82 NEBRASKA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Scattered around over the state soiT'etbing like 110.000 acres of potatoes. 

 Tn fact, that industry has become so lars-e that horticulture has disnn-ned 

 it and called it a field cron and diimned it out of the g'arden. Now we 

 con)e down to trees. Tn 1910 there were about R, 500, 000 annles trees in this 

 state, 3 700.000 according to the best statistics; 161.000 near trees: 

 1.400.000 peach trees; 647.000 plum trees: over 700.000 cherry trees. 

 Quite a nice little sho-^insr and not at all to be ashamed of. Then 

 there are some nut trees — 318.000 scattered about over the state. So 

 on the side of oomoloe^y we could cite the above, for g'arden horticulture 

 or limitpd field cultivation. Horticulture is of consequence, so anything 

 th'it will tend to promote horticulture is worth while beine: promoted. 

 There is a ?reat deal more in eardenine: anfl in the cultivation of plants 

 than financial returns. Horticulture is better than profits, there is 

 always a lookine: to the future and retainins: their youth. An old man 

 who has devoted his life to horticulture has devoted his life to an ennobling 

 callinsr. We say the aei-iculturist is the noblest of all: then for the part 

 of the horticulturist in some ways it is the noblest part, because you 

 have the esthetic side all the time, besides the money-making side. So 

 the horticulture people should not be ashamed to proclaim from the 

 house tops, if necessary. I think what they .want, what anybody wants, 

 they ^et in the long run. Even children do that; I find that true with 

 my little limited experience with the family that even the ladies — and, 

 by the way, what has happened to the ladies — I think T used the plural 

 to commence with, I think I should correct that — they always take a 

 live interest in horticultural work. 



I notice according to our proeram another phase coming to the 

 front and that is the specialization in horticulture. Here comes the 

 florists by themselves to discuss their special problems. I know they 

 occasionally propo>ind problems that are rather hard nuts to crack, such 

 as diseases and difficulties in growing crops. All these problems demand 

 an immense amount of attention; some are coming to be expensive prob- 

 lems to solve. They are coming to demand a large equipment of men 

 and apparatus and patience on the part of those who are seeking the 

 results and on the part of those who are waiting for those results. So 1 

 coneratulate you on having returned in a measure to the occupation 

 originally laid out as a calling for mankind. It would be absurd for 

 me to welcome you to the University, of which I assume you are already 

 a part, because it is the people's University and T have already explained 

 you are the people, and since you are here in your own institution it 

 is unnecessary for me to extend any special welcome, but I do extend 

 it most heartily to you and I hope the meetings may be most i)rofitable, 

 interesting and encouraging from every point of view. 



Chairman Williams: Dr. Wilcox, on behalf of the society, I wish to 

 thank you for the kind remarks and address of welcome you have given 

 us this afternoon. We all appreciate meeting here in Lincoln once a 

 year, as our work, both of the florists and fruit-growers, is along experi- 



