STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 15ft 



greater part of this country; and a similar improvement is visible in strawberries 

 and other fruits through the impetus that has been given to the raising of new 

 seedlings. These results encourage me in the hope and expectation Ih it we will 

 yet have a list of apples that will enable us to compete with any part of the world 

 and I see no reason why the horticulturist may not indulge his fancy with tiie be- 

 lief that his ideal of excellence will be reached, and Minnesota will soon stand forth 

 first and foremost among the apple growing states. 



With the apple in the past there has been but little scientific manipulation, or any 

 great amount of skill applied in the selection of varieties to be used as parents, and 

 yet ninety- nine out of every hundred of the favorite varieties of the country have 

 been originated from seed within a hundred years, and propagated from seed saved 

 and planted without any specific object in view except to get trees and fruit; and 

 therefore we have no data to prove why whole orchards of seeillings are found that 

 are either worthless or defective in some essential points. While we occasionally 

 find some small collections of considerable merit, to me it appears evident that seed 

 selected from young trees that are healthy and under a high state of cultivation, a ud 

 where they are likely to have been fertilized by other sorts, having desirable qualities 

 in hardiness or long keeping, there will be a stronger tendency to sport into varieties 

 of marked character that will make a radical improvement over planting seeds 

 promiscuously and with no end in view. 



I have in previous years made reports to you upon Minnesota seedling apples 

 that have come under my notice, and feel confident that we are making some 

 progress. The winter of 1884-5 was probabl}"- the most disastrous to our trees 

 of any one that has occurred since the first settlement of our State, and several 

 varieties of promise have gone to the wall, together with almost everything 

 that was considered "iron-clad." This fact should renew our zeal in making a 

 pomology of our own by the originating of new seedlings. As soon as the season 

 was far enough advanced to enable me to determine the actual condition of the 

 several seedlings that were coming into notice I commenced making observations, 

 through inquiries of the parties owning such trees as had given promise of value, 

 and by personally visiting and examining as many of them as I could without in- 

 curring too great expense and inconvenience to myself. I find that nearly all of 

 the oldest trees that were fruitful and good enough to make them desirable are se- 

 verely injured, and some that were from twenty-five to thirty years old, and that 

 had before shown no signs of injury, were killed to the ground 



A tree upon the George Hartman farm in the town of Hokah is in good condi- 

 tion and produced a full crop of fruit, so say parties who have seen it at times 

 during the season. The fruit is rather below medium in size, of very fine appear- 

 ance, good for cooking, and a long keeper. Of something over twenty varieties 

 upon the farm of Jacob Kline, town of Union, Hokah P. O , there remain two vari- 

 eties that did not when I visited them June first show any more injury and even 

 less discoloration than the Duchess in the same neighborhood, and appear very much 

 better than the Wealthy. I have not seen the trees since that date but Mr Kline 

 informs me that they continue to look promising and that they produce fruit of 

 superior quality. The Eberhard seedling of Mound Prairie was seriously discolorf'd 

 and was late in putting out in the spring but has improved during the summer and 

 the owner informing me that he has hopes of its recoveiy. I estimate its hardinesa. 



