STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 17 



yet held, and has resulted in a volume of transactions that, I be- 

 lieve, will when placed in the hands of our farmers and horticultu- 

 rists soon add many times its cost to their wealth and prosperity. 

 It was a meeting that I had looked forward to with much pleasure, 

 but was prevented in attending by a summons to the bedside of my 

 aged mother who died soon after. The last winter was one of 

 unusual severity, but not so disastrous to our fruits as we had 

 feared, and no doubt we may attribute the survival of many of our 

 trees and plants to the depth of snow that covered the ground. As 

 it is, it has been a test winter, and is a reminder that our pomology 

 is in need of further development. 



At the annual meeting it was voted to establish a number of 

 experimental stations where the new seedlings or any varieties 

 seeking public favor, shall be put upon a test trial in a systematic 

 way to bring out their merits, and to be reported upon to the 

 society at its annual meetings. In accordance with this the execu- 

 tive committee have held a meeting and designated the following 

 places and persons for the purpose, viz : 



Station No. 1, Minneapolis, E. D. Porter and M. Pearce; No. 2, 

 Lake City, Underwood and Emery: No. 3, La Crescent, J, S. Har- 

 ris; No. 4, Rochester, A. W. Sias; No. 5, Faribault, 0. F. Brand; 

 No. 6, Fergus Palls, Jacob Austin; No. 7, Moorehead, R. M. 

 Probstfield. I presume that every gentleman at the head of these 

 stations has facilities for giving the proper tests to all varieties 

 that may be sent to them, and will enter promptly upon the work 

 whenever buds and scions are furnished them. This system if fully 

 carried out, will subject the candidates to a very thorough test, and 

 quickly demonstrate which are not adapted to the more unfavored 

 localities, and do away with much of the uncertainty that always 

 follows the introduction of a new variety, and in a great measure 

 protect our members from the swindling so frequently practiced by 

 foreign tree venders, as the fruit will be pretty viell known and 

 also the parties having it in stock, through the reports made by 

 the managers of these stations. But I would not have you under- 

 stand that these stations are to take the place of or do away with 

 individual eifort in the same direction. They are designed to 

 hasten and facilitate the work. If every farmer, nurseryman and 

 gardener in the state were to immediately set about the work ot 

 originating a good, long keeping variety, perfectly adapted to every 

 part of the country, and if one or a dozen of them should succeed, 

 if done outside of this organization, it could hardly be hoped that 

 less than 10 years would elapse before it became known and tested 

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