328 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



We have prepared the land this year, along 325 miles on our 

 lines, and we have on hand about 400,000 trees we are planning 

 to plant out next spring. After the trees are planted we shall 

 spend about three years in cultivating them. It is a very different 

 proposition to do this work along the right of way than it is in 

 the open field, and this work is yet in the experiment stage. We 

 do not yet know how to prepare the land most economically, we 

 don't know much about planting it economically, we don't know 

 much about cultivating the land afterwards to do the most work 

 at the least expense — it is expensive the best we can do. 



A year ago we used a one-horse cultivator, and then we 

 hoed the trees. That is the most perfect way, but it is too expen- 

 sive. This year we abandoned the hoe altogether, we felt that 

 it wasn't absolutely necessary. If there were weeds growing 

 along the rows, while it would look bad we didn't think it was 

 enough injury to the trees to go to the expense of hoeing them. 



We used a two-horse cultivator that would cultivate about 

 six feet wide. We used the shovel cultivator and disk harrow. 

 When we have 100 miles or more to cultivate, by the time that 

 we go through and get back again the weeds have made a good 

 start. The machinery for cultivation was not altogether satis- 

 factory. I think we will have to use a rotary tiller that runs 

 by gasoline. 



We planted at first four rows of trees on the north side of the 

 track and three rows on the south side, but we found in exam- 

 ining the trees that had been planted along the right of way 

 that we hadn't planted enough and so this year we planted eight 

 rows on the north side and four rows on the south side, and I 

 think next year we will plant eight rows on each side. It will 

 take about 20,000 trees to the mile, but I think it is much cheaper 

 to plant a large number of trees as long as we feel assured that 

 by their use we can stop the snow. 



I went over the Northern Pacific Railroad a year ago. They 

 have done a great deal of work, and the Great Northern Rail- 

 road has done very much more. What I saw at Larimore, N. 

 Dak., thoroughly convinced me of the effectiveness of tree plant- 

 ing for snow protection along the right of way. 



Last winter was an exceptional winter, but in examining the 

 planting which was done eleven years ago we found that the 

 snow didn't get through the eight rows. 



I believe we can say absolutely that the trees are away ahead 

 of snow fences, that there is no snow fence we can use that will 



