1S-4 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



some of the Meinnonites had bearing orchards of trees from seeds brought 

 over from Eussia; with the apples we have not been able to get any such. 

 We found many fine looking cherry trees, a few plums and pears. The 

 pears, of which some trees are sixteen feet high, appear to be of a wild 

 sort, are undoubtedly hardy, but unfortunately are not blight proof. 

 The fruit we saw, was small, and only valuable for cooking. This people 

 are great lovers of fruit and take good care of their fruit and forest trees, 

 and whenever they can get adapted varieties, will succeed with them. 



At Joseph Wood's place, six miles from Windom, are some seedling 

 plums that promise well, and seedling gooseberries free from mildew, 

 and that he describes as bearing fruit of very large size. His large fruited 

 Russian mulberry is proving more tender than the common varieties. 

 He reports the Dwarf Juneberry as doing well and producing fruit of 

 superior quality. Our next visit is made with C. G. Patten, Charles 

 City, Iowa. 



Mr. Patten is a director of an experimental station for the Iowa State 

 Horticultural Society, and is making a specialty of testing the newer 

 Russians and northwestern seedlings, and is also engaged in originating 

 varieties from selected seed. We saw at his place eight varieties grown 

 from seed of Duchess, all possessing some merit. His Duchess No. 3 (also 

 called Patten's Greening) is the best of all. The original tree is twenty- 

 one years old, so that it has survived through two of the most trying win- 

 ters that have ever visited the Northwest. The tree is nearly perfect; it 

 stands in a row with seven Duchess of the same age and looks better 

 than any one of them. As a nursery tree it is unsurpassed. It is an early 

 and free bearer. The fruit in size is from medium to large, the form is 

 flat round; the color greenish yellow, with dull to deep blush on the sun 

 side. The flavor is a good acid, extra for cooking. The season is Nov- 

 ember and December; with careful handling it may be kept until Febru- 

 ary. There is another variety of the lot that produces a fruit of medium 

 size, and of superior quality for eating, we have lost the number. The 

 season is November. We took a great fancy to a tree of the Iowa Beauty. 

 The tree is a vigorous, heaJthy, symmetrical grower; fruit, medium size, 

 beautifully striped with red and covered with whitish blooms; flavor, a 

 mild subacid, good; season, September and October. He has a considera- 

 ble number of eight year old seedlings crossed between Duchess and some 

 of the longest keeping American varieties, set alternately in rows with 

 the best known Russians, with the view of testing their adaptability and 

 comparative hardness. They have been transplanted twice so as not to 

 give them the advantage over root graft Russians, which are of the same 

 age. Several of the seedlings showed some fruit, while but one of the 

 Russians, the Beautiful Arcade, has borne any. 



In Houston county theold tree, Kleine No. 1, is doing well and matures 

 a heavy crop of fruit. The variety has been named after the wife of Mr. 

 Kleine, (Catherine) and will hereafter be known by that name. Several 

 of the seedlings of E. Wilcox, La Crosse, Wis., are doing well as top grafts, 

 worked on crab stocks. The variety exhibited at our last winter meet- 

 ing, under the name of Wilcox Red Winter, is believed to be Scott's Win- 

 ter, of Vermont. Steps have been taken to decide the matter, and the 

 result will be announced in proper time. A. J. Phillips, of West Salem, 

 has a seedling tree that promises to be of great value for western Wiscon- 



