Minnesora STATE HorrTicuLTuRAL SOcIeErY. 81 
acre near Grinnell, Iowa. I have been looking a long time for a young man 
just starting in life who believes in apple growing in the Northwest. Have any 
of the members ever looked around upon the faces of those found at our winter 
meetings and noticed how few will be seen below the age of middle life and how 
great is the proportion of grey beards. Where are our young men getting their 
education? Is it at the saloon and caucus? I knowit is not at our Horticultural 
meetings. Still these old fanatics are laying the foundation for future success in 
apple growing in the Northwest. 
Since writing thé above I have received the following letter bearing upon the 
subject. E. W1LCOX. 
Farrpaurt, 1, 28, "78. 
Friend Wilcox: 
In reply to yours of the 19th, I will say: In the spring of 1874, I set about five 
thousand Wealthy, and twenty-five hundred Malinda root grafts planted side by 
side on very rich, deep new land, the soil being black sandy loam. These were 
grafted on common seedling stocks. They came wel] and made remarkable 
growth, many of the Malinda standing three and a half feet. I think that was 
the highest point they ever reached. The next spring the whole lot were injured 
badly, but the Wealthies came on and made as nice a lot of trees as could be 
desired; no root killing noticeable among them, and making at four years old, 
heavy six to seven foot trees. From the twenty-five hundred Malinda grafts I 
have never dug twenty-five good trees. They were nearly all root killed. They 
did not ripen their wood the first fall; the Wealthy did. The same spnng I 
grafted in April, about the 10th, twenty-five hundred Wealthy and two hundred 
Malinda on crab roots. This lot were also planted side by side, about three weeks 
after the first lot. They all grew well, and I think the Malinda looks as well to- 
day, every thing considered, as the Wealthy. The soil on which the last lot was 
planted was more dry and had more clay in it than the first piece. My opinion 
is that it was the crab roots that saved the last lot of Malindas. The last lot are 
on a western slope, the first on level land. 
Very truly yours, 
O. F. BRAND. 
DISCUSSION. 
At the conclusion of the reading the following discussion was 
held: 
Mr. Sias. We don’t want to graft everything upon crab roots, 
I find the best success attends the closest relation between stock 
and graft, hence the apple had better be put on the apple root, 
then set the tree four inches deeper so as to get roots from the 
graft, and afterwards mulch the tree so as to insure against loss by 
root-killing. 
Mr. Wilcox. But Mr. J. J. Thomas truthfully says, continuous 
mulching requires too much labor. 
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