312 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



to rid that portion of the nursery of mice, as they delight to nest 

 in such a dense and cozy shelter, and in making their system of run- 

 ways and in working off their surplus energy generally will make 

 sad havoc among the little trees in one short winter. It is also neces- 

 sary to spread a slight covering of straw over the beds the first win- 

 ter, and even then they will occasionally come out looking more or 

 less browned, especially if they did not fully ripen up the previous 

 fall. 



VALUABLE FACTS. 



EDSON GAYLORD, NORA SPRINGS, lA. 



I wish to refer to what I deem a most interesting occurrence 

 in connection with a Charlamoff tree, started by Prof. Budd about 

 1882, and sent to me in 1886. In 1899 it set full of fruit ; two-thirds 

 of the top died in August, but the other one-third matured a fine 

 crop. In 1900 this one-third blossomed and hung unusually full 

 and for some months seemed to flourish finely, but in August it com- 

 menced to fail and was soon dead, seemingly, root and branch. 

 Later on I grubbed up the tree and thinking there must be some- 

 thing very strange in its dying in such a way I examined its roots 

 carefully and found the first two-thirds of its roots dead and rotten. 

 These were at the bottom. The other one-third of the roots were 

 dead, but still quite sound, and these had started out from the upper 

 part and from the other side, as could be very plainly seen, from the 

 Charlamoff scion. I have referred to this, as I consider it a most 

 important fact worth its weight in gold to horticulture over the 

 northwest. 



In close connection with this object lesson I have another teem- 

 ing with like importance. Somewhere near thirty years ago I se- 

 cured a nurriber of apple trees and set them on a fourth and fifth rate 

 site. They were of various kinds, including a number of Wealthys, 

 top-worked on Transcendant crab trees about three years old. These 

 and all the others excepting two Wealthy trees were started on ten- 

 der roots. These two Wealthys were started on crab roots. Eighteen 

 hundred and eighty-five found all these trees dead except the 

 Wealthy. They were set back in the tops some, but came right on and 

 have been bearing heavy crops of fine fruit ever since. They came 

 through that firey ordeal better than my Duchess, close by them. In 

 short, these are nearly all the Wealthy that can be found of that age 

 in this township. These are facts, and facts are stubborn things. 



