THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
1 14 
PACKING HOUSE INSURANCE. 
As a result of the increase in the number of packing and 
storage houses irt nursery grounds, the subject of the insur¬ 
ance of such buildings has come up for discussion. It is 
stated that in some sections of the country, at least, high rates 
are charged by insurance companies for insuring nursery pack¬ 
ing houses and in some cases there is reluctance to insure 
such buildings at all. 
In a consideration of this subject A. Willis, Ottawa, Kan., 
stated' that he knew of two packing houses that had been 
burned. One of these, at least, was being devoted to packing 
and storage purposes at the- time it was burned. Mr. Willis 
suggests the following questions 'and hopes to hear through 
the columns of the National Nurseryman from those who 
have had experience : 
Do you use your packing house for storage purposes during the 
winter ? 
How large is it ? Of what material is it built ? How long has it 
been in use ? 
What precautions have been used to guard against fire ? 
Have you carried insurance on your packing house and if so what 
rate of premium have you had to pay? 
EXCURSION ON THE MISSISSIPPI. 
On August 15th, 644 employees of the Stark Bros. N. & O. 
Co., Louisiana, Mo. were given a moonlight excursion on the 
Mississippi river on the steamer Jacob Richtman. A special 
train of three coaches was run from Starkdale, 20 miles below 
Louisiana where the firm have their largest branch nurseries, 
to bring the employees working there and return them to their 
homes after the excursion. The boat proceeded up the river 
to within a few miles of Hannibal, Mo., and returning, landed 
the jolly party at Louisiana a few minutes before midnight. 
There was a supply of over 500 water melons and cantelopes 
on the lower deck and within an hour after the boat left every 
melon had disappeared. There were also several barrels of 
lemonade. On the second deck musicians furnished music 
for dancing, which was continuous from the time the boat left 
the landing until it returned. 
Stark Bros, gave the excursion chiefly to show their appre¬ 
ciation for the good work done during the summer, particu¬ 
larly by the budding force, who in one day set 122,800 buds. 
Fifty-eight budders did this, and the gang included more than 
twenty men who never set a bud until this season. 
HARDY STOCKS FOR NORTHWEST. 
The nurserymen of Minnesota, Dakota and other of the 
northwestern states are very much interested in experiments 
that have been made and are being made in the direction of 
hardy fruit stocks for that section of the country. Interest at 
present seems to be centered in experiments that are being 
conducted at the South Dakota Experiment Station by Prof. 
N. E. Hansen, who recently returned from a visit to Russia 
where the root-killing problem has been solved by the use of 
the hardy Siberian crab as a stock. A Moscow, Russia, nur¬ 
seryman has informed Prof. Hansen that this crab stock for 
the apple causes earlier fruitfulness, smaller tree in orchard 
and is of superior hardiness, but is not necessary where they 
are always sure of snow covering for the roots. In Southern 
Russia, where they grow French pears, they use common 
apple seedling as stocks for the apple. Prof. Hansen says that 
repeated failures in severe winters with seedlings of 
supposedly hardy apple stock have taught him that for a con¬ 
siderable area of the Northwest nurserymen must go entirely 
outside of the common apple species, pyrus malus, for a hardy 
stock, for the severest cold sometimes comes with no snow on 
the ground. Prof. Hansen is of the opinion that at the far 
north the use of the pure Siberians will probably prove the 
better practice ; while further south where less hardiness is 
necessary, the hybrids may be used with better results. 
Certain it is that the nurseryman is indebted to the work of 
the experiment stations and to such earnest and capable 
workers as Prof. Hansen for promise of practical results which 
must benefit them greatly. When the hardy and desirable 
stock is found the demand for fruit trees grown thereon will 
be great, for the territory awaiting development is large. 
NUTGROWERS’ ASSOCIATION. 
A convention of nutgrowers of the Southern states will be 
held at Macon, Ga., on October 6th, just in advance of the 
Farmers’ National Convention. R. J. Redding, Experiment, 
Ga., W. L. Glessner, Macon, Ga., Herbert Post, Fort Worth, 
Tex., Norwood Robson, Atlanta, Ga., H. Howard Hume, 
Lake City, Fla., James A. Bair, Palatka, Fla., Sam H. James, 
Mound, La., E. Neal Wilcox, Auburn, Ala, Herbert C. White, 
Valdosta, Ga., H. M. McIntosh, Albany, Ga., and S. H. 
Zellner, Zellner, Ga , composed a committee which met at the 
Brown House, Macon, Ga., on July 15th,' 1902, at 10 a. m., 
to make arrangements. These temporary officers have been 
elected : President, G. M. Bacon, De Witt, Ga.; vice-presi¬ 
dent, Robert J. Bacon, Baconton, Ga.; treasurer, J. M. Tift, 
Albany, Ga.; secretary, J. F. Wilson, Poulan, Ga. It is pro¬ 
posed to issue a small journal devoted exclusively to the 
interests of Southern nutgrowers. 
AT LOUISIANA, MO. 
A visitor to Stark Bros. Nurseries and Orchard Co., Louisi¬ 
ana, Mo., reports that the firm has more stock growing at their 
main plant at Starkdale than at any other city in the country. 
They have had a splendid season for growth and at their 
Hardin place near the city they have been doing some heavy 
budding, running over a thousand buds a day. They have 
added a line of furniture cars for hauling and advertising 
their trees. 
LARGE COMMERCIAL ORCHARD. 
It is announced in the Rural New Yorker that a com¬ 
mercial orchard of 800 acres is to be planted on Tonoloway 
Ridge, near Hancock, in Western Maryland, by a company of 
which Prof. H. E. Van Deman is president and general man¬ 
ager, and of which two nurserymen are directors. The land 
is 700 to 1,100 feet above sea level and it is believed that it is 
particulary well adapted to the production of winter apples. 
York Imperial will be one of the leading varieties planted. 
