1915.] PUBLIC DOCUMENT — No. 31. 63 a 



principal one of which was unusually severe weather during the 

 winter. The two-vear old trees belonging to this project were 

 reset on the Tuxburj land and made good growth during the 

 summer. The scions showed a percentage of rooting varying 

 from to 100 per cent., according to the variety. Seedling roots 

 were cut from those showing roots from the scion, and most of 

 them made good growth during the summer. The stock set in 

 the spring of 1913 made excellent growth last summer, and I 

 have hopes that it will show a good percentage of rooted trees. 

 A crop of soy beans was grown on the proposed experimental 

 orchard on the Tuxbury land, plowed in in the fall, and the land 

 sowed to rye. This should result in placing the land in excel- 

 lent condition for setting the orchard the coming spring. About 

 2,000 feet of tile were laid in this orchard which should be suf- 

 ficient to drain the wet portions, with the exception of the south 

 end of the field ; this will need to be drained during the coming 

 summer or fall, and nearly enough tile are on hand for the work. 



Considerable time was given during the summer to the study 

 of leaf and twig characters on apple trees in order to become 

 thoroughly familiar with the difi^erent varieties in anticipation 

 of the study of them as they grow on different roots. It is hoped 

 to continue this in the future, with the possible result of con- 

 structing a key by which nursery trees may be identified. A 

 paper on the subject was read before the Society of Horticul- 

 tural Science at the Philadelphia meeting which will appear in 

 the forthcoming report of this society. 



In co-operation with the United States Weather Bureau nine 

 weather observation stations were maintained during the sum- 

 mer months in Buckland and adjacent territory, the Weather 

 Bureau supplying equipment for four stations and the experi- 

 ment station for the other five. The data accumulated promise 

 to be extremely interesting, and it is hoped to make a pre- 

 liminary study of them during the present winter. This should 

 be continued for successive years in order to measure the sea- 

 sonal differences and to confirm results of the several individual 

 years. Considerable time was spent during the winter of 1913 

 and 1914 upon the study of records secured during the summer 

 of 1913 in the colle^-e orchards. These data are being held for 



