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that I have seen very fine hedges of Norway spruce. With respect to Mr. Miller's 

 wind-break, did those trees that you saw present any evidence of decay after 

 twenty-three years of growth ? 



Mr. Phipps. — Not the slightest. 



Prof. Saunders. — I have seen many trees of Norway spruce in Canada over 

 forty years old. It seems to me it is a veiy valuable tree, and while Mr. Douglas may 

 be right in the cases he looked at, I think we can show him a good many trees more 

 than forty years old that are thrifty and growing well to-day. Many such trees can 

 he seen in the Hamilton district. 



Mr. Phipps. — Hamilton is a very remarkable place for growing spruce. That 

 is the place whore a friend of mine grew thousands from seeds and managed to succeed 

 just as well with them as those he purchased in the nursery. I have seen that tried 

 on farms near Toronto without success. 



Mr. BucKE. — There is a man living on the shores of Lake Huron, about 12 miles 

 above Sarnia, and his Norway spruces are over fifty years old. 



Mr. FiSK. — We have found that a borer aii'ects the top of it, and in some cases 

 keeps it back. Is that the case generally ? 



Mr. Phipps. — Some complaints have reached me of Norway spruces beginning 

 to decay at the top, but I have not seen any. When we consider that life is not very 

 long, most of us who can get a tree that will serve for forty years in awind-break will 

 think it will do. Mr. Miller planted his spruces, and back of them he planted pines, 

 which will last an immense time. With regard to cedar, I have seen people plant a 

 number of young trees, and then trim them to make them look like little trees; 

 but we should not trim or prune an evergreen, if we can possibly help it. The 

 advantage of cedar is its peculiar power to grow on another soil ; it brings its soil 

 with it. If you plant it in loosely it spreads out and completely covers the ground, 

 and by keeping the sun out the soil gets to have a peculiar character suitable for the 

 growth of that tree. That is, it produces its own soil if you give it a fair chance. 



Mr. Feankland. — Would berberry grow in the North-West? 



Mr. Phipps. — I know some honey locusts out near Owen Sound, and during this 

 last year I asked Mr. Hartman how they were growing, and he said very well. 

 There is a sort of spike on them that keeps the cattle from pushing through. Twenty 

 years ago we had a great many locusts, but then there came a borer which killed 

 them nearly all off. 



Prof Saunders. — What varieties of the berbeiTy are best adapted for hedge 

 plants in Manitoba and North-West ? 



Mr. Craig. — Berberis amurensis, an Asiatic variety from the Amoor valley, suc- 

 ceeds well in Minnesota and Dakota as a hedge plant. It is not as free a grower as 

 the vulgaris, but has thick, firm leaves, remarkably free from the cluster-cup fungus, 

 bears trimming well and with age forms an impenetrable barrier. The fruit is borne 

 in very long racemes, bright scarlet, very attractive. Berberis thumbergi is also one 

 of the best, but its hardiness has not been tested to any extent north of the 44th 

 parallel. 



Mr. Feankland. — Will Berberis vulgaris be hardy with us ? 



Mr. Craiq. — It will probably be all right as to hardiness, but the foliage is often 

 very defective, owing to its being a favourite host of the cluster-cup form of the 



wheat rust. , i j^ . o 



Mr Feankland. — ^Is it true that red cedar propagates the appleleat rust ! 

 Mr'. Craig. — It has been shown that there are several species of the so-called 

 " cedar apple," some of which communicate the disease to apple trees and others 

 which do not. At the Iowa Agricultural College, with which I was lately connected, 

 experiments with the species affecting the cedar there went to show that it was not 

 communicable to the apple, but was readily propagated on the wild crab. 



Mr. Feankland. — Would you recommend honey locust for hedging in the 



Mr Craig. — While I have seen very fine specimens of the honey locust in 

 Minnesota perfectly hardy and growing thriftily, I should not expect it to succeed in 



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