70 GENERAL HISTORY. 



to whom was referred the proposition of President Lyon looking to the cata- 

 loguing of the fruits found to succeed in this State. 



The committee reported as follows: 



During the last meeting of our society at Pontiac, Mr. Lyon read a paper upon the 

 topic, " The State Pomological Society vs. Fruit Lists,"' which embodied a nimiber of 

 valuable suggestions and important recommendations upon matters connected with the 

 formation of a permanent fruit catalogue. Your committee, to whom this paper was re- 

 ferred, have had the same under careful consideration and unanimously agree to recom- 

 mend that the plan of forming a catalogue of varieties therein suggested be adopted by 

 the society. Further, your committee recommend the appointment of a standing com- 

 mittee of three by the president of the society, which shall be denominated the " Com- 

 mittee on Fruit Catalogue," said committee to have the entire formation of the new 

 catalogue under its care and control, and to furnish a copy of the same, so far as com- 

 pleted, for publication in the annual proceedings of the society from year to year. It 

 seemed to the committee that this was a very important part of the society's work, and 

 deserving of the most careful and discreet attention and management, and in submit- 

 ting these recommendations, they feel to urge that the committee chosen shall be com- 

 posed of men who can act for a series of years, as any change of men might involve a 

 possible change of policy which would check the continued successful work of mak- 

 ing the catalogue. 



Respectfully submitted, 



H. DALE ADAMS, 

 C. N. MERRIMAN, 

 A. G. GULLEY. 



Committee. 



Mr. Bradfield had been expected to open the discussion of the topic, 

 "What are the Prominent Errors Made by Beginners in Grape Culture?" 



In the absence of Mr. Bradfield A. 0. Winchester, of St. Joseph, was 

 called on, and in reply to the question what varieties he would recommend for 

 profit, he replied, the Concord. 



To a question about errors in pruning he replied: "The great error lies in 

 not giving the roots enough to do. The pruning is too short. The plants 

 should be put further apart and the arms extended eight feet each way. The 

 only summer pruning should be the pinching of the tops when they reach the 

 upper wire of the trellis." 



Mr. Engle, of Paw Paw, preferred to plant only six feet apart and to train 

 to stakes. 



Mr. Dyckman was using his vineyard as a trap for the rose chafer. They 

 prefer grapes to peaches, and they are more easily gathered from the former. 

 We therefore gather them from the grapes by hundreds and thus save the 

 jjeaches. 



On the next topic, " The Mole, What is He Good For?" the discussion 

 was opened by a short paper from Professor Cook, who strongly urged his 

 value as a destroyer of insects. 



Professor Beal took the opposite side of the question, urging that the mole 

 fails to discriminate between injurious and beneficial insects; and while 

 rooting up or undermining our bulbs and strawberries and stirring up the 

 lawn in his quest for insects he is at the same time destroying large numbers 

 of our best friends 



Mr. Lannin had suffered great injury to young pear trees which were under- 



