12 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



As before hinted, we have sometimes lost j^round by following' 

 up a wrong- trail. For a long- time w'e were led astray by the false 

 doctrine that our apple trees were winter-killed by alternate freez- 

 ing and thawing. The evidence to the contrary, however, is at last 

 becoming so irresistible that we shall be reluctantly forced to give up 

 that article of our creed to which we have clung so long. On the 

 elevated plateaus between the mountain ranges of Washington the 

 thermometer indicates, for a short time, as low temperature as we 

 have in Minnesota. This is immediately followed by a thaw which 

 soon gives Boreas the right of way, and another "cold snap" occurs. 

 So the pendulum swings back and forth the whole winter long, freez- 

 ing and thawing all the while treading close upon each other's heels, 

 with almost the same regularity as that with which night follows 

 day. Yet I heard no complaint about the winter-killing of fruit 

 trees, notwithstanding- the fact that not more than an inch of rain 

 usually falls from June to November and that the ground is parched 

 and grass withered from the first of July till the next spring. How 

 do apple, pear, cherry and plum trees withstand such severe weather 

 under such trying conditions ? It is the frequent thawing that saves 

 them. 



At the beginning of winter the ground is very dry. The snow 

 falls early, often before the ground freezes. A cold wave sweeps 

 over the plateau. The mercury falls to thirty degrees below zero. 

 The little sap that the trees had stored for just such a time as this is 

 being rapidly absorbed by the surrounding air. Now comes the 

 Chinook, warm from the Japan current. The snow melts ; the thirsty 

 earth swallows it ; the thirsty trees drink it up again ; the danger of 

 immediate death b)^ the seasoning of the smaller branches is past. 

 Then follows another freeze, further absorption of the life-sustain- 

 ing moisture, and again the soft wind from the Pacific brings heal- 

 ing on its wings. When spring comes the melting snows give plenty 

 of water to induce a vigorous growth, a magnificent bloom and a 

 wonderful setting of fruit. The wood ripens early and goes into 

 winter quarters well protected by a coat of mail to meet the attack 

 which winter is sure to make. 



We must not only join the procession and march on to new 

 discoveries, adding something each year to what has been already 

 examined, passed upon and adopted, but we must carefully re-ex- 

 amine and prove the doctrines of our creed which have stood for 

 years unchallenged, and if they will not stand the test of the strong- 

 est searchlight let no respect for their age and the dignity it lends 

 influence us to keep them among the thirty-nine articles. We must 

 "ring out the old," while we "ring in the new." When assured that 

 our foundations are solid, we shall be ready for the superstructure. 



