THE SECRETARY'S PORTFOLIO. 



INTKODUCTORY NOTE. 



Again, during the year 1882, I have been gathering from every available 

 source facts, observations, experiments, and opinions in the field of horticult- 

 ure, and from the great amount of material garnered, I have sifted and 

 pruned, abstracted and epitomized, placing the results of this long and often- 

 times perplexing labor in the condensed form which follows this prefatory note. 

 A very large amount of very valuable information has been thrown out, not 

 because it was unworthy, not because it was uninteresting, but for the reason 

 that everything could not be taken, and it was desirable to get such matter as 

 would interest and instruct the largest number of inquirers. 



I have again this season been met by this difficulty, that the work could not 

 be distributed through the year and thus become better digested. Many of the 

 papers received with valuable articles early in the year remained unopened until 

 December. Again, there will, I know, be many disappointments when this vol- 

 ume reaches its readers, because many friends have sent in notes and essays 

 during the year expressly for the Portfolio, which I have not used. For seven 

 years I have edited this report, and in each one there has been a gathering of 

 horticultural matter similar to this. Now in all these years a great many 

 topics have been treated, and a large number of facts and experiments 

 recorded. It is not desirable to duplicate these, so in many cases I have 

 thrown out excellent articles sent in because in previous years I had been 

 attracted by the same ideas and preserved them in former reports. 



As the years go by it becomes more and more difficult to select matter for 

 this section of the volume without duplicating material already saved, and 

 there is little doubt but that I have used the same things more than once from 

 a lack of time which should be given to the compilation. In this edition of 

 the Portfolio there are above 200 articles gleaned from periodicals, books 

 letters, and conversations. More work has been given to condensing than in 

 any previous year, still it is very far from my ideal; in truth I am more loth 

 to have it leave my hands than ever before. I trust that those who read and 

 see faults in the compilation will freely communicate with me concerning the 



