736 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



"The plans are completed," he said. "It is the ambi- 

 tion of his life to do something for the future of Amer- 

 ica. He has engaged some of the best men in the coun- 

 try. He is sending men abroad to gather a great bio- 

 logical library. He is going to rob the libraries of all 

 the bankrupt nations — and I wish him joy. 



"You will all be able to use that research l^iborator^•. 

 a feature of which will be the analysis and investigation 

 of the soil. This feature is a very good one because 1 

 don't think vou gardeners know anything about .soil 



(laughter) except Air. Alillard (laughter) and he doesn't 

 know as much as I do (much more laughter) and that 

 isn't much. 



".\gain I welcome you and offer you all the hospitality 

 of Greystone.'' 



.After the luncheon the men made an extensive tour of 

 the greenhouse and grounds, led by Albert Millard, the 

 superintendent, and W. H. Miller, the assistant superin- 

 tendent. Later in the afternoon the party continued its 

 journey to the Rockefeller estate at Pocantico Hills, 



President W. N. Craig's Convention Address 



FELLOW members, Ladies and Gentlemen : — 

 It seems eminently fitting that the National Associa- 

 tion of Gardners should celebrate its tenth anniver- 

 sary in the city of New York in which we have not met 

 since 1913. At Madison, N. J., in 1911 our organization 

 as a real working bod\' made its initial Ijow. We may not 

 have accomplished all that could have been wished in the 

 first decade of our existence but no one can deny that we 

 have made substantial progress, not in members only, but 

 in principles and in a sincere effort to place the profession 

 of gardening on a higher plane. We may be criticized for 

 some omissions but the work of the critic is ever an easy 

 one, and those who have labored the most diligently can 

 justly claim that their work has not been entirely in vain, 

 though many do not appreciate their eft'orts. 



We are very glad to come to this great city, the centre 

 of the greatest horticultural activity in the New World, 

 for here, quite naturally, much of the strength of our 

 association lays, which would seem to amply justify the 

 selection of the gateway of the Western World as our 

 headquarters as well as our meeting jjlace today. We 

 feel sure that as a result of our gatherings, each one of 

 us will gain new ideas and inspirations from our delib- 

 erations and the instructive inspection trips planned for 

 our benefit by the local convention committee. I would 

 that a greater number of members could attend these an- 

 nual conventions for they broaden our minds, make a 

 pleasant change from our regular tasks, and send us 

 away better fitted for what lies before us. But shortage 

 of labor, and the transportation charges prevent many 

 from attending who would like to be here. 



Our country with the world at large still suffers acuteh- 

 from business depression, the aftermath of the great world 

 war, which will remain in some measure throughout all 

 our lives, and our profession has felt the existing' econom- 

 ical conditions in fully as great a ratio as most of the 

 other professions and industries. Seeing, however, that 

 floriculture and in some measure, horticulture, are in a 

 certain degree luxuries, it is comforting to reflect that 

 both here and abroad adversity has failed to dam|)cn tlie 

 ardor of those who are interested in gardening. In 

 America, we have had this year a wonderful Spring show 

 and a record Dahlia show in New York. Boston had the 

 finest Spring exhibition in its history, a show of native 

 orchids in April which attracted 25,000 visitors and which 

 was staged by the wide-awake and enthusiastic president 

 of the RlSssachusetts Horticultural Society, Mr. A. C. 

 Burrage, and a most unique and artistic show of tropical 

 ferns and orchids in September. A mammoth show is 

 planned for Los Angeles this Winter, and from all parts 

 of our country there come reports of splendid exhibitions 

 of roses, dahlias, gladioli, peonies, and other popular 

 flowers. Looking ahead we find that we shall have an- 

 other Grand Central Palace show in New York next 

 Spring; a fine bulb .show in Boston, also one of native 



ferns ; and the greatest Spring exhibition ever staged in 

 America, in Cleveland, as some of the stellar attractions. 

 Surely this would indicate that the leaders of horticulture 

 are not pessimistic as to the future here, while abroad in 

 Great Britain, France, and Belgium, which suffered vastly 

 more from war's ravages than we, flower shows have been 

 wonderfully successful, and there is no slackening in the 

 enthusiasm for gardening. 



Perhaps the most encouraging sign of the present time 

 is the rapid increase in the number of garden clubs and 

 kindred bodies which have maintained "and stimulated a 

 love of horticulture among those best able to support it. 

 Even in rather remote sections of northern New England 

 these garden clubs are being organized and the keen in- 

 terest, intelligence, and activity of the members of these 

 clubs, not composed of ladies 'only, as is commonly sup- 

 posed, augurs well for the future of gardening. O'ur as- 

 sociation is endeavoring to assist and co-operate with these 

 organizations in every possible way. 



Cowing to existing economical conditions, the calls on 

 our Service Bureau by men out of employment have been 

 quite numerous, but because of the reduction on some 

 Estates and the development of but few new ones, it has 

 not been possible to place as many applicants as we couij 

 wish. In this respect we are not greatly dissimilar from 

 otiier i)rofes,sions, all of which are feeling the present 

 period of readjustment. It has been found that the nec- 

 essary advance in the cost of our annual dues, made at 

 the St. Louis convention, has not greatl\- aft'ected our 

 numerical strength, while the additional dues help quite 

 materially in popularizing and strengthening this valuable 

 feature of our association. We have had' a good addi- 

 tion of prominent estate owners as sustaining members, 

 and we hope for a further strengthening of this class of 

 members in the immediate future. The fact that we are 

 endeavoring in every legitimate way to furnish compe- 

 tent, reliable men to estate owners and to promote at the 

 same time that spirit of friendly co-operation which in 

 my humlile opinion must exist' between employer and 

 gardener for the really successful operation of a' garden 

 or estate, has brought us many words of commendation 

 and good cheer. 



^__I cannot refrain from again touching on Quarantine No, 

 ■3/. There have been additional orders from the powers 

 that be in Washington, but Quarantine No. 37 has dealt 

 the heaviest blow to horticulture of anv. As an organi- 

 zation we have endeavored in every' possible way to 

 secure some modification but so far without avail. We 

 were told that the quarantine when placed on the statute 

 books would, like the laws of the Aledes and Persians 

 remain forever, but I still have faith that a measure so 

 manifestly unfair which has had so stultifying an in- 

 fluence on horticulture in its broadest sense will' ere long 

 be modified. Our commercial friends, the nurservmen 

 particularly, who at one time vehemently opposed thi.s. 



