246 ANNUAL EEPOKT. 



tested in this State, or so far as I know, in the Union, that has developed quali- 

 ties that entitle It to pre-eminence. I believe the best are the Duchess and Red 

 Astrachan, and possibly the Alexander." He refers also to a letter received from 

 Elwanger & Barr}', of Rochester, N. Y., under date of November 29tli, 1884, in 

 which they say : "We have fruited a great many of the Russian apples so-called. 

 This season we have Peter the Great, Titorka, Ananasnoe, Belborodoskoe, Arabskoe 

 Kapsnoi, Limnoi, Antonooka, Ostrowskoe, Tschcnoe, Drewe, Nicolager, Anise,, 

 Nova, and others. Some of these are fruits of great size and fair looking, but we 

 have uoi liad experience enough with tliem yet to be able to say whether any of 

 them will be valuable keepers ; we are inclined to think not, here. They may be 

 of value in severe north and northwestern climates, We must give them a fair 

 trial." Mr. Cutter concludes his paper by adding : "Therefore we have no room to 

 hope for anything from Russia but a lot of summer and fall cooking apples." 



In Iowa tlie value of Russian varieties of apples has been brought before the 

 meeting of the Horticultural Society of that State from time to time and many in- 

 teresting facts elicited. Mr. Van Houton, of Bedford, in an able paper on orchard 

 management, says upon this subject : "The unqualified reliability of the Duchess 

 and the high promise of other Russians renders it certain that we will get many 

 profitable varieties for general planting all over Iowa, but the introduction of the 

 newer kinds is in the hands of experienced Horticulturists, and the beginner 

 should await their decision before planting and avoid buying of glibtongued tree 

 peddlers, fancy- priced Russian varieties." The experimental grounds at the agri- 

 cultural College, under the careful management of Prof. Budd, with the experi- 

 ments under way by our best Horticulturists will bring to the front the best." 



President Speer, in his annual address before the society, observes "A careful 

 examination of the wood or cuticle which covers the bark and the bud-scales of the 

 Duchess and other truly iron-clad trees will show that they have been designed to 

 guard against vitref action in a very cold, dry climate. Many of the Russian varie- 

 ties of the apple, cherry, etc., have such qualities and also have thick leaves which 

 have a greater number of empty guard-cells on their upper surfaces tlmn the smaller 

 and thinner leaves of American and west European varieties." 



Upon tliis subject we may cite one more authority, referring to the report of Mr. 

 Havaland, of Fort Dodge. In speaking of extreme climatic changes and the severe 

 cold experienced in that locality, he concludes that a favorable opportunity was 

 offered for a comparison of the endurance of Russian and native varieties, and adds: 

 "judging from the color of the branches of last season's growth we find the follow- 

 ing numbers compare favorably with the Wealthy and Duchess: 367, 153, S, 323, 

 402, 369, 563, 98, 206, 48. 167, i81, 177, 181, 333, 418; and the following not as hardy 

 as the above, are about like the Haas and Yellow Transparent; 10, 371, 164, 183,467, 

 382, 202, 393, 378, 874, 277*, 12, 290, 230, 856, 399, 4, 128, 122." 



I will not trespass upon your time further by citing the opinions advanced by 

 fruit growers in Wisconsin and our own Slate who have had practical experience 

 in gi-pwing Russian fruits. We hope to get a very fair expression of their views 

 at the present meeting, and trust that they may furnish the added weight of ex- 

 perience gained during the past year, when conditions have changf^d so very 

 materially in many instances, in regard to the propagation and growth of fruit 

 trees of every kind. 



