80 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURIST SOCIETY. 



The Late Meeting Appreciated. —A member attending our meeting for 

 the first time speaks in this pleasant way in a recent letter of his enjoyment of 

 the occasion: "I feel it a pleasant duty to express my gratitude to you and the 

 society for the pleasant and inspiring time enjoyed at the annual meeting. It 

 was very elevating for a young man to listen to the addresses and take part in 

 the society's deliberations and notice the spirit which controls and rules the 

 organization and to come in touch with such civil and noble minded people. 

 It made an impression that will stay with me as long as life lasts." 



Note from Manitoba, — Mr. A. P. Stevenson, of Nelson, Manitoba, who 

 attended our late annual meeting as a delegate of the Winnipeg Society, in a 

 letter under date of Jan. 21, says: "We have had a few severe days since I 

 came back from Minneapolis, 28° below zero being, I think, the lowest, but it 

 was of short duration. It is the long continued severe cold I dread mostly. 

 In this locality the snow fall is very light, barely sufficient for sleighing, 

 although snow is abundant in other parts of the province; but I feel that every- 

 thing is wintering all right yet. I start out in a few days to address a series of 

 Farmer's Institute meetings on the subjects of fruit growing and tree planting." 



The Crying Sin. — Mr. Edson Gaylord, of Nora Springs, la., has some 

 positive ideas, as may be seen from the following from his pen : 



"The crying sin of the horticulturists of this age is the well demonstrated 

 fact that they let go before the readers of so many of our leading farm papers 

 so many most serious and thoroughly proved errors, such as the use of tarred 

 paper to protect trees; to set apple trees to the southwest; to set trees just 

 a little deeper than grown in nursery; to head in on northeast side to make 

 trees grow over to the southwest; to set apple trees down to an angle of 45°; 

 to hedge in orchards closely by hedges, timber or other ways; that any soil 

 that will grow good corn will grow good apples." 



A New Premium for Our Members.— Prof. E. S. GoflF, well known to 

 our membership as the professor of horticulture in the Wisconsin College of 

 Agriculture, has lately issued a new book entitled, "Principles of Plant Cul- 

 ture." As its name indicates, it tells the story of plant life and in plain terms 

 which do not require a previous technical training in botany, chemistry, etc., 

 t® understand. It is an intensely interesting as well as practical book and be- 

 longs in the library of the progressive horticulturist alongside of others we 

 have previously recommended. A cloth bound volume of 280 pages, well 

 illustrated and with a full table of contents and index, it will be found very 

 convenient and valuable for reference even after study has made the reader 

 familiar with its contents. This book we offer as a premium for securing 

 two new members for this society, or it will be given for securing one new 

 member and 50 cts. For sale at this office for $1.00. 



Extra Early Potatoes.— If it is desirable to have potatoes 7 to 10 days 

 ahead of those produced by ordinary field culture, place uncut tubers, 

 blossom end up, in shallow boxes filled with sand. About 54 the length of 

 the potato should protrude from the sand. Put the boxes in subdued light 

 in a temperature of 50 or 60 degrees. From 25 to 30 days after the potatoes 

 are thus started take the tubers from the sand and place in a field in the 

 same position they occupied in the box. Potatoes treated in this way will 

 be considerably earlier than if the seed is taken directly from the bin and 

 planted in the ordinary manner. 



