Mr. Becker is very adept, quick, and does the grafting so that it actually seems effortless. His technique is so fast, there is very little chance of the scion drying out before it is placed. On July 26th, I returned to Climax and the grafts were successful, as you can see by the following series. The one failure was the first tree that was grafted, and which had the grass for shading of the scion. Rock Phosphate for Nut Trees HARRY P. BURGART, _Union City, Mich._ My soil is of the sandy type and I have to watch the mineral content rather closely for nitrogen and phosphate deficiencies. Winter-killing of one year black walnut and pecan seedlings is serious during seasons when our winters are less severe than usual and during winters when we had had plenty of snow cover for protection. This worried me a great deal and I decided there must be a deficiency. Soil tests repeatedly showed a lack of phosphate. I applied ground rock phosphate to my larger bearing English walnut trees and there has not been the least sign of winter injury since. Many of my smaller nut trees have been bearing earlier for me since I have been using the phosphate. Customers who come here often remark at the way some of my little grafted trees are bearing crops and I tell them that I believe in keeping plenty of phosphate in the soil for root growth and nut production. I am writing this brief article thinking that it might help solve the problems of other nut growers who have repeatedly been having trouble with winter-killing of their Carpathian, or English walnut trees. Phosphate seems to prevent a late sappy-condition from causing winter injury. I prefer to apply the phosphate and nitrogen early in April or early May. Fall applications of any kind of fertilizer are apt to cause winter injury. I usually scatter the rock phosphate around the trees using about four handfuls around a first year tree. Then I turn over the sod bottom with a shovel, which puts the phosphate down where the roots can get it. I use the phosphate around all the young trees we set out and seldom lose a tree as the phosphate encourages the starting of new feeder roots on the nut trees. A Report From Southern Minnesota R. E. HODGSON, _University of Minnesota, Southern School and Experiment Station, Waseca, Minn._