EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 145 
REPORT OF EXPERIMENT STATION AT ALBERT LEA. 
CLARENCE WEDGE, SUPT. 
This station was established March 20, i891, upon what is known as 
Echo Farm, one mile southeast of the city of Albert Lea, and upon the 
south shore of Lake Albert Lea. The soil is a clay loam, the geological 
formation a moraine of yellow clay with gravel and hard heads. The 
ground was originally covered with scattering burr oaks and hazel, and 
seems especially adapted to wheat, clover and blue grass. On account 
of its situation near the lake, and its elevation above the same (about 60 
feet), there isan unusual freedom from early and late frosts. The station 
was established so short a time before planting time that little was at- 
tempted the past season, and this report will mainly be a summary of 
experience since planting was begun on the premises, some eighteen 
years ago. A large and valuable list of trees ordered from the Iowa A gri 
cultural College, for planting last spring, was not received on account of 
their inability to fill orders within the unusually short delivery season, 
About fifteen varieties of apples from C. G. Patten, of Charles City, lowa 
were received, all in leaf, and were set with small hopes of their living: 
but they were severely cut back and all leaves rubbed off, and in the end 
they lived and made about as good growth as earlier set trees. 
THE APPLE. 
A complete report is given on next page of experience in the apple orch- 
ard since 1874. The situation of said orchard is moderately sheltered on 
the north and west. Among the earlier trees set were two Hyslopand two 
Transcendent, all of which grew to good size, bore considerable fruit and 
died of blight. The orchard has never been ip grass or clover, but the 
space between the trees has been used for garden and small fruits, and it 
is worthy of notice that the best trees of the Wealthy of the fifteen set in 
1880, are the six on either side of an asparagus bed that yearly receives a 
heavy coating of manure. 
In the spring of ’91, fifty acres adjoining the old farm on the west was - 
purchased and the planting of a neworchard began. The situation of this 
new orchard is on the south shore of the lake and wholly without shelter 
except from the home grounds on the east. The rows are laid out north 
and south, forty feet apart. Trees in the experiment rows are set eight 
feet apart and in the orchard rows (mostly Hibernal) twelve feet apart. 
A heavy crop of oats was grown between the rows the past season. The 
following varieties were received from Patten and set in above experi- 
ment row: 
Arabian. Muscatel Rainet. 
Peter. Haas. 
Orange Winter. Romenska. 
Tallman Sweet. Juicy Burr. 
Antemoka. Arthur. 
Melinda. Red Transparent. 
Wolf River. Howards Best. 
Romna. 
Oe 
