476 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



I will review some of the work that has beeu done here during- 

 the last two seasons under the supervision of Prof. S. B. Green, 

 and discuss the methods of tillage that we have put into practice 

 here. 



In the spring of 1S91, Mr. Hoverstad had charge at this place, 

 and under the direction of Prof. Green set a few plum, apple and 

 cherry trees and also quite a nuinber of ornamental and flowering 

 shrubs. ■ Mr. Hoverstad had very good success, considering the 

 dry summer of 1894, nearly all of the stock living and conaing out 

 all right last spring. 



He also set out quite a number of willow cuttings of different 

 varieties, most of which lived and made a small growth, but killed 

 back during the winter and started up again from Ihe roots this 

 spring. Some of them made a growth of several feet during the 

 past summer, the Golden. White and Laurel Leaf taking 

 the lead in growth. Mr. Hoverstad's success was undoubtedly due, 

 to having good stock to begin with and to the thorough care and 

 cultivation that he gave it. 



In the spring of 1895, Prof. Green made preparations to set out 

 here a forestry containing about four acres. The place selected was 

 sheltered on the south and west by a willow hedge. The trees were 

 to be planted in rows eight feet apart and to be two feet apart in the 

 row. Young trees were used mostl}', being from two to five years 

 old. The trees were to be planted in plots containing about one 

 hundred and sevent3'-five trees each and to be made up of a mixture 

 of different varieties, to test the effect on different trees in furnish- 

 ing protection for one another. There were some fortj' different 

 kinds of trees and cuttings set out in all. 



The land was prepared as follows: There had been a crop of 

 wheat on it the previous year, and it was plowed in the spring four 

 and a half inches deep; a subsoil plow followed the other plow, 

 running at a depth of six and a half inches, thus stirring the soil to 

 a depth of eleven or twelve inches; after the laud was plowed, it 

 was harrowed thoroughly. The rows whore the trees were to be 

 planted were furrowed out with a plow, and two men followed, dig- 

 ging the trench made by the plow deeper and wider where it was 

 necessary to make room for the roots of the trees to be planted, 

 great care being taken to spread the roots out and pack the earth 

 firmlj'^ around them. 



Soon after the trees were planted they were cultivated with a six- 

 shovel Planet Junior cultivator, and as there was a shower soon 

 after this we cultivated them again with Breed's Weeder, lapping 

 half and going right over the tops of the trees. This broke up the 

 crust of the soil made by the rain, thus making a dust blanket on 

 the surface of the land and leaving it level and also destroying all 

 the young weeds. 



About a week after this, we planted our experimental potatoes be- 

 tween the rows. The trench to plant the potatoes in was made by 

 furrowing out with a plow, and the potatoes were covered four and 

 one-half inches deep by hand with a hoe. The forestry and pota- 

 toes were cultivated soon after this with the Planet Junior cultiva- 



