ising
tide. The King learned a lesson by the test that he never forgot. Had
the association attempted to make very definite recommendations before
it could point to specific instances where things had been done it would
almost certainly have failed as signally as did King Canute.

It is not because it did not realize the value that such recommendations
would have, but because it did realize that the experience necessary had
not been accumulated before it could safely make them. It is only
through experience that recommendations worth while can be made, and it
is because of the need of accumulating this for the various sections
that the association has advocated the planting of experimental
orchards.

It is encouraging to note that while these are not being planted as
rapidly as we would wish, the work is going on steadily and we are
continually learning of new plantings. Some of the older orchards are
now giving us their experience. The oldest plantings are those of Mr.
John G. Rush, West Willow, Pa., consisting largely of Persian walnuts,
and of Mr. E. A. Riehl, Alton, Ill., consisting of chestnuts and black
walnuts.

Mr. Rush's orchard has given us an American hazel, the Rush, the best
native variety that we have and which seemingly has commercial value. It
has also shown us that the nuts on a young grafted hickory tree, a
Weiker, are considerably larger and crack easier than the nuts from the
parent tree, and that the English walnut will grow and bear when grafted
on practically every species of walnut, black walnut, butternut, and
Japan walnut, and it seems likely that this orchard will be a source of
knowledge for us for many years to come.

A number of others have been started some of which are beginning to give
us evidence of value. Probably more problems have been solved,
particularly those relating to propagation on Dr. Morris's and Mr.
Jones's than any others so far. Dr. Deming is giving us evidence on
grafted hickories of a large number of varieties and Mr. Littlepage's
and Mr. Wilkinson's orchards are giving us evidence on pecans. There are
also a number of others still too young to give us much information. Mr.
Riehl's orchard of chestnuts and black walnuts has gotten beyond the
experimental stage and is now a commercial success.

I had a desire to establish an experimental orchard when living in
Brooklyn, before I owned any land on which to plant trees, and I bought
and set out trees on the land of t