PROCEEDINGS OF THE ANNUAL MEETING. 223 



taking their food, that he may make a proper choice of an insecticide and 

 apply it profitably. All of this knowledge is offered by the science of 

 entomology. 



Several other natural sciences have more or less bearing upon the 

 work of the horticulturist, but the above should sufiice to show the value 

 and even the necessity of a knowledge of the sciences, so far at least 

 as they relate to the growth of plants. The question is often asked, 

 ''How it is that persons without sci^tific knowledge are often very suc- 

 cessful?" But is the premise correct? Do not these men possess 

 scientific knowledge? One does not have to go to college to study 

 botany, and for my own part I have often been surprised at the array 

 of facts' regarding our cultivated plants that have been acquired by 

 persons who never opened a book on botany, nor attended a botanical 

 lecture. They are close observers, and, as most of their life has been 

 spent among plants, they have been able to draw accurate conclusions 

 regarding many points that relate to the growth of plants, even before 

 they came to the notice of the so-called scientist; and, as they have 

 shaped their practices accordingly, it has undoubtedly contributed to 

 their success. 



Many growers rely almost entirely, in growing their crops, upon empiri- 

 cal data, which they have acquired either by personal observation or 

 from others, but just as soon as the facts have been established and 

 the laws upon which they depend are understood, it at once becomes 

 science. 



There are several objections to relying entirelj' upon this method of 

 obtaining knowledge, among which the following should be noted: (1) 

 the length of time required to secure the facts, and, as they might vary 

 with the different soils, seasons, and varieties, it might take years to 

 establish them; (2) the chance that all of the conditions were not under- 

 stood, or the conclusions correctly drawn, and that this might lead to 

 failure when practically applied; (3) inability to adapt one's self to 

 changed or new conditions. On the contrary, it will be possible, in a com- 

 paratively short time, by studying the laws that control the various 

 phenomena, and when this knowledge is acquired we shall be prepared 

 to acquaint ourselves with the facts that have been obtained by others. 

 With this as a foundation we shall be able to meet emergencies that 

 may arise, and can surmount them easier than if we grope along blindly 

 and obtain our facts from the slow, hard school of experience. 



After writing the above I accidentally ran upon two quotations, regard- 

 ing the value of chemistry and botany, by two men than whom few have 

 been of greater aid to horticulture, namely. Baron Liebig the chemist, 

 and Prof. Lindley the botanist; and, as showing what they thought of 

 the value of these sciences, allow me to repeat them: "The scientific 

 basis o'f agriculture embraces a knowledge of all the conditions of vege- 

 table life, of the origin of the elements of plants, and the source from 

 which they derive their nourishment," is the statement of Liebig; and 

 "good agriculture and horticulture are founded upon the laws of vege- 

 table physiology, and no man deserves the name of gardener who does 

 not know the way in which plants breathe, feed, grow, digest, and 

 have their being." 



