EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 



171 



orchard east and west, at a distance of 110 feet apart. These ever- 

 greens will be trimmed up, as they attain size, to secure a rather free 

 circulation of air. When the evergreens have grown to the height 

 of twentj- or thirty feet, it is believed that rows of fruit trees stand- 

 ing ten and twenty feet north of them will have GOOD TREE PROTEC- 

 TION. I have known the Duchess apple tree to do well on what we 

 call a poor location when thus protected, whilst on the same 

 ground, six or eight rods north of the protection, it killed out 

 entirel}^ An evergreen tree does not much retard the growth of an 

 apple tree standing near it. This orchard has been described before, 

 repetition being for the benefit of persons who have not read former 

 reports. It has been created almost entirely at the expense of the 

 Tree Station, but, I am happy to say, that hereafter it will be en- 

 larged and receive the best of care at the expense of the state public 

 school. This will relieve the station of a large item of expense and 

 make the present appropriation ample, and with the sale of surplus 

 stock and the practice of economj^, a portion of it maj' be left in the 

 treasur5\ One tree. Seedling A, bore forty specimens of a beautiful 

 small red apple of good quality, growing in clusters. The tree 

 approaches perfection, but blighted slightly for the first time. The 

 orchard, as a whole, is in a prosperous condition, and the worthy 

 object of supplying plenty of fruit for the health and comfort of 

 these dependent children, is likely to be fully realized in the near 

 future. 



I append a list of fruit trees growing in the orchard, the condition 

 of each tree being shown. In justice to the trees, I ought to state 

 that some of them, notably rows twelve, thirteen and fourteen, which 

 were set last spring, have not had good cultivation, row fourteen 

 now standing in sod. In these three rows no blight is reported, 

 because it is so difficult to distinguish between the effects of blight 

 and starvation in newly set trees. In marking, vigor is denoted by 

 figures 1, 2, 3 and 0. 1 is good; 2 is fair; 3 is sick; and is dead. R is 

 replaced. Blight is indicated by B with minus and plus signs; also, 

 X following. B— little blight, not enough to do any harm; B consid- 

 erable blight; B-h badly blighted; BX ruined by blight. Some 

 trees are marked 1 extra, and many not so marked are entitled to 

 that distinction. 



FIRST ROW. 



CONDITION NOVEMBER, 1893. 



