456 ANNUAL REPORT 



universe was horticultural work, an example showing that Jan-^ 

 uary 1st is none too early for this society to begin to plan its-' 

 work for the coming year. 



This is our first annual meeting, and I wish to congratulate 

 you on meeting under more favorable auspices than did the 

 State Society at theirs, held on our fair grounds in this city, Oct. 

 3, 1867. They had only twelve paying members on their books 

 at that time, while we have not less than fifty-nine. The past 

 year has been a prosperous one for our society. We have no- 

 deaths to record, while good health generally prevailed. 



The apple crop was better than 1887, and the small fruits 

 panned out finely. We enjoyed a successful and well attended 

 summer meeting on the Fourth of July, and had a fine display 

 of strawberries. Mr. John Bamber, a member of our executive 

 committee, has demonstrated what but few knew before, viz., 

 that two hundred fine strawberry plants could be produced from 

 a single berry. The foliage on these new varieties was grand 

 almost beyond comparison. They have not fruited yet, but we- 

 shall look for something choice when they do. In view of our 

 high anticipations, I will recommend that you appoint a com- 

 mittee of three to visit the seedling strawberry beds in the vicin- 

 ity of Kochester as soon as the fruit is ripe, and report at the 

 next summer meeting. With the horticulturist in a new country 

 like ours, poverty appears to be a blessing in disguise, and so it- 

 proved to be in my case. When I began my experimental work 

 on College hill, I was anxious to stock up well on young ever- 

 greens of all sorts that had any show at all to succeed here; as T 

 had considerable taste for that kind of work. At that time I 

 should have been obliged to go too far southeast for them, and 

 like many others, should have lost heavily, no doubt. But I did 

 muster change enough to buy several pounds of evergreen seed, 

 and the result has been that about nine-tenths of my sales of 

 evergreens have been my own seedlings, and from these seedlings 

 this last Christmas, I sold trees for churches to the amount of 

 over $20, ranging from $1.50 to $3 each, and fifteen to nineteen 

 feet high. 



I would like to emphasize this word seedling. You can hardly 

 indulge in them too much — seedlings of all descriptions. 



In conclusion, allow me to remind you of what you all know to- 

 be a fact, viz. : That it is only by persistent and united effort that 

 we can accomplish much through this society, while by this, it is. 



