THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



323 



GARDENERS DIARY 



The International Flower Show. 

 New Grand Central Palace, New York, 

 April 5-12, 1913. 



Lenox Horticultural Society. 

 Summer Show, August 20-21. Fall Show, 

 October 22-23. 



Massachusetts Horticultural Society. 

 Mid-winter Exhibition, February 1, 2, 

 1913. Spring Exhibition, March 14-16, 1913. 

 Horticultural Hall, Boston, Mass. 



Yonkers Horticultural Society. 

 Bowling, Thursday nights, Riverdale ave- 

 nne, Yonkers, N. Y. 



Nassau County Horticultural Society. 

 Annual Dinner, Glen Cove, January 23, 



Morris County Horticultural Society. 



Annual Dinner, Morristown, N. J., Janu- 

 ly 28. 



New Jersey Floricultural Society. 

 Annual Dinner, Orange, N. ■!., January 1.5. 



Monmouth County Horticultural Society. 

 Annual Dinner, January. 



Oyster Bay Horticultural Society. 



Annual Dinner. Rothman's Hotel, East 

 Norwich. N. Y.. January 29. 



North Westchester Horticultural and Agri- 

 cultural Society. 



Annual Dinner, Newcastle Inn., Mt. Kisco, 

 January l(i. 



Yonkers Horticultural Society. 

 Annual Dinner, Hollywood Inn, Yonkers, 

 -January 30. 



Lenox Horticultural Society. 

 Annual Dinner, February — . 



REMINISCENCES OF THE NORTHERN 

 WESTCHESTER COUNTY HORTICUL- 

 TURAL AND AGRICULTURAL 

 SOCIETY OF MT. KISCO. 

 M. J. O'Brien. 

 In writing for your esteemed paper a 

 short history of the above society and 

 things horticultural and its aspirants, it 

 goes without saying that it is a subject 

 near and dear to the hearts of most all 

 the people in whatever walk in life you find 

 tlicm — from the millionaire, with his green- 

 houses, to the workman's wife, with her 

 dooryard and window garden and to even 

 the toddling child with bis flower garden 

 in the backyard. The inate love of flowers 

 seems and is a god-jfiven attribute of us 

 all, and what the Northern Westchester 

 County Horticultural and Agricultural So- 

 ciety has done and is doing to inculcate and 

 promote that love of (lowers and plants is 

 now. my purpose to record. 



This society was organized January 5, 

 1897, the object being for the promotion of 

 social intercourse and discussion of horti- 

 cultural and agricultural matters among its 

 members and the general community in this 

 vicinity. Primarily through the untiring 

 •efforts of our fellow townsman, H. A. 



Spavins, the nucleus of this society was 

 then formed. He got together at that time 

 some of the ablest men in the gardening 

 profession to help him formulate same, 

 notably, J. 1. Donlan, of New York; Hon. 

 James Wood and Mr. T. Ehvood Carpenter, 

 respectively president and secretary of the 

 then Bedford Flower Club, a horticultural 

 society which preceded this organization. 



The first officers of the society were: 

 Honorary president, Hon. James Wood; 

 honorary vice-presidents, Dr. Curry and ilr. 

 T. E. Carpenter. The active officers were 

 as follows: President, Alex. L. Marshall, 

 Pawling, N. Y.; vice-president, Wm. 

 Stevens, Mount Kisco; treasurer, Michael 

 Green, Jlount Kisco; secretary, Herbert 

 Spavins, Mount Kisco; Executive commit- 

 tee, J. H. Crane, chairman; 0. Von Koden, 

 Charles Frank, John Payton, and A. T. 

 Brill. 



The first flower show held by the society 

 was in the Mount Kisco Opera House, in 

 November, 1897, to which our public spirited 

 townsman, H. F. Bailey, Esq., donated a 

 fine silver cup for best 24 chrj'santhemums. 

 It was won by George Barton, gardener 

 to the late J. D. Layng, Esq., and through 

 tlie medium of the munificience of Jlr. 

 Bailey in offering a silver cup yearly the 

 competition for some brought out the finest 

 flowers from the foremost growers in 

 Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey and 

 New York State, and the Society had a 

 most enviable prominence amongst their 

 fellow neighboring societies, which they 

 hold to the present time. 



Some year or so after the new railroad 



depot was built, the society voluntarily 

 planted the herbacious flower border back 

 of the hedge on South Moger avenue, which 

 adds to the beauty of that point in the 

 village. The main object of the members, 

 as said before, is to promote a spirit 

 amongst the people of the "village beauti- 

 ful." In the Spring of 1898 they distributed 

 to the school children of the village 500 

 geraniums in pots to inculcate the love of 

 flowers, offering five prizes for best grown 

 geranium, personally taken care of by each 

 child, one plant allowed each child for the 

 exhibition in November of that year. The 

 exhibit proved a wonder. 



I wish to state this time that an esteemed 

 wealthy lady of Mount Kisco has gen- 

 erously offered four valuable prizes to this 

 society to be competed for at the Novem- 

 ber Flower Show of 1913, by the school 

 children of the village schools, and the 

 plants will be distributed amongst the 

 children the coming Spring by this society, 

 to be grown by them for that exhibition. 



I may add that since the advent of our 

 wealthy residents in Mount Kisco and 

 vicinity, this society has been patronized, 

 fostered, and generously financed by them. 

 The majority of them take a keen interest 

 in the annual shows, where the products 

 of their estates are to l)e seen on e.xhibi- 

 tion and competition — a source of great 

 pleasure to them and the general com- 

 munity, and a credit to the growers. 



There is now an active membership of 

 75, including 5 charter members — H. A. 

 Sparius, A. L. Marshall, Geo. Carpenter, 

 Howard F. Bailey and Wm. Will, Katonah. 



THE LAKE GENEVA GARDENERS' AND FOREMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



The Lake Geneva Gardeners' and Fore- 

 men's Association has the distinction of being 

 the only club of its kind in this country 

 possessing its own home, which has come to 

 it through the generosity of the residents 

 along the shore front of Lake Geneva. 



The Lake Geneva gardeners are making 

 good use of the club house erected for them 

 and from time to time hold interesting ex- 

 hibits to which the public is admitted free 

 of charge, except at the annual chrysanthe- 

 mum show, when the nominal entrance fee 

 of 25 cents is collected. These shows arc 

 all well patronized and enjoyed by the 

 public. 



l<^or several years it has been the custom 

 of the club to distribute among the public 

 school children during the month of May 

 some five or six hundred chry.santhemun) 

 plants in 3-inch pots, to be grown by the 

 children during the Summer months to be 

 competed for later in the season at the 

 children's show. The club's treasury eon- 

 tributes $50 in prizes and from seventy-five 



to one hundred plants are brought together 

 in competition. 



The association has recently installed a 

 gardeners' library in its olnb room, covering 

 such subjects as botany, bulbs, perennials, 

 nursery, orchard and small fniits, vegetables, 

 land.scape and a number of miscellaneous 

 subjects, and a cyclopedia pertaining to 

 floriculture and horticulture. Last year's 

 prize money at the chrysanthemum show was 

 permitted to remain in the treasury for the 

 establishment of this librao'. 



The employers of the gardeners take an 

 active interest in the yearly shows. These 

 shows being instrumeulal in getting estate 

 owners to put up more glass aud incidentally 

 instilling new life and energy into the 

 profession. 



Meetings are held twice a month during the 

 AVinter months, and in the bus.v, or Summer 

 season, meetings are confined to once a 

 month. 



This club is regarded as one of the most 

 progressive and succe.ssfiil of, the gardeners' 

 clubs in the West. 



