138 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Plants and Flowers — Messrs. J. J. Harrison, of Ohio ; Prof. Troop, of 

 Indiana, and Prof. Lazenby, of Ohio. 



Wednesday Afternoon Session. 



Mr. T. Greiner, of Little Silver, New Jersey, read a paper on " Transplant- 

 ing in Theory and Practice," in which he said that plants set out just as they 

 come from the seed-bed or cellar do exactly as well as those the roots of which 

 have been dipped in water or mud before transplanting. The famous " pud- 

 dling" is of no account. The application of water to a reasonably moist soil 

 after transplanting has no visible effect, and is entirely superfluous. When the 

 soil is very dry the application of water some time before planting, so as to get 

 a merely moist soil at time of planting, is of decided advantage, and prefer- 

 able to watering after planting. Under average conditions it is immaterial at 

 what time of the day the work is done. Only in extremely hot and dry weather 

 would it be advisable to defer the work until " after 4 p. m." Shading the 

 plants is of decided and lasting benefit. More depends on the plants them- 

 selves than on all else. Plants grown in a patch of weeds, or in a crowded 

 bed, are long-legged, weak-kneed, " dudish-looking " things without bone or 

 marrow, composed mainly of water and gas, and ready to wilt down before the 

 first breath of fresh air or the first ray of sunlight. Plants ought to be stout, 

 stocky, hearty and well developed. Celery plants should be large, tbe larger 

 the better, as the roots develop but slowly during their early life. Cabbage 

 plants of medium size are better than either very large or very small ones. 



The composition of plants is of the utmost importance. Any plant, no 

 matter how thrifty and vigorous it may be, is of little value if its mineral 

 constituents are scanty. To secure these, plant the seeds on a porous loam, 

 enriched by a liberal amount of bone dust and ashes, or some good, complete 

 fertilizer. A freshly turned clover sod, without stable manure, is perhaps as 

 good a selection as can be made. These conclusions are arrived at as the re- 

 sult of a series of experiments conducted by Mr. Greiner the past season. He 

 admitted that the moist climate of New Jersey might have an influence, and 

 that people in other States might arrive at different conclusions. 



Mr. H. E. Van Deman, Kansas, took exception to the views expressed in re- 

 gard to the benefits to be derived from "puddling." He had experimented on 

 the subject, and was certain that it was advisable to " puddle " the roots of all 

 trees and plants that are transplanted. | 



THE CULTURE OF NUTS 



was the subject of a paper written by John T. Lovett, of New Jersey, and read 

 by the President. 



Mr. Lovett recalled the pleasurable recollections connected with " going 

 nutting" as a boy, and observed that the satisfaction of these trips did not 

 seem to die out with approaching age. He regretted that the ax had been 

 placed at the root of so large a proportion of the grand nut-bearing trees of 

 the country, and urged the replacing of that which had been so ruthlessly de- 

 stroyed, by new plantations. It is not true that nut trees are difficult to trans- 



