MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



The annual meeting of this Society was held in the First 

 Unitarian Church, Minneapolis, on December 1st to 4th, 1908. 

 The President, Prof. Samuel B. Green, of the State University, 

 was often in the chair, and proved a model Chairman, both in 

 his grasp of the subjects under discussion and in the courteous 

 but firm handling of the time and speakers. Western Canada 

 was represented by Dr. H. M. Speechly, of Pilot Mound, Man., 

 who contributed to the programme an address on 'The Garden- 

 ing of Perennials in Manitoba." The programme of the meeting 

 was of a very varied nature, including, in addition to forestry 

 topics, papers and discussions on gardening, the culture of 

 fruit trees and bush fruits, beekeeping and landscape work. 

 "Evergreens" was the subject of a question exercise on the first 

 afternoon of the Convention by Mr. Clarence Wedge, of Albert 

 Lea, who had an exhibit of many varieties. 



Thursday afternoon was devoted particularly to forestry. 

 The President, Prof. Green, gave an admirable address in which 

 he pointed out the urgent need of careful forestry and the value 

 of the new Forestry School at Itasca Park. Minnesota now has 

 395,000 acres of State Forest Reserves. The Forestry School at 

 Itasca aims to turning out practical foresters and is equipped 

 after camp fashion with the necessities and not with the 

 luxuries of life. Open air talks often take the place of formal 

 lectures. The students are sent out in fours, each man having 

 his own particular duties. 



This address was followed by two excellent addresses, one 

 on "Fire Fighting in our National Forests," by Mr. G. E. 

 Marshall, the other on "Prairie Plantations," by Prof. Wentling. 

 Mr. Marshall spoke on very practical lines, being Supervisor of 

 the Cass Lake Reserve, and stated emphatically that four years' 

 experience of destroying slashings by the modern method 

 showed that the cost instead of being as high as two dollars per 

 thousand feet of lumber was much lower and varied between 

 tv/elve and twenty-five cents per thousand feet. On the Minne- 

 sota Reserves they compel lumbermen to cut the trees to a 

 height corresponding to the diameter at point of cutting. All 

 tops are cleared of brush and made as much use of as possible. 



Too little time was given here for discussion, probably 

 because the; series of four short talks by Forestry Students, 

 which were excellent in quality, had to be crowded in too. Carl 

 Hamilton read a paper on "Summer Work in Itasca Park;" 

 Clarence French on "Afforestation in the Nebraska Sand Hills;" 

 Raymond Orr on "In a Washington Lumber Camp," and Jas. 

 Gilles on "In a Montana National Forest." Immediatelv after 



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