STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 95 



tending through our State, not only in the cities and villages but in 

 the country as well, and that soon beautiful as well as comfortable 

 homes will be the rule in country and town. And we are gkd that in 

 this city so strong an interest is manifest in this direction. 



I believe, Prof. Porter, you are building what is to be one of the 

 most beautiful cities on earth. 



We thank you for inviting us now to enjoy its hospitalities. 



Col. J. H. Stevens, of Minneapolis, next read a paper entitled "Practi- 

 cal Suggestions for Horticulturists," which was received with applause, 

 and on motion, a copy was requested for publication in the annual 



report. Following is the paper referred to : 



r. 



PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS FOR HORTICULTURISTS. 



By J. H. Stevens, Minneapolis. 



Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Minnesota Horticultural Society: 



In responding to the demand made upon me to prepare a paper on the subject of 

 Practical Horticulture in Minnesota, permit me to say that my time has been so 

 constantly occupied with editorial and other labor, that I have not been able to pre- 

 pare an address which the importance of the subject demands. I am not prepared to 

 admit that we will not in the early future have enough fruit for our own use, and a 

 surplus to export. 



While it is true we cannot make as favorable a showing as we wish we could, 

 we must not blame our climate and soil for all of our failures, because frequently 

 our trees die of neglect or are eaten up by insects. We should not be surprised at 

 this, for we are assured that in some of the best apple growing communities on 

 this continent, that at least one-half of the newly transplanted trees are starved to 

 death, one-fourth more are destroyed by borers, cattle, bad trimming and other 

 enemies. So that the full proportion of those set, which never bear an apple is 

 fully three fourths. 



While our citizens are intensely practical as a class, we are sadly deficient in 

 correct experiments, equality of circumstances which might influence the result 

 and perfect accuracy in every particular are absolutely necessary in order to derive 

 benefit from these experiments, and even after having done all in the most accurate 

 manner, it would not seem to be safe to form positive conclusions from the results 

 of one, two or three trials, for there may be circumstances unknown to us, or be- 

 yond our control, which might give a result from which we should, if we depended 

 on it, form wrong conclusions; or spreading abroad, we might probably mislead 

 others. It is safe to believe that many an inquirer after horticultural trulh may be 

 discouraged by the apparent conflicting of the results of experiments, and it may 

 V)e, is led to think that it makes no great difference after all, which way a given 

 thing is done. Any way our experiments already made in Minnesota, in growing 

 fru ts hus developed three facts, viz: 



First. That there are a few — a very few varieties — standard apples that are iron 



