160 ANNUAL REPORT. 



to be about the same as Plum Cider. Mr. Kramer's seedlings that had come to 

 fruiting were all quite seriously hurt but he has a number of younger trees that look 

 very promising. The trees of Mr. Wright and others at Minnesota City were gen- 

 erally totally killed, several of them had survived thirty-two Minnesota winters 

 and borne paying crops of fruit. Hearing that the Brett seedlings of Dover Centre 

 fruited last season and that the fruit had been placed on exhibition at the Southern 

 Minnesota Fair, and that the trees were in a promising condition, and believing that 

 they would if sufficiently hardy prove a valuable addition to our lists for Southeast- 

 ern Minnesota, 1 in company with A. W. Bias of Rochester, gave them a visit and 

 examination about the first of November. We found three varieties of them that 

 had stood as well as any Duchess in the vicinity, and one of them had cleaner wood 

 than anything I found in Olmsted County. In addition to producing a crop of 

 fruit they had made a vigorous wood growth and the cions of the year were from 

 one to two and one-half feet in length. They siand upon ground sloping gently to 

 the south. 



A few varieties upon my own place that are of uncertain origin have stood 

 very well but I do not anticipate that any of them will furnish the coming 

 apple. The choicest variety I had, had been raised from seeds of tender varieties but 

 while some of them were unmistakably better than their parents, all are ruined past 

 recovery. I am informed that friend Gideon is meeting with encouraging success 

 in the originating of seedlings, but I have not had an opportunity to examine them 

 in tree or fruit, and therefore cannot report upon them. It is my opinion that we 

 should make the growing of seedlings a speciality and by every means at our hand 

 encourage the people oi this Slate to assist us in originating that much desired long 

 keeping apple, by saving and planting seeds from the hardiest and best fruit that is 

 produced at home or in the Northwest, whether of American or Russian varieties. 

 Also that we should give more attention to the cultivation and improvement of our 



native plums and other wild fruits. 



Your obedient servant, 



John S. Harris. 

 DISCUSSION. ^ 



Col. Stevens. Do I understand that as the report of the whole State, 

 or only the southern portion ? 



Mr. Harris. It includes all the seedlings I have been able to get 

 any track of. At the last annual meeting, on account of the shortage 

 in the funds, the Executive Committee proposed to abandon the idea 

 of having a seedling committee, and I said I would serve alone, and if 

 the Society were short of funds and had nothing to pay for the expense, 

 I would spend all the time and money that I possibly could, and make 

 as many visits and examinations as I could. I have had a good deal 

 of correspondence, besides making what personal examinations I could. 

 The general report is that the seedlings are nearly all dead. I have a 

 card from Mr. Samuel Bates; he says, writing from Stockton, under 

 date of January 12, 1886 : 



