58 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



PLUMS AND CHERRIES. 



H. KNUDSON, SPRINGFIELD, MINN. 



The past year has been a good fruit year and the conditions have 

 in some way been favorable to the fruitfulness of the cultivat- 

 ed plums, JPrunus Americana; and, although the blooming sea- 

 son was three weeks later than usual, the fruits ripened only a week 

 later than usual. The first bloom seen was on May 19th, and by that 

 time all danger from late spring frosts is generallj^ past in this 

 section; consequent!}^, the cold weather did no injury to the blos- 

 soms whatever; but generally during the blossoming period the 

 weather is very changeable. We had a good deal of hard winds and 

 driving rains with intervals of a day or so of fine weather, the latter 

 being just suitable for the trees at that stage. The May bugs, or 

 rose beetles, again interfered some and became very numerous, put- 

 ting in their destructive work among the trees, which the trees had 

 to struggle against; but the trees had started in for a big crop and 

 came out victorious. Fruit set well and matured the heaviest crop 

 we ever had. Some of the latest bloomers opened their first blossom 

 as late as May 29, or ten days later than the earliest, which ripened 

 some of their fruits three months from blooming time. 



Nearly all of the trees do well here and produce more or less fruit 

 every year, even when no fruit is produced in other parts to the 

 east of us. We even raised plums here in this section of southwest- 

 ern Minnesota the previous year, which was a very unfavorable 

 season for that kind of fruit in most places. This last j-ear the 

 weather during July and August was verj^ dry and hot, ranging 

 from 91 to 104 degrees Fah. in the shade every daj^; on this account, 

 and also on account of the heavy loads of fruit the trees carried, and 

 also the short season in which to grow and ripen their fruit, the 

 fruit was not as large as usual. We have raised good crops of 

 plums some years, when some of our plum trees in full bloom have 

 been subjected to a frost of from eight to ten degrees Fah. 



There has been said a good deal in favor of this race of plums, 

 but none too much. Our plums, when once started, grow verj' fast 

 and ripen their wood and fruit in a short time, and turn out large 

 and beautiful colored fruits and of the best quality. Thej^ g'ive us 

 fruit early and late,'and all the different flavors can be had from 

 them which are generally to be found in other fruits, the peach, 

 apricot, etc.; somie are very firm in flesh, others, more juicy, some are 

 perfect freestone varieties, others, clingstone. There are fine vari- 

 eties among them, which sell well in our markets and bring good 

 prices, and some of the varieties are verj^ fine for jelly, canning, etc., 

 for home use. 



It was at one time believed, years ago, that we could not raise tree 

 fruits in this section, but it occurs to me that the plums wliich have 

 taken most of the premiums for the last few years exhibited at the 

 Minneapolis Exposition and at our state and county fairs, have 

 been grown here and there throughout the southwestern part 

 of Minnesota. Mr. Dewain Cook, of Windom, carries off quite a 

 number of premiums every year; he is successful in the raising of 



