6 WORCESTER COUNTY HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. [1904. 



and grapes, so that in many sections they were a total faihire. 

 Peach buds were injured by the December freeze so they were 

 a failure. 



For the odd year there is a large crop of apples — particularly 

 Baldwins — and also a fair crop of pears. 



All fruits except apples have shown the effects of the season 

 climatically, to a greater or less degree. 



The season early was very unfavorable for grass, the drouth 

 nearly destroying it. Lawns were in a bad condition; the 

 rainy season of June and the almost contmuous showers through- 

 out the season have saved the crop, and today they are in fine 

 condition. Our first general killing frost was Wednesday night 

 October 21; the season being long enough so that we had 

 flowers from out of doors for our October 15 exhibition. 



The early summer exhibitions showed the effects of the 

 variable season more than the spring or autumn ones. Our 

 market gardeners of today use so much glass in the way of 

 cold irames, hotbeds and greenhouses, that good exhibitions 

 can be held at any time or under any condition of weather. 



Peas came m early; June 4, we had two exhibitors and the 

 season lasted for two months. Corn, beans, tomatoes and 

 squashes came in slowly, two or three weeks behind the schedule. 

 Cucumbers and melons were nearly a failure. 



The flower exhibitions as a whole have been good. The 

 weather seemed to suit gladioli, dahlias and tuberous begonias, 

 the exhibitions of these being fine. Let one judge from an 

 exhibition standpoint and he would say that the season was 

 a very favorable one for the production of horticultural products 

 except grapes, melons and peaches, though one of our number 

 managed to have just enough peaches to take nearly all the 

 premiums here and in Boston. 



The Massachusetts Society exhibition for fruit and vege- 

 tables has been materially increased by contributions from 

 our members. 



The exhibitions of September 24, and October 15, were fine — 

 some of our members think the best we ever had. 



On invitation of our President a party from the Massachu- 



