SOUTHERN MINN. HORT. SOCIETY. 65 



Plate Malinda— First, L. W. Allen; second. L. W. Allen. 



Plate Longfield— First. J. C. Hawkins. 



Plate Patten— First, C. G. Patten; second, A. Hamlin. 



Plate Xew Seedling Apple— First, C. Morgan. 



Collection of Apples— First, C. Morgan; second, J. B, Mitchell. 



Collection of New Seedling Apples— First, C. Morgan. 



PREMIUMS ON ESSAYS. 



First Premium— Irene E. Warren, Spring Valley. 

 Second Premium— Robert Wedge, Albert Lea. 



OFFICERS ELECTED. 



President— J. C. Hawkins, Austin. 



Vice President for Mower County -O. L Gregg, Austin. 



Vice President for Freeborn Countj'— J. Freeman, Austin. 



Vice President for Fillmore County— O. W. Moore, Spring Valley. 



Secretary and Treasurer— R. Parkhill, Chatfield. 



The meeting- adjourned to meet at Albert Lea at call of executive 

 committee. 



MEADOW VALE HORTICULTURAL CLUB, SECRETARY'S 



REPORT, 1898. 



A. W. Keays, Sec'y, Elk River. 



My report for the past year as secretary of this society can be 

 given in a few lines. In the first place we have a membership of 

 forty-nine. Our treasury is amply supplied with funds to meet all 

 expenses, leaving a good surplus for the coming year, which is due 

 to the good management of our executive board. Our members 

 have nearly all been engaged in some branch of horticultural 

 work. One of them picked over nine bushels of strawberries from 

 a small bed, another one got $85 worth from a larger bed. A large 

 number of fruit trees and plants have been set the past spring; 

 those have made a splendid growth. It has been demonstrated 

 without doubt that fruit trees and plants must have thorough cul- 

 tivation and that grass and weeds are mortal enemies to fruit trees 

 and plants. I cultivate my orchard until the frost kills the weeds, 

 but I cultivate verj^ shallow. 



As manager of the experiment stock I must say that the behavior 

 of the different varieties has been a very interesting study to me. I 

 have kept a record of the inches of growth, hardiness, blight, ef- 

 fects of wet and drought, first bloom, first fruit of about 650 trees. 

 We have fortj^-three varieties of cultivated plums, thirteen varieties 

 of cherries, three of pears and peaches and 108 varieties of apples, 

 besides a large lot of small fruit plants. Yellow Sweet is proving to 

 be a hard}' tree, Longfield and Wealthy are fine growers. I think 



