310 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



The State Fruit Farm. — This farm, located on the south shore 

 of Lake Minnetonka, has lately changed hands, and that portion 

 which was planted by Mr. P. M. Gideon as an experiment orchard 

 has become the property of Judge R. Jamison, of Minneapolis. The 

 Judge has lately built him a summer house on the old Gideon farm, 

 and is turning his attention with much zeal in the direction of 

 horticulture, in the improvement of a twenty-five acre tract in that 

 vicinity. The acquirement of the old experiment orchard is a su- 

 preme opportunity, which shovild be improved to the utmost. Mr. 

 Gideon planted many hardy seedlings in this orchard, and though 

 not all desirable for fruit, by top-working they maj^ brought into 

 profitable bearing. The development of this property under Judge 

 Jamison's management will be watched with great interest by all 

 horticulturists in this section who are cognizant with the conditions. 

 We are pleased to report the present owner as an enthusiastic inem- 

 ber of this society. 



Missouri Botanical Gardens.— These gardens, located at St. 

 Louis, were instituted and are maintained by the bequest of Henry 

 Shaw, evidently, judging by some of the conditions of the bequest, 

 a rather eccentric man. In establishing these gardens, he has laid 

 posterity under very great obligations. The seventh annual report, 

 an elegant volume of 200 pages, is just received. It is much too 

 technical for review by an amateur, but is after all an interesting 

 book to examine on account of its fine engravings and occasional 

 non-technical descriptions. This is the third volume from this 

 source now on our shelves. We note that the gardens now contain 

 301 named species of trees, 561 of shrubs and 1,129 of hardy perennial 

 herbaceous flowering plants. The herbarium contains 250,000 

 specimens. 



The work done seems to be very comprehensive and to include 

 every branch of. horticulture in all its details, not omitting even 

 fruits and vegetables. The scope and importance of the investiga- 

 tions being made here may be understood when Prof. H. W. Rogers 

 of the Northwestern University speaks of "these magnificent gar- 

 dens, unsurpassed by any gardens in the world, unless it be by the 

 famous Kent Gardens in London." 



There is also a school of botany connected with it. 



Send Your Fruit to Cold Storage for the State Fair and 

 THE Winter Meeting. — Arrangements have been made here, as 

 were made last year, for placing in cold storage fruits either 

 designed for the state fair or for the winter meeting of this society, 

 and it is hoped that a large nutnber will avail themselves of the 

 opportunity to do so. The fruit will be stored free of charge for 

 either purpose, and where intended for the state fair will be carried 

 free from the cold storage warehouse to the fair grounds. Tags 

 necessary to be used in such shipments will be sent on application 

 to the secretary of the horticultural society. The exhibit at the last 

 state fair, as also at the last winter meeting of our society, was a 

 very satisfactory one, but we hope this year to make a still better 

 showing, and it would seem that we might do so with the increased 



