74, ANNUAL REPORT.  =———™” 
see will be for the best interest of Minnesota Horticultural Bonteiysaea 
Minnesota horticulturists. i i 
7 
PAPER ON APPLE CULTURE. 
The report of the delegates to the Centennial Exhibition, J. T. 
Grimes, Esq., chairman, came next on the programme, but his 
colleague, Mr. Elliot, being absent, the report was deferred till the 
following forenoon, and a paper on Apple Culture, by W. K. 
Bates, Esq., was read and ordered on file for publication. 
_ The following is the paper in full : 
Cc. Y. Lacy, Secretary Horticultural Society : 
Seeing by the programme for winter meeting, received last evening, that 
I was assigned ‘‘ Apple Culture,” I will try to tell what little I know about 
it. First, I would say if you are a stranger in our State, see to it well that 
you have a proper selection of site, soil, and hardy varieties of trees. 
Site. 
First, for orchard site I would choose an eastern or northeastern ex- 
posure. Or, in other words, where a site could be chosen and not have it 
raked by our southwest, west and northwest winds. The southwest wind 
is most to be dreaded, as it is too warm in late winter and early spring, and 
causes the sap to start too early. If our farms do not contain such a 
location, we must do the next best thing, and that is, to protect our or- 
chards by an evergreen belt of the best of evergreens, the Norway Spruce 
and the White Pine. 
Soil. 
2d. Fora soil, I would select a clay soil; or, at least, a soil with clay 
subsoil. 
Varieties. 
3d. In regard to selecting varieties, I may say our State Horticultural 
Society furnish us yearly a digest of all that seem to do well in our different 
localities. But in this part of the State bordering on the rivers and valleys 
there are varieties that may not do as well back in the prairie counties, but 
can be planted here and prove profitable. Amongst these I may mention 
Duchess, Fameuse, Wealthy, OUtter’s Red, Jefferson Co., Haas, St. Lawrence, 
Tetofsky, Plumb’s Cider, Saxton, Seek-no-further, and some others. All the 
above are common apples, and I may say that in all our old orchards, set out 
in an early day, by the sales of Mr. N. Stevens and A. W. Sias to our early 
settlers, none has given such returns in real cash as the Fameuse. It has 
