364 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



soil. Not a stone to dull the plow or punch the handle into your 

 ribs while plowing-. There is nothing- even for the boys to pelt the 

 birds or bull frog-s with. I found the roads smooth and dry, al- 

 though heavy rains had fallen when I visited there. Mounted in a 

 musical chariot of the town, accompanied by the Board of Regents 

 of Brooking's College, I enjoyed a pleasant drive of two miles out 

 to the celebrated Huuter-Salzer farm. On the left, as we approached 

 the farm, our attention was called to the process of planting 260 

 acres of potatoes — think of it,you who are scratching around among 

 the stutnps and stones of an unproductive, worn-out farm in the 

 East! Here you would see one man and a team planting seven acres 

 of potatoes in a day on ground as level as a floor; and the beauty 

 is this land is all situated so it can be irrigated, for farther along 

 on the right is the eight inch artesian well flowing into a reservoir 

 covering about five acres, with high banks that have been thrown 

 up to hold the water that is constantly flowing in. Although the 

 valve is turned so that but a small per cent, of the water is used, 

 the force with which it comes from the pipe makes a sound like a 

 cataract and is sufficient in power to drive the machinery of a large 

 manufactory and light the prairies with electricity for miles 

 around. In the banks of the reservoir are gates opening into 

 ditches conducting the water in every direction, and it is fast being 

 arranged so as to irrigate over 1,200 acres of land. In a central lo- 

 cation on the farm are the experimental grounds and seed farm. 

 Men were busy fitting the land for seeds of all kinds, and the re- 

 sults of growing seeds on irrigated land are simply marvelous. 



All the appointments of the farm are fine and everything in 

 splendid condition, indicating the excellent management it is 

 under. The only things lacking on the farm to make it an ideal 

 garden are a good growth of trees for shade in summer and pro- 

 tection from the cold winds of winter, also fruit trees and small 

 fruits, that are not only a luxury but a necessity for health and hap- 

 piness. These have been denied sections of our country affected 

 by drought, but happily this otherwise charming district is now 

 being supplied with these blessings through the medium of these 

 flowing wells. Is it not wonderful that, although there are no cool- 

 ing springs bubbling from the hillsides or running streams wind- 

 ing their way across these prairies, you have only to bore a hole 

 down into the earth a thousand feet, and you can secure a flow of 

 water with power that will light a city, speed its travelers along on 

 electric cars, turn the wheels of its factories and mills, water its 

 streets and lawns, or that can conquer the drought and cover the 

 fields with luxuriant vegetation and secure certain and abundant 

 harvests; finally, these wells bid us to plant trees and fruits that 

 they may add thetn to their crown of glory. Energetic, enthusiastic 

 horticulturists in the Northwest have labored and experimented in 

 the interests of horticulture for years, and all over the country, 

 north, south, east and west they have not found au\' foe to horticul- 

 ture so great as drought. Given the water they need, trees will 

 grow indefinitely and luxuriantly; deprive them of this element, and 

 all over the land they perish. Here then is the solution for South 



