For September, 1923 



Hi 



Spring Meetings at Cleveland and at Boston, 1924 



An invitation received from the Cleveland Branch to hold a 

 Directors' meeting and a Spring meeting of all members during 

 the week of the National Flower Show the latter part of March. 

 1924. was favorably acted upon. It was also decided to maintain 

 an Information Booth at the Xational Flower Show to enable 

 country estate owners to become better acquainted with the activ- 

 ities of the association, and incidentally to promote a campaign for 

 an enlarged sustaining- and active membership. 



On the invitation of the Boston Branch, it was also favorably 

 voted to hold a Spring meeting in that city during the National 

 Orchid Show which will occur in May, 1924. 



Awarding the Association's Gold Medal 



It was proposed to award the association's gold medal at the 

 National Flower Show at Cleveland and at the National Orchid 

 Show at Boston, which at once provoked quite a discussion, many 

 of the members urging that the medal should not be awarded 

 except for something well merited as a horticultural achievement. 

 It was pointed out that the gold medal had been awarded but four 

 times in twelve years : to George H. Pring of St. Louis. Mo. for 

 a new water lily ; to Adolph Lewisohn of Ardsley. N. Y. for the 

 most meritorious exhibit at an International Flower Show, New 

 York ; to George F. Stewart of Waltham, Mass. for a new cal- 

 ceolaria : to William H. Waitc of Rumson, N. J. for a meritorious 

 exhibit of new dahlias. The decision was finally reached that the 

 .gold medal be offered as an award for a meritorious effort in 

 horticulture, the conditions of the award to be left to the judg- 

 ment of committees which will be appointed by the Cleveland 

 Branch and by the Boston Branch. 



1924 Convention 



Washington, D. C. Newport, R. I., and Detroit, Mich., were 

 proposed as meeting places for the 1924 convention. It was voted 

 to leave the final decision to the Board of Directors at its meeting 

 to be held at Cleveland next Spring. 



Nomination and Election of Officers 



The nomination and election of officers for 1924 resulted as 

 follows : For President. Robert F. Brydon of Cleveland, O. ; for 

 Vice-President, James Stuart of Mamaroneck, N. Y. : for Secre- 

 tary. M. C. Ebel of Summit. N. J. : for Treasurer, Montague Free 

 of Brooklyn. N. Y. ; three Trustees for the state of New Jersey, 

 D. L. Mackintosh of Alpine, N. J., Percy Hicks of Oceanic, N. j., 

 and Donald Crighton of Convent, N. j. ; two Trustees at large 

 John Barnet of Sewickley, Pa., and William E. Fischer of Cha- 

 grin Falls. O. 



Appointment of Committees on Resolutions 



President Barnet appointed H. E. Downer, Arthur Brown, and 

 Robert De Schryver to consider recommendations made in the 

 Secretary's report and to submit resolutions : Committee on Reso- 

 lution on Deceased Memljers, David Eraser, Ernest B. Palmer, 

 and George F. Stewart ; Committee on Final Resolutions, William 

 N. Craig, D. L. Mackintosh, and James Stuart. 



Following a Round Table discussion recess was declared. 



WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON SESSION 

 Local Branches 



The following delegates reported as representatives of the local 

 branches : F. L. Balogh for the Cleveland Branch ; William N. 

 Craig for the Boston Branch ; Thomas W. Head for the Mon- 

 mouth & Elberon, N. J. Branch ; John R. McCulIoch for the 

 Nassau Co.. L. I. Branch : Manus Curran for the Western 

 Pennsylvania Branch. All the delegates reported progress and 

 growing interest in the branches, stating that they were of the 

 opinion that the branches would, in time, become a strong co- 

 operative factor in the administration of the association. Ques- 

 tions pertaining to the individual policies of the branches were 

 asked and answered, such as what actually comprises the member- 

 ship of a local branch, the duties of its officers, methods of defray- 

 ing expenses. Experiences of various branches were related, 

 showing that each branch has its self-government. Some of the 

 members present declared that after the interesting discussion, 

 they were prepared to return to their homes and to endeavor to 

 organize local branches in their districts. 



The Official Organ 



Some discussion arose regarding the status of the official organ 

 in its relation to the professional gardener, some members con- 

 tending that it should be more representative of the gardener 

 himself. It was explained that while it is the policy of the 

 Gardeners' Chrontcle to cater to the gardeners, it also realizes 



that It has a mission to perform in .presenting their cause to the 

 outside world, and thus acquaint the public with what a trained 

 gardener is and the recognition he is entitled to. The aim of the 

 official organ is to interest the employers in it and have them read 

 what the gardeners are striving for. That is the way in which 

 the association is securing recognition for the gardeners. George 

 F. Stewart spoke for the G-\rdexers' Chronicle and stated that 

 there is a phase of the subject which had hardly been touched 

 upon. He said: "Our National Association of Gardeners is an 

 organization to establish a better relationship between employer 

 and employe. I find from letters received during the little time 

 1 have been writing for the paper that this is bemg done by the 

 Chronicle. Employers have written me and told me that they 

 never knew what a gardener really was until they began to read 

 the Chronicle; that they never knew that a gardener really 

 knows as miich as he does. Now the Chronicle is doing just 

 what our national association is here for. And furthermore, since 

 writing these notes, a better relationship has been established 

 personally between my employer and myself. He became a sus- 

 taining member and received the paper, and not being very well 

 posted on many things, pertaining to gardening, he reads the' paper 

 as do also his wife and daughter. Personally this has been a good 

 thing for me." 



On Training Young Men 



A communication from the Pennsylvania State College was read 

 which invited the association to co-operate with it in establishing 

 a course for training young gardeners, somewhat similar to that 

 now in force at the Massachusetts Agricultural College in co-op- 

 eration with the association. The Pennsylvania State College ad- 

 vised that it expects to acquire control of a large private estate in 

 Pennsylvania which has been willed to be devoted to the training 

 of ypung men in gardening. This estate is said to contain one of 

 the finest collections of rare trees and shrubs in this country, which 

 makes it especially valuable for the purpose for which it has been 

 set aside. The association voted to give its whole hearted support 

 to the Pennsylvania State College in any movement it may under- 

 take to train young gardeners. The question arose as to whether 

 it will ever be possible to make the profession of gardening 

 sufficiently attractive to the American youth, the contention being 

 that the American boy seeks something more lucrative as his life 

 work. This argument, however, was disproved by the interest the 

 -American youth is already manifesting in the gardening profession, 

 since the means have been provided to acquire theoretical knowledge 

 as well as practical experience. The American youth realizes the 

 advantages of the environment connected with the vocation of gar- 

 dening and the broad fields of endeavor which the future of the 

 gardening profession in .\merica offers. Whenever the subject 

 of the future prospects of gardening in this country is discussed 

 among gardeners, there is always found to be a diversity of opin- 

 ion, but at the convention, the optimistic views out-weighed the pes- 

 simistic ones. While it was agreed that not many gardeners will 

 ever attain wealth through their vocation, it was conceded, however, 

 that the gardener holding a comfortable position, is fully as well 

 situated in life as the followers of many other professions, not in 

 remuneration only but in other ways also. \\'hile the ability of 

 the gardener has not been recognized in the past, as it should have 

 been, conditions are changing and the capable men of the profes- 

 sion find that their efforts are being more appreciated today than 

 they were heretofore. 



Committees on Resolutions 



President Barnet called upon the committees on resolutions to 

 present their resolutions, which were submitted and accepted as 

 follows : 



Resolution on Professional Ethics 



Where.as it seems to be the thing to do in these days of business 

 turmoil, whenever a vocational convention meets, to pass resolu- 

 tions glorifying itself while criticizing an affiliated vocation for 

 its shortcomings. 



Be It Resolved, That the National Association of Gardeners 

 strongly protests against the attacks aimed at the gardener and his 

 profession from time to tirne relating to professional ethics. The 

 association does not claim 'that all gardeners are as yet immune 

 from temptation but it does claim that the members of the garden- 

 ing profession are not as sorely afflicted with corrupt practices as 

 are the followers of some of the other vocations. 



Be It Further Resol\-ed, That the National Association of 

 Gardeners confirms the action taken at the Cleveland convention 

 in 1919, endorsing all standards which tend to elevate the pro- 

 fessional ethics and business methods in all fields of endeavor. 



H. Ernest Downer. 

 Arthur Brown, 

 Robert De Schryver. 



