REPORT OF THE FRUIT COilMITTEE. 



Lily of the Valley :— from the Rev. T. Staniforth, F.R.H.S., 

 Storrs. These were cut specimens of some remarkably vigorous 

 and very beautiful examples of the common Convallaria Majalis, 

 produced by high cultivation. On some of the scopes as many 

 as 23 of the fragrant bells were borne. They were stated to 

 have been grown on wall-borders in different aspects, the practice 

 being to take out a trench each season, and to fill this up with 

 rich fresh loam, in which to encourage the runners. The plants 

 under this treatment, and owing to the change of soil, were found 

 to acquire extraordinary vigour. 



LXX.— REPOET OF THE FRUIT COMMITTEE 

 OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 

 FOR THE YEAR ENDING SOtii of APRIL, 1801. 

 Since the reconstruction of the Fruit Committee in February, 

 1860, twenty meetings have been held, at all of which there has 

 been a large attendance of the members, who have invariably 

 manifested the greatest interest in the proceedings and objects of 

 the Committee. The subjects that have been submitted at these 

 meetings have been very numerous, and consisted of a great 

 variety of Fruits and Vegetables, many of which were seedlings, 

 and publicly exhibited for the first time. But there were also 

 extensive collections of Fruits forwarded from various parts of 

 the country, illustrating the different varieties grown in certain 

 districts, the result of which has been the introduction to the 

 knowledge of the Committee of many fruits of great merit, which 

 were previously unknown except in the immediate locality in 

 which they are grown. 



During the earlier part of the period to which this report 

 refers, it wai the custom of the Committee to award money 

 prizes for Seedlings, and for meritorious productions of the older 

 varieties of Fruits, as much for the purpose of inducing growers 

 to send fruit to the meetings of the Committee as to encourage 

 and stimulate the growers. But since the establishment of the 

 Local Committees, such inducements for obtaining collections of 

 fruits for the meetings were unnecessary ; and in the case of 

 Seedling Fruits, it was thought that the mere approval of the 



