330 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



for a number of years. If it is done it will help us, but it will 

 also be a great benefit to the farmers as it will help to lessen 

 the destructive effect of the hot, dry summer winds. 



A Member: How many of your trees died last year? 



Mr. Hoverstad: We haven't made any count, but I believe 

 we saved about 90 per cent, and we saved just as large a per 

 cent of those planted by machine as of those planted by hand. 



Mr. Black : It came into my mind that it would be a great 

 place for a fire caused by trains going by with weeds grown 

 among the trees. What precautionary measures will you adopt 

 to save the trees later on? 



Mr. Hoverstad: We haven't taken any particular precau- 

 tion. During the time we are cultivating the trees, which will 

 be three years, there isn't very much of any danger of fire. Af- 

 ter those three years I don't know what we shall do. I antici- 

 pate that the leaves that drop will keep the weeds down along the 

 shade of the trees because we are planting them very close to- 

 gether. I am inclined to think the weeds wouldn't grow very 

 much, and I don't think there is really very much danger of fire. 

 We are planning to put in some evergreens, white spruce es- 

 pecially. 



Mr. Black : Have you tried the red cedar? 



Mr. Hoverstad : We have planted red cedar, and we have 

 the ponderosa pine in our nursery for trial, but we expect to put 

 them out among the other trees and give them better protec- 

 tion. I don't think it would be a wise plan to get them out on 

 the right of way at the same time we are planting the other 

 trees. 



Mr. Black: I spoke of the red cedar because it does very 

 well on sandy land. 



Mr. Hoverstad : Yes, it does very well in the Dakotas. 



Mr. Cook: I wanted to say something about the evergreen 

 when it was on the program. The Norway spruce, I believe was 

 recommended to some extent, and I believe that Mr. Moyer 

 claimed when they got old they didn't do so well. I live in a 

 prairie country, and I will say this for the Norway spruce, that 

 on our moist land, in a sheltered location, they do very well. 

 My largest Norway spruce got to be fifty feet high and was 

 finally struck by lightning. I have Norway spruce that are 

 twenty-five feet high. However, if you plant Norway spruce on 

 the open prairie unprotected they will prove a complete failure. 

 They have not the hardiness ; they can't stand the sandy soil, but 

 they can stand the wind and frost. 



I believe the black spruce was brought up. I sent for some 

 white spruce one year, and they came black spruce. They got 

 full of little cones and were a nuisance. I kept picking them 

 off. Along came a dry season, and they all died. I used to think 

 they were pretty good. The society did not recommend them, 

 and I thought the society was wrong, but now I think they were 

 right about it, they will not stand the dry weather. 



