 

 and esteem with which he is regarded at home. He spoke enter- 

 tainingly for an hour and a half about his trip last summer and fall 

 through England, Denmark, Sweden. Norway, Finland, Russia, Si- 

 beria and Japan in search of the hardy yellow alfalfa. 



At the Wednesday session President Synoground spoke enter- 

 tainingly about his small fruit plantation. 



A paper by D. M. Dickerson on the raspberry brought out the 

 fact that the only place for the raspberry in South Dakota is in the 

 shade of trees. Prof. Hansen is propagating a seedling called the 

 Sunbeam, a cross with a wild raspberry from Crookston. Dr. Mar- 

 chant, from Ellendale. North Dakota, spoke of his success with rasp- 

 berries at that place. 



It seemed to be generally admitted that currants are an uncertain 

 crop in South Dakota and that gooseberries so far as tried are al- 

 most an entire failure. Currants do best in the shade of trees. 



Interesting papers were read on tree planting on the prairies. It 

 seems that green ash is the tree that grows best further west, but 

 it needs the shelter of some faster growing tree while it is young. 

 I'ox elder, and even the elm, kill out in some places during dry 

 seasons. All forest trees require good cultivation. 



Mr. DeWolf gave his experience with plums. For varieties he 

 prefers the Hawkeye, Forest Garden, Cheney, Wyant and Rockford. 

 The curculio and plum rot are spreading throughout South Dakota, 

 and plum growers there are beginning to experience the same trou- 

 bles that beset the Minnesota grower. 



Mr. Whiting, of Yankton, advocated clean cultivation in or- 

 chards. He would discontinue cultivation on July ist and mulch 

 during the first winter. 



Colonel Gurney read an excellent paper on the decoration of 

 school grounds. It seems that they have a statute in South Dakota 

 requiring school trustees to plant and care for trees and shrubbery 

 around all schoolhouses. This paper awakened an interesting dis- 

 cussion. A fine address was delivered by Prof. Hansen on the 

 ;esthetics of home decoration. 



Under the head of civic improvements a fine report was made 

 from Sioux Falls showing the interest that has been awakened there 

 among the school children for the decoration of home grounds and 

 in the cultivation of flower gardens. 



It is interesting to note that the horticulturists of our nei"-hboring 

 state are even more wide awake than ourselves in regard to every- 



