TRIAL STATIONS. 275 



It seems likely that lonicera media, as imported by Prof. Budd 

 from Russia, will prove to be only a garden variety of the native 

 lonicera glauca of Gray's Manuel. It has crossed the ocean from 

 America and has now been re-imported to stand in the shrub bor- 

 der alongside its ancestor from the rocky ledges near Montevideo. 

 But that is nothing to its discredit. In the long run we find the 

 best things nearest home. No shrub on our grounds is more strik- 

 ingly beautiful than a well cultivated specimen of our Minnesota 

 lonicera glauca. No lawn planter can afford to neglect the little 

 lonicera Alberti. It is a beautiful trailing shrub and ought to 

 have a position in the front part of the border, where it will serve 

 to connect the lawn with the larger shrubbery beyond. 



Prunus tomentosa has bloomed with us for the first time this 

 spring and appears to be perfectly hardy. 



Pyrus tortingo is doing well but has not yet bloomed with us. 



The Siberian nut-bearing almond, sent out by Prof. Budd, is do- 

 ing better 3-ear b}^ year. This spring it was covered with a mass of 

 pink flowers. 



Lonicera elegans, from Prof. Budd, has rather larger flowers and 

 more showy and larger fruit than the common Tartarian honey- 

 suckle. 



ALBERT LEA TRIAL STATION. 



CLARENCE WEDGE, SUPT. 



The past winter and spring seem to have been perfect from a hor- 

 ticultural standpoint, so that at the present time every tree and 

 plant is seen at its best development, and small fruits seem particu- 

 larly in their highest degree of fruitfulness. 



In the absence of any test of hardiness since our last report, and 

 having little new material upon which to base observations, we will 

 simply jot down in irregular order a few new and old facts that 

 have impressed the writer within the past few weeks. 



Apples. The ease with which rabbits injure the lower branches 

 of low-headed trees is a point in favor of a three foot stem and a 

 protected trunk, and the fact that poultry netting three feet high can 

 be bought at less than 20cts. per rod is an argument in favor of 

 placing such a durable and efificient fence about every fruit garden 

 and orchard, as we witnessed at Mr. Mitchell's place last winter, 

 where not a hen or rabbit track desecrates the ground which pro- 

 duces his famous Russian apples. At the point where drifts are 

 likely to occur, the fence may be reinforced by another width. 



The old Duchess tree which for four years we have been attempt- 

 ing to train to annual bearing is carrying a good crop on the third 

 of the tree from which we removed all the fruit last year. The rest 

 of the tree is barren. Our conclusion is that by retnoving all the 

 fruit from one-half of each tree in a bearing year, a Duchess orchard 

 may be made to produce a fair crop of fruit annually. This would 

 be better than dividing the orchard into halves, as the strain of 



