MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 119 
cessful varieties in those States, (we can profit by their experience if we 
will,) viz., Baldwin, Boston Russet, Northern Spy, Porter and R. I. Green- 
ing. While no farther south than Glasgow, Ky., I found these long keep- 
ers (with us) decaying badly in October, and was informed by old citizens 
there, that the best keepers that originated as far north as New England, 
were nothing but fall varieties with them, and they had always been dis- 
appointed in trying to get good keepers from the north. Now the differ- 
ence in latitude between this place and St. Petersburg is some fifteen or 
_ sixteen degrees, while the difference between Boston, Mass., and Bowling 
Green, Ky., is less than one-half this distanoe. 
Therefore, judging from the long experience of fruit growers in the 
older States of the Union, and from my own limited knowledge of the busi- 
ness in this State, I am forced to the conclusion that our greatest success 
with long keeping, heavy bearing, and with varieties of superior quality, 
and trees of large size and longevity, will of necessity be with Minnesota 
seedlings. And this doctrine of seedlings will not only apply to the apple, 
but also with equal force to the pear, when propagated from seed of such 
hardy varieties as the Flemish Beauty. Seedlings also of our best native 
plums, and so on through the whole catalogue of our different fruits. I 
wish to say in this connection that I very much admire the action of this 
Society, especially since the severe winter of 1872-3, in ruling out eveny- 
thing not positively known to be hardy. 
And now in conclusion, I suppose every man who owns a rood of land 
will want to plant something to commemorate the great centennial event 
of 1876, and by planting Minnesota seedlings he will not only do the very 
best thing possible to mark this great event, but what is of far greater im- 
portance to Minnesota at the present time, he will also mark an important 
epoch in the povelopment of Minnesota as a fruit-growing State. 
A. W. SIs. 
DISCUSSION. 
History and Characteristics. 
Mr. Sias was then called on to give the history and characteris- 
tics of these varieties. He said they were started on Greenwood 
Prairie, a part of them 19 years ago. The seed was brought from 
Northern Vermont. The location in which they grow is ‘‘ favorable,” 
but not “ most favorable.” It is in the valley of the Whitewater 
and only a few feet above the water’s edge. Rollin’s Russet stands 
at the head of the list. The parent tree was killed three or four 
years ago by the borer. The year before that I cut scions from it 
and found them healthy. That tree has produced several barrels 
of apples. The fruit keeps till June or even July. The parent tree 
of Rollin’s Prolific produced over three barrels in one season. Itis 
a pie apple. The Elgin Beauty is fully as hardy as the Duchess. 
