232 REPORT OF THE FRUIT COJIMITTEE, 



The Committee has also devoted a great deal of attention to 

 the collection of Vines that is now in the garden, and various 

 examinations of the fruit have from time to time been made, and 

 published in the *^ Proceedings;" but as not more than one-half 

 of the sorts existing in the garden have yet fruited, a complete 

 report cannot at present be prepared. From the arrangements 

 that Mr. 'Eyles has made for growing a plant of almost every 

 variety in pots, and forcing them in a pit set apart for the 

 purpose, it is expected that many new varieties hitherto unknown 

 in this country will be fruited, and their merits proved, during 



the coming season. 



Great attention is still being paid to augmenting and keeping 

 up the collections of fruits in the garden, and to correcting the 

 nomenclature where such has been found to be wrong. Almost 

 all the old sorts that had either died out or become lost to the 

 garden have now been restored, and every endeavour is made to 

 secure such varieties of fruits as are considered worthy of culti- 

 Tation, or which may have any object of interest attached to them. 



Last summer the Committee made a very close examination of 

 the immense collection of strawberries, but the season being 

 unfavourable for judging of the merits of the different varieties, 

 it was considered prudent not to make any report on that subject, 

 lest in doing so, justice might not be done to many varieties 

 which were known to be of excellent quality, but which require 

 more favourable circumstances for developing them. 



In addition to the Local Committee mentioned in last Report, 

 the Committee have sanctioned one under the presidency of Mr. 

 John Spencer, of Bowood, for the northern division of Wiltshire. 

 With the exception of the Oxfordshire Committee, there have 

 been no reports from any of the others. The almost total failure 

 of the fruit crop in many parts of the country has rendered the 

 operation qf these bodies null and void. The Yorkshire Com- 

 mittee which, under the presidency of Mr. Strickland, did so 

 much last year, has during the past season found it impracticable 

 to hold even a single meeting; and the same has been the condi- 

 tion of all the rest. The gentlemen composing these Com- 

 . mittees with every desire to make themselves useful, have there- 

 fore been unable to render the Society any assistance in their 

 several districts. 



The awards that have been made in the past season are as 



follows : 



