NOMENCLATUE AND CATALOGUE.

J. S. HARRIS, LA CRESCENT, COMMITTEE.

Your committes have not found as much work to be done in the past year as in some years before. Occasional specimens have been sent to us for identification by individuals, and the true name when known has been given to them direct, instead of making it a matter of report to this society. Very frequently the name has been widely different from that by which the trees were originally purchased of nurserymen or agents. At the late state fair we found occasion to make corrections in a few of the exhibits but rarely among the leading varieties and have kept no record of them. We are pleased to note that there is much less confusion among the names of American varieties than there was a few years since, but acknowledge that we are making but slow progress in arriving at the correct nomenclature of many of the new Russians and are of the belief that a number of the names under which they have been sent out are only synonyms. If not different members of families or types, many of them are so nearly alike in tree and fruit that we think it will be best to recognize only two or three of the best of each type as the Oldenburgs, Hibernals and Transparents.

We suggest that Greening be dropped from the Patten's Greening and that it hereafter be known as "Patten," and also that in other cases where secondary words are used that are not necessary to insure identity they be eliminated. We further recommend that whenever a seedling variety is awarded a first or second premium either as a fall or winter apple or a Siberian hybrid, it shall be given a suitable name and described as accurately as possible and its history, place of origin and originator's address, together with the name of the variety from which it sprang, if known, be placed on record. And we further suggest that all parties that have seedlings of promise of value for hardiness of trees, productiveness or superior quality of fruit be requested to furnish the committee on nomenclature or seedling fruits with samples of the same for the purpose of having descriptions made, together with history of the tree, to be preserved for future use.

The last full catalogue of such varieties as are usually shown at our fairs or are grown in some portions of the state or are offered for sale by agents and nurserymen, was published in the Report for 1893. We think that the catalogue should be revised, corrected, a few more varieties added to it, and be published again in the near future. This might be done by a committee and then submitted to the society for adoption. Its publication would use about ten pages of our report. The catalogue of fruits recommended for cultivation in the various sections of the United States by the American Pomological Society, has recently been published in a bulletin by the United States Department of Agriculture, and is very valuable for reference. Your committee furnished the starring (*) for the state (10th district), but as the district includes Wisconsin west of 89th meridian and Iowa north of latitude 42 and Minnesota, some varieties not grown here have a star. Among them are the Baltimore, Hightop Sweet, Jewett's Red, Kirkbridge, Northwestern Greening, Pewaukee, Twenty-Ounce, Wagner and Windsor, and several of the others are grown only in the most favored localities. The plan of the catalogue is excellent, and a good one for individual states or societies to follow. We further advise the making of a map of the state and division into districts and starring the catalogue by districts.

Calendar for July.

PROF. S. B. GREEN, ST. ANTHONY PARK.

At this season of the year it seems to me that about the most important general thought in connection with horticultural work is to keep all the plants growing rapidly. To accomplish this to the best advantage it is necessary to keep the soil well stirred and keep the foliage free from disease and insects. This is true of all plants, but in our fruit garden it is especially true of gooseberries, currants and, in fact, all our small fruits. Too often after we have gathered a good crop of gooseberries or currants, we are perfectly willing to let the bushes take care of themselves and struggle as best they can with the weeds and insects; but in order to get a good crop of fruit next year we should consider that it is absolutely necessary to have a crop of good, well ripened wood this year.

The growth of most of our hardy plants has now pretty generally ceased, the terminal bud is formed on the new branches, and the ripening process is going on. This ripening process largely con. sists of storing up of food in the buds, wood and roots of the plants. The first of this month is a good time to cut the brush, since when cut at this season it is least liable to sprout, for the reason that the roots have very little food stored up which they can use in starting new growth.

one.

The renewing of strawberry beds will soon call for attention, and the recent rains have put the ground into such condition that this work should be very successful. Where the beds are weak, it probably will not pay to renew them, but where they are strong and have borne a good crop of fruit I think it very foolish to plow them under, since the work of renewing the beds is very little, and it is just as well to take two or three crops of strawberries off of a bed as We have tried a number of different implements in renewing our beds. We have sometimes used the disc harrow after taking off the two inner discs so that there will be a space of about sixteen or eighteen inches between the inner discs, but I think that the common two-horse corn cultivator about as satisfactory as any implement we have used for this purpose. By driving over the rows a few times it is a very simple matter to loosen up the soil and to cut the rows of plants down to a width of about sixteen inches. But, first of all, we mow the beds off clean, and if the weather is right so

that we can get the leaves very dry we generally burn the bed over, but if the material is somewhat moist so that it will burn slowly this is rather a dangerous thing to do, as it is liable to kill out the plants in spots.

After burning and cultivating,it is my custom to allow the plants to start and then thin out the weaker ones and cut out the weeds, leaving the plants about six inches apart each way in the row. From this time the treatment is the same as accorded to new beds, and it often happens that we get as good results from the old beds renewed as from the new beds, and sometimes even better. Unless the soil is very rich a good coating of well rotted stable manure should be applied at the time of first cultivating.

The budding of plums, roses, apples, etc., can be done this month. In case of plums it is generally desirable to do it by the 15th of the month, since they stop growing rather early. The process of budding is a very simple one, far more simple than grafting, and people generally should be more familiar with it. Most of our cultivated roses are easily budded upon our native stocks and make a very satisfactory growth. Apples are also quite easily top-worked in this way.

It is very likely that we shall have a drouth from the middle to the latter part of this month, and if such is the case it is well to remember that in watering plants of any kind one good watering is better than a number of light ones, and the place to put the water is at the roots and not on the top of the plants. Newly planted trees are especially liable to injury from drought, and if there is liability from this source they should be heavily watered, the soil then mulched or kept thoroughly cultivated and covered with a good dust blanket.

In the vegetable garden, we can continue planting cabbage for a little while yet, providing we are using rather early varieties. It is time to plant celery for late use. String beans, winter radishes, ruta bagas can be sown for autumn or winter use.

This month we should have early potatoes, string beans, cabbage, summer squash, cucumbers, green corn, onions from sets and cauliflower, in addition to the vegetables which were nearing maturity last month.

Among the pretty hardy things that are especially interesting at this time are, among the light foliage trees, the Royal Willow aud the European Olive. Among the light foliage shrubs is the Tamarisk. Of the trees and shrubs having yellow foliage, the prettiest are the Golden Poplar, which is really the Golden Cottonwood and is quite attractive to enliven plantations having more sombre foliage; the Golden Spirea, which earlier in the season was prettier than it is now, but is still attractive; the Golden Elder, just now in its glory with gorgeous golden foliage and large, flat clusters of white flowers, which have a pond lily-like fragrance. The Spirea sorbifolia is just now in flower, and its large, white, erect panicles are especially conspicuous.

On the south side of our greenhouse is a clematis known as Clematis coccinea. It has reddish flowers, has been in this situation for some eight or nine years and regularly makes a nice growth and flowers profusely. It is much admired by most of our visitors. Clematis Jackmanii promises well and a little later will be covered with its purple flowers. Coreopsis lanceolata is just now very showy, and it is such a simple thing to grow that it should be in every garden. It is seldom killed out, and often when it is there are generally a sufficient number that come up to take the place of those that have died.

The Buckthorn hedges make a pretty showing at this time, and its value for either high or low hedges should be more generally known in the state. It is perfectly hardy.

There is one feature in the use of shrubs that is quite plainly emphasized in our grounds this year, and that is, that low places can often be filled with shrubs to better advantage and at far less expense than filled with earth. This was brought to my mind by a hollow on our grounds near the dining hall, where at a turn in the drive a hollow was planted with shrubs several years ago and is just now beginning to take on their characteristic colors and forms. As the shrubs are low and the drive comes close by, there is a good chance to look down on the tops of the plants, which is generally the prettiest view that we can get of any plant. In many of our cities there have been ponds, swamps and other low places given to the city for park purposes, and very often the work of laying out these is put in the hands of a civil engineer whose idea generally is to fill up the hole and grade it the same as he would grade a road for carrying off water. If we will stop to think of it for a moment, we will recall that the prettiest natural gardens in the world are sunken gardens, that is, they are valleys where the tops of the plants can be seen plainly. In fact, in many of the European countries gardens are often excavated before they are planted, so that they will be below the walks which are upon the terraces; and some such sunken gardens are quite celebrated.

This is the time for starting geranium cuttings and other perennial plants for winter flowering. Geraniums rooted at this season of the year and given plenty of pot room and all the flowers pinched off until the first of November, will generally flower freely all winter and are in every way superior to old plants taken up in the autumn which have flowered all summer and have their root system disturbed at the time when it is especially desirable that they should be growing vigorously.

Alyssum, candytuft and marigolds sown the latter part of this month will flower profusely in the winter.

It is very important to keep the plants growing vigorously from now on if we expect them to flower during the winter.

Our sweet peas are coming nicely into flower-and in this connection it is important to remember the desirability of picking all the flowers, since when the seed is produced the plants are very apt to ripen up and die.

Secretary's Corner.

TAKES A JOURNEY.-The August Calendar is likely to be written from some point in New England, where Prof. Green has gone to enjoy a summer vacation.

WILL STOP CATERPILLARS.-"By experimenting I have found that the box we use to protect our fruit trees from mice and rabbits will effectually prevent caterpillars from ascending the trees. I use a box two feet high and two or three inches larger than the trees. I have had those boxes on for several days and have not found a worm on any tree so protected, although the trees were covered with worms." A. W. KEAYS, Elk River.

LABELS FOR THE SWEEPSTAKES APPLE EXHIBIT.-The competitors for the large premiums offered at the coming state fair for the sweepstakes apple exhibit would do well to secure labels of Secy. Latham soon and have them filled out at leisure beforehand. (See page 43 of premium list.) These sweepstake collections will include everything in the apple line, seedling or otherwise, and the advantage to the public in having the labels to examine is very obvious. They should be written with care and very plainly, which will require their previous preparation.

VISITING THE EASTERN ORCHARDS.-We understand that Mr. Edson Gaylord, of Nora Springs, Ia., is in the east, examining the old seedling orchards of New England in hopes of bringing to light some undiscovered varieties of apples that will be hardy and otherwise of value in the northwest. It is probable there are yet many very valuable seedling apples in that section still unexploited, and Mr. Gaylord may be the fortunate finder of some in the course of his wanderings. At all events he will be in his element in this pursuit and find happiness and, we hope, renewed vigor. We expect to have him with us at our next annual meeting.

DESTRUCTION OF THE CHARTER OAK.—“In an item on page 239 of the June Horticulturist you are made to say, erroneously, I think, that the original charter oak is still standing in New Haven, Conn. This famous tree was blown down in a great storm, prior to 1865, as during that year I visited the spot where it had stood and saw the stump, capped over with a plate giving its history, the cap being pretty close to the ground. The papers stated that the trunk and